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GPD swears in 10 new officers

Press release from Gainesville Police Department

Acting GPD Police Chief Lonnie Scott, Sr., swore in 10 new officers last Friday, June 17, 2022 in the Hall of Heroes at GPD Headquarters.

Officers Michael Gilmore, Monica Henry, Andrew Martin, Arnoldo Poveda, James Rome, William Schaeffer, Kenrick Theophin, Kaitlyn Weber, Demitri Weekes, and Morgan Widmayer will now begin the Field Training Evaluation Program.

As GPD continues to recruit new officers to join its ranks in service to the Gainesville community, we congratulate these 10 individuals on their swearing in and on becoming a part of the GPD family and the Greater Gainesville community.

For those interested in exploring a career in law enforcement with GPD, please contact GPD’s Recruiter, Officer Rodonis, at 352-393-7533 or rodonisaj@cityofgainesville.org

  • It’s amazing that there were 10 people out there who want to be a police officer in this city…

  • They swore in 10. This is before the field training period starts. They will be lucky if they retain 3 of the 10. Why? Because people 1) Change their minds, the real world of policing is very different than the academy and they decide its not for them. 2)Can’t pass training FTO period. 3)Go to a different higher paid agency. 4) Do something dumb during this training period, like use their badge inappropriately, get involved in an incident off duty that affects employment, etc. This isn’t new, not all new hires get from A to B successfully, just a fact of life and the job.

  • My hope is that these brave souls are in it for the right reason, truth and justice. IMO GPD is fraught with problems and these new hires will have to toe the line or move on or worse join the “bad” cops that hold on because they can’t go anywhere else. The good news for these guys and gals is that promotion will move quickly no matter what your performance is, so just hang in there. More will quit as GPD gets investigated for the questionable activities of their performance. More to come…

  • A good first assignment would be to do something about the aggressive panhandlers on Waldo Rd. You can find them daily from 39th Ave all the way down to Hawthorne Rd.

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