Six Princeton Police Department recruits were among the 42 cadets who graduated from the Mercer County Police Academy at its 21st graduation ceremony July 18.
Family and friends watched as the six – Erin Cipolloni, Dante Focarelli, David Garcia, Terry King, Rebecca Nelson and Brandon Rios – received graduation certificates, officially making them police officers.
The six new Princeton police officers will replace police officers who have retired or who are expected to retire in the next few months. They were ceremonially sworn in as police officers earlier this year, in advance of entering the police academy.
The 42 cadets went through 21 weeks of training at the Mercer County Police Academy, which is located in West Windsor. The cadets learned about firearms, vehicle pursuit, hostage negotiation, use of force, advanced crime scene processing, defensive tactics and domestic violence prevention.
Rios was chosen by his classmates to receive the Certificate of Merit, awarded by the New Jersey Police Training Commission. It is given to the best all-around graduate. Rios was also chosen to be the class speaker.
In his remarks, Rios told the attendees, who were made up of family, friends, law enforcement officials and elected officials, that it was time to celebrate the hard work and dedication that led the cadets to the end of their police academy training and the beginning of their careers as police officers.
“While we may not have been the perfect class, we refused to quit through the obstacles that required strength and perseverance,” Rios said. He thanked the police academy staff for pushing them to reach their full potential and for not giving up on them.
Rios said that the cadets learned what it meant to be a single, cohesive unit. They helped and supported each other at times when one of them felt like giving up, he said. The result is a family – brothers and sisters who have sworn to protect and provide for those who need help.
“I believe it takes a special kind of person to put others before themselves. On any given day, regardless of the call, each and every one of the officers here would do whatever it takes to get the job done, and I am proud to be a part of it,” he said.
The badge that a police officer wears is a symbol of public trust and the responsibility that it carries, Rios said. But it is more than a representation of authority and order – it is a beacon of hope and peace that offers the one who wears it the chance to make a difference in the community, he said.
“We will be called upon to be more than just peace officers. We will be therapists, counselors, doctors and decision makers. In the vast employment arena, I equate this to winning the employment lottery with the greatest job on earth,” Rios said.
Now, with their badges pinned to their uniforms, the six newly-minted police officers will enter the Princeton Police Department’s field training program. The program takes about three to four months to complete.
The new officers will be assigned to a field training officer, who will work with them over the next few months, Police Chief Nicholas Sutter said. Once they complete the field training program, they will be allowed to go on patrol alone.
