For Release: Immediate  Date: December 18, 2003

Patty McQuillan  Public Affairs Officer CCPS Public Affairs Office Phone:(919) 733-5027 Ext. 232

SALEMBURG - The North Carolina Police Corps is graduating 21 highly trained police cadets on Friday, Dec. 19 at 1 p.m. in Jones Auditorium at the North Carolina Justice Academy in Salemburg. Gene Nichol, Dean of the School of Law at the University of North Carolina will deliver the keynote address.

Upon graduation, these new officers will perform community patrol for various law enforcement agencies throughout North Carolina, Virginia, and Texas. North Carolina is one of 22 states and territories that recruit and train college graduates to serve four years as community police officers through a program funded by the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs.

“This graduation is the culmination of a rigorous 24-week training program that teaches the knowledge, skills and professional standards police officers need to serve on community patrol,” said Bryan Beatty, secretary of the Dept. of Crime Control and Public Safety. “These outstanding young men and women have met high performance standards for physical, mental and emotional fitness, and I congratulate each of them on their achievement.”

The Police Corps has a competitive college scholarship program for students who agree to work in a state or local police force for at least four years. Scholarship funds cover education expenses, including tuition, fees, books, supplies, transportation, room and board, and miscellaneous expenses.

The graduates of the North Carolina Police Corps program will join 13 North Carolina and Virginia law enforcement agencies. Those agencies include: N.C. Alcohol Law Enforcement Division, Asheville Police Dept., Guilford County Sheriff’s Office, Jacksonville Police Dept., Raleigh Police Dept., Richmond, Virginia, Police Dept., N.C. State Capitol Police, Roanoke Rapids Police Dept., Petersburg, Virginia, Police Dept., Pitt County Sheriff’s Office, Statesville Police Dept, Wilmington Police Dept., and Winston-Salem Police Dept. Those agencies will assign the new officers to community patrol within their jurisdictions.

The graduating Police Corps officers are:
Zachary Armstrong of Galveston, TX
Matthew Autry of Stedman, NC
Armando Bake of Rio Rico, AZ
Brenda Barbour of Martinsville, VA
Brandon Black of Sterling, VA
Alexander Christoffel of Hagerstown, MD
Matthew Davis of Marion, NC
Neil Doss of Mt. Airy, NC
Brett Foust of High Point, NC
Gregory Geist of Collegeville, PA
Micheal Klingenschmidt, of Pinehurst, NC
Dustin Lowe of Louisa, VA
Stephen Matthews of Sanford, NC
John M. McArthur of Edenton, NC
Chrystal Medlin of Roanoke Rapids, NC
Ramona Norwood of Eastman, GA
Caroline Robinson of Marshall, NC
Juan Romero of Leesburg, VA
Patrick Trantham of Waynesville, NC
Nathan Triche of Walnut Cove, NC
Brandon Walter of Charlotte, NC.

For information about the North Carolina Police Corps program contact Pat Watson at 919-662-4735. Information is also available through the NC Police Corps Website at: www.ncpolicecorps.org.

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