Training, Equipment and Education

The department has always placed a high priority on equipping its officers and staff with the needed and appropriate training, tools and equipment.

New hires go through fourteen weeks of training, including orientation and field training in rotation with at least three training officers. Trainees are evaluated daily on 31 performance standards that must be met before they are qualified to work independently. Once released from training, officers are on probation for one year.

Taser gun training and distribution has resulted not only in efficiency but also in a lower rate of officer and suspect injury.  Show Low officers participate in six hours of training before a Taser is issued to them.  Taser certification is valid for two years, at which time officers are given a refresher course to re-certify.

Officers continue to augment reports and photographic evidence and documentation. Radar Guns and mandated Intoxilyzer training are examples of critical traffic enforcement tools. Officers are required to maintain fitness and training levels. Education on Officer Safety, Use of Force issues, Mental Health issues, Child and Elder Abuse and Neglect, and Legal Issues involving Search and Seizure, and civil rights are at the forefront of on-going training and educational efforts.