KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The 174th Entrant Officer class is on the home stretch at the KC Regional Police Academy.
Entrant officers completed their fourth and final round of practical integrated exercises at the academy on Thursday evening.
The exercises are meant to test entrant officers on all of the training they've learned so far.
They are put in simulated 911 calls with actors and must decide how to handle the call.
The exercises are meant to get more complex and intense throughout the duration of the training.
Thursday's exercise required entrant officers to pursue a suspect who shot at them while in their car.
At the sound of gunshots, training kicks in for entrant officer Andrew Arellano.
He turns on his lights and sirens, communicates with dispatchers that he is pursuing a suspect after shots are fired and takes off.
He has to navigate high speeds and turns on the academy's outdoor track while constantly communicating what is going on and where he is.
"They do a good job of getting our heart rates up, and then talking us through things also and letting us know what we did good and what we need to work on," Arellano said.
His test continues in the firing range where he must decide when to use deadly force.
The academy constructs a dark scene and uses props to portray possible suspects.
Entrant officers may come across someone simply holding a phone or a water bottle.
When they come across a suspect pointing a gun at them they know to shoot.
It's crucial entrant officers use their decision making training they've learned throughout the academy.
With just a few weeks left before graduation, Arellano said he's grateful for the academy's training and ready to use it to serve the people in his community.
"They want to feel protected, they want to know that they have somebody to call on who is going to be there for them so that's the biggest thing for us," Arellano said.
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