86th Indiana State Police Recruit Academy graduates 30 new troopers

On Thursday evening, the 86th Indiana State Police Recruit Academy completed its graduation ceremony in the Indiana State Capitol Rotunda.

Opening remarks were made by Indiana State Police Training Division Commander Major Dana Harshman and Indiana State Police Recruit Academy Commander Lieutenant Brent Cox. The commencement addresses were made by Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter and Megan Smith, wife of Indiana State Police Trooper Aaron Smith who was killed in the line of duty on June 28, 2023.

After the commencement address, the oath of office for the 30 new State Police Troopers was delivered by The Honorable Justice Christopher M. Goff of the Indiana Supreme Court. Each new Trooper was then presented his or her badge and official identification by Superintendent Carter and his staff.

The graduation marked the culmination of 22 weeks of intense training, which totaled more than 1,100 hours. Some subject areas of training included criminal and traffic law, de-escalation, emergency vehicle operations, defensive tactics, firearms, impaired driving detection, scenario-based training, and a host of other academic subjects related to modern policing.

Each graduating Trooper will be assigned to one of 14 State Police Posts across Indiana. Once at their assigned district, the new troopers will spend the next three months working side by side with a series of experienced Field Training Officers. The purpose of the field training is to put to practical application the training received throughout the formal academy training. Upon successful completion of field training, the new troopers will be assigned a State Police patrol vehicle and will begin solo patrol in their assigned district.