Growing up on Columbus’s West Side, positive early encounters with local officers planted a seed that never faded. Despite facing skepticism from peers who questioned a career in law enforcement, this cadet chose to tune out the background noise and follow his passion. Now gaining behind-the-scenes experience through the Columbus Police Cadet Program, he’s preparing to hit the beat at 21 with a clear mission: break down stereotypes, build genuine community trust, and prove that staying true to your calling is always worth the journey.
What sparked your interest in joining the Columbus Police Cadet Program?
I mean, since I was younger, I’ve always been interested in a career in law enforcement. I’ve
seen this as an early gateway into it. It helped me get in and see everything, get more of a behind-the-scenes kind of feel. So that’s
why I joined the Cadet Program.
Were there any specific moments of people in your neighborhood who inspired you to
pursue law enforcement?
I mean, family and military and stuff like that. And then also having good experiences with
officers growing up in my neighborhood.
What is the biggest misconception about the police among teens, and how do you hope
to change that?
I feel like a lot of younger people have a view on police as they’re all bad, and none of them are,
they’re all rude and stuff. But there’s been plenty of examples of that being false.
I mean, Officer Murray, Officer Johnson, all these officers I’ve met during the Cadet Program
have proved to me that not every officer is the same. They can be different people.
What is the most challenging physical or mental struggle you had to overcome?
I feel like coming into this, people not really viewing it as something that you should be doing.
I’ve been told “is this really a career that I would consider and go into?” Trying to get over that
and not really caring about what people think about it is one of the hardest parts that I had to
overcome.
As a cadet, you’re a part-time employee. How do you balance this demanding program
with your personal life and other team interests?
So while I’m at work, I just focus solely on work. And I study a little bit outside of work, and I just
try to have a good balance of it. I try not to think too much about work when I’m outside of work
and don’t think too much about outside while I’m inside.
The Columbus Division of Police focuses heavily on building trust. How do you plan to
use your perspective to connect with Columbus youth?
When I get on, I want to eventually do a lot of stay on the streets a lot for a while so I can get a
community engagement feel and not be one of the officers that don’t really interact with the
community. I want to go on the streets for that reason so I can interact with people more.
Looking ahead to when you turn 21 and take the Civil Service exam to become a sworn
officer, what kind of impact do you want to make on the city?
I want to make a lasting impact and show people that the Columbus City and police in general
aren’t all that bad, especially with people viewing them in a certain light all the time, still to this
day. I feel like I can make that difference by engaging with people and talking to people and
showing people that everyone can be different.
What advice would you give to another teenager who is interested in law enforcement
but isn’t sure where to start?
I would tell people to probably join the PSCs. And that’s kind of an early way to get in.
You can start that, I think, at the age of 14. So, you can get in there, and they’ll show you what it
is kind of like to be an officer and show you things that usually you and other people wouldn’t
really see. So that’s what I would tell people. And don’t follow what people tell you to do. Just do what you
want to do.
Why did you choose to join the CPD?
Why Columbus Police? The reason I joined Columbus is because I grew up in Columbus and
seeing Columbus Police and having those experiences with them growing up. I grew up on the
West Side, so I’ve seen all the police a lot.
So growing up out there and seeing all the police out there and talking to them and interacting
with them made me want to join them. And I didn’t really have too much experience with other
agencies, so that’s really why I wanted to join Columbus.
What did other people around you think of you joining the Cadet Program?
I feel like people viewed it in a bad way. And I still get questions to this day about why I wanted
to do that and is that really what I want to do. I mean, it’s not like I don’t know. You can’t really
go based off of what other people think and what other people view because a lot of those
people wanted to do certain things in their past, and they listened to what people told them to
do, and then they didn’t eventually end up doing what they actually wanted to do.
So, I kind of view it in that way. And I actually want to finish what I started.
What is the most important lesson you’ve learned through the program?
The most important lesson that I’ve learned so far is probably honesty. I feel like this is a career
that you must be honest in. You can’t lie in this career. So, I would say honesty.
Interview by: Jaila Mccarey
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