One of the foundational promises that Sheriff Michelle Cook has given to the Clay County community is transparency in all aspects of operation. While maintaining integrity within investigations can at times make this a difficult promise to keep, Sheriff Cook and her team at the Clay County Sheriff’s Office have worked doubly hard to bring this promise to fruition. One of the key tools in keeping this promise is the Citizen’s Academy. During this nine week program, men and women from the community are guided through an in-depth look at the inner workings of the Sheriff’s Office. The Academy recently graduated another group of citizens, and, on this day, we have the pleasure of speaking with three of them. Though they all attended the exact same academy, their take-away from the experience was quite different.

Attendee Nikki decided to attend the Citizen’s Academy at the prompting of her boss who had attended a similar offering through another agency. Her experience was made meaningful by the personal interaction with CCSO personnel. “They’re risking their lives for our lives. They run to danger and they often don’t know just how much danger they might be running into. At the same time, it’s not always this way. I joked with the Sheriff that my ride-along in Fleming Island was boring—they promised me that they would let me have another ride-along on a more interesting night,” laughed Nikki. When asked if there was anything new that she learned about the agency, Nikki shared, “We were able to tour some of their larger pieces of equipment like the Mobile Command Center. A lot of people don’t realize that these things were purchased with seized drug money and not tax dollars. We also toured the inside of the jail. It was eerie when they shut those doors behind you, but I genuinely applaud the detention staff—not an easy job.” As our conversation came to a close, Nikki added, “I appreciate the transparency of Sheriff Cook. She gave us permission to ask the tough questions and, by the time we left, there were no questions left unanswered. It is so easy to complain on social media but that really accomplishes nothing. I recommend anyone who has questions or concerns to attend the Citizen’s Academy.”

Attendee David provided insight from a different perspective during our interview. “As a retired firefighter of 21 years, I was interested to see how law enforcement handled emergencies. This was a great look behind the scenes and I saw things that a lot of people may not be aware of. The ride-along can be eye-opening, but there are also operations like the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) and its great technology that enhance the Sheriff’s Office’s ability to investigate and stop crime. I had previously done the “Day as a Deputy” program, but the Academy took us deeper into the skills of dedication of the many men and women of the agency. K9, Hostage Rescue, Marine, etc. are all professionally run and the people seem to have a lot of pride in their service. There also seemed to be a great morale within the agency. I’d recommend this to every citizen. You really have to see at least some of these things to better understand how law enforcement works. It’s definitely not adversarial—more collaborative. That was certainly evident in the Crime Stoppers presentation. Ultimately, there are lots of moving parts that have to connect together—from apprehension to detention, this is a multifaceted agency.”

Attendee Ann also appreciated many of the things that Nikki and David shared, but her take on the experience was equally inspiring while quite unique. “Growing up, ‘Hunter’ was my favorite TV show, and I thought I would go into law enforcement. Instead, I joined the military. Still, I love watching crime shows like ‘CSI’, and I was interested to see the inner workings of our Sheriff’s Office. The Academy runs the gamut as they take you through so many different departments like the Dive Team, Investigations, and the Marine Patrol. Every night was different, but I (of course) enjoyed the Crime Scene and Crime Stoppers presentations the most. I was surprised at how transparent they were with us. I expected them to be very protective of their inner workings, but they actually asked us our opinions and wanted to know what things concerned us—it was very surprising and encouraging. I also was very interested in how they train the K9s to do so many things from search and rescue/recovery to investigations and apprehension. If anyone reading this has any interest in criminal justice, you definitely need to check the Citizens Academy out. I highly recommend it.”

Regardless of what you think you might know about the operations of a law enforcement agency, the Citizen’s Academy will open your eyes to the unique challenges faced by (and the opportunities afforded to) members of law enforcement today. For more information or to apply for the next Academy, please visit the CCSO website www.claysheriff.com