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Neighbors toe the thin blue line

Stifle the gossip if you see your neighbor riding in a police car.

The person suited up in a bullet-proof vest, seated next to the driver, probably is one of two dozen local men and women enrolled in a 10-week Merrimack Police Department Citizens’ Academy, launched Jan. 18.

The ride-along with a police officer, during an eight-hour shift, is an optional part of the training. Few students are expected to decline. Shifts in the radio room are also a highlight. Classroom instructions, videos, slide shows, lectures from officers with specialized areas of expertise and a weapons demonstration are also part of the course.

The evening assembly was the start of a program that eventually will familiarize the students with all aspects of police work. An opening-night welcome was extended from Merrimack Police Chief Mark Doyle, Lt. Denise Roy, the course’s primary instructor, and several other officers.

Some Merrimack police who will share their expertise during the course were introduced on opening night. Captains Mike Dudash and Peter Albert were on hand, along with Lt. Dean KillKelley, Sgt. Brian Levesque and officer Robert Kelleher. Each has extensive experience and much to teach.

Doyle said those attending the academy – the 17th of its kind – will share a two-way learning opportunity, a mutually beneficial partnership between the citizens and the police department. He said he will value each student’s feedback and use their input to continue improving police services to the community.

“You’ll learn a lot here about what we do,” Doyle said. “During ride-alongs, you’ll see it can be really crazy or really boring. You’re going to run the gamut of emotions, just like we do. Once you leave here after 10 weeks, you’ll be one of 300 folks who have become a part of something special.”

A tour of police headquarters commenced. It gave attendees an up-close look at how the department’s day-to-day operations are managed. Participants gathered in the radio room and watched the dispatcher’s communication procedures. They peered into interview rooms where statements from witnesses, crime victims or suspected criminals are videotaped.

They were led down hallways connected to the rooms where the Criminal Investigations Bureau is located. Detectives seated in front of their computers gave a quick greeting before returning to the cyber inquiries that are a part of modern police sleuthing.

The booking area drew its share of attention. It’s the first stop for anyone arrested. There, an electronic breath-analysis machine that computes the amount of alcohol in a suspect’s exhaled breath was displayed by Kelleher, the department’s community relations officer.

Kelleher, whose domain includes numerous citizen assistance programs, including Merrimack’s town watch program and a host of services for seniors, also showed the crowd the latest in fingerprinting technology – an electronic machine that uses no ink.

Long gone, he commented, are the days when a suspect was required to press his or her fingertips onto a messy ink pad and then onto a paper card. Today, fingerprinting is inkless. A scanning procedure secures the images and the confirmation of one’s identity from state and federal databases is rapid.

Roy, a veteran of 21 years in police work, added her observations, noting that if a fingerprinted suspect is on a wanted list somewhere else, “it comes up as a hit.” She earlier had obtained students’ promises to keep private all matters related to any form of personal information they might see or hear at the academy.

Roy, who has served in nearly every level of police work, including patrol duty, undercover narcotics investigations and prosecutor duties, continued the tour. She pointed out detention cells, locker rooms, the library, the weapons arsenal, the animal control office and other areas, including the roll call room where every shift begins.

It is in the roll call room that the officer in charge of the shift transmits to others coming on duty all the important information about incidents occurring throughout the previous shift. Alerts are shared as to related issues of the day – or the season.

The holidays, for instance, brought added vigilance. Officers were on high alert because of the increased risk of retail theft and burglaries of homes and autos by miscreants whose aim was to steal items of value such as Christmas gifts.

The academy’s first-night students, all Merrimack residents, said they were satisfied with the academy. George Kenson, a semi-retired pharmacist, said he enrolled out of a sense of curiosity.

“I see police action on television and I wondered if it was really like that,” Kenson said.

Lindsey Hausmann, an e-commerce associate for ECCO Shoes, said that some years ago she gave serious consideration to a career in criminal justice.

“I thought it would be neat to see behind the scenes,” Hausmann said.

Ed Staph, a member of the American Legion Riders, New Hampshire Chapter 15, frequently rides his Harley alongside other chapter members in town parades, events where the MPD always has an impressive presence.

“Tonight was very informative,” Staph said. “Seeing so much and hearing the details gave me a greater appreciation of what the police do here, every day.”

Roy concluded the first night of instruction by telling the participants that she is sure the next 10 weeks will go by quickly. She said she and the other officers are looking forward to sharing their experiences and showing the class how the police department operates.

“When participants graduate, they immediately become part of our police family,” Roy said. “They’ll look back on this experience as a rewarding one – one that will give them a real sense of appreciation for what we do.”

The annual classes are held each year in January. For more information about the Merrimack Police Department’s Citizens’ Academy, call the station at 424-2222.