Lauren Bonnell has joined the ranks of the Haverhill Police Department as patrolman after graduating recently from the Northern Essex Community College Police Academy.
Bonnell graduated Aug. 11 with 32 others from the Academy’s 4th Recruit Officer Class. She was also recipient of the award for having the top level of physical fitness in the class.
Municipal Police Training Committee Executive Director Robert Ferullo and Northern Essex Community College Police Academy Director Joshua Stokel said, altogether, the newly minted police officers are joining 18 different law enforcement agencies across the state. Graduates complete over 20 weeks of intensive, standardized training in all aspects of law enforcement.
“The latest MPTC graduating class represents our investment in the future generation of public safety leaders who are well-prepared to protect and serve their communities and advance public safety across the Commonwealth,” said Ferullo, a retired police chief. “I commend their commitment to meeting our statewide professional training standards, which has prepared these officers to provide communities with exceptional policing services by putting into practice the advanced skills, values, and principles engrained throughout their training.”
During the ceremony, recruits took an oath and received their badges for service. Besides Haverhill, officers represent several police departments and agencies including Acton, Beverly, Billerica, Dunstable, Fitchburg State University, Lawrence, Leominster, Malden, Methuen, Northern Essex Community College, North Shore Community College, Revere, Somerville, Suffolk University, Tewksbury, Wakefield, and Wayland.
In keeping with mandates established by the landmark 2020 police reform law, the curriculum includes de-escalation training based on new use-of-force policies and regulations. Student officers also receive uniform training based on best practices related to essential modern-day policing needs, including effective communication skills, victim-centered and trauma-informed incident response, missing persons and human trafficking investigations, mental health-related emergency response, active shooter and hostile event response, patrol duties and officer safety and wellness.
Upon successful completion of the Academy, student officers have met all training requirements to be eligible for Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission certification.