CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Since he was a kid, Belle resident Shane Ray wanted to become a member of law enforcement. On Monday, that dream became a reality.
Ray and three other men were sworn-in to become officers with the Charleston Police Department. Charleston Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin did the honor of swearing in Ray, 19, Christopher Brent, 28, of Ashland, Kentucky, Dane Edwards, 23, or North Port, Florida, and Tyler Tolley, 22 of Sod.
“I feel like most little boys want to be a cop at some point. As I got older, that feeling never went away. I’ve always wanted to protect and serve,” Ray told 580-WCHS.
These four officers will start their training on Tuesday where they will train within the Charleston Police Department at the training division as the training staff prepares them for the West Virginia State Police Academy.
These officers will begin the West Virginia State Police Academy on August 1 where they must complete 12 weeks of academic and physical training.
Upon graduating from the academy, they will then attend 40 hours of orientation with the Charleston Police Department training staff. During this time, they will receive additional training in many areas, including Racial Bias, De-escalation, and Active Shooter, a release said.
The final portion of the training will be a 20-week Field Training Program. During each phase of training, they will be assigned to a field training officer, where they will be directly supervised, trained, and observed, a release said.
Ray said he’d like to see himself become a detective one day but will take on any role to make Charleston a better place to live.
“It’d be real good to change this area and get it to where kids feel safer around here,” Ray said.