FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WNCN) — Fayetteville
police Department is developing recruits at an early age. The Public Safety Cadet Program at Fayetteville Police Department is for young adults between ages 14-17 who have a potential interest in a law enforcement career. “Once they are completed with the training, they almost get a guaranteed spot inside our academy,” Lieutenant Michael Bohannon, with Fayetteville Police Department said. These students meet every other Wednesday and go through a modified version of the Fayetteville Police Academy, Bohannon added. These young cadets learn patrol, traffic stop, and diving techniques. They are also trained on building clearing, laws of North Carolina, firearms, and vehicle pursuit training. The teens stay in the program until they turn 20 and are eligible to apply for the police academy. “They get to do firearms training. They get to do vehicle pursuit training. And it just gives them a taste. It definitely doesn’t qualify them to be an officer right then. But it lets them understand what they are going to go through once they go through the academy,” Bohannon said. This recruiting tool comes at a time when law enforcement agencies across North Carolina struggle with staffing. Currently, Fayetteville Police Department is down 98 sworn officers and 49 non-sworn officers. “The program is definitely a great step in achieving a goal in being a law enforcement officer or dealing in the criminal justice profession,” Sergeant Brandon Chandler, with Fayetteville Police Department said. “The biggest thing it does is it gives them the experience to know this is what I want to do, and this is why I want to do it,” Lt. Bohannon said. To learn more about The Public Safety Cadet Program at the Fayetteville Police Department, contact Detective Brandy Bohannon by phone at 910-580-2260 or .