Newest deputies, officers graduate from Wichita/Sedgwick County academy

Marcell Gardner didn’t want to sit behind a desk all day counting numbers and filing taxes.

Instead, the 22-year-old chose chasing criminals and protecting the residents of Wichita over a career in accounting.

Gardner was one of 29 new law enforcement officers – eight Sedgwick County sheriff’s deputies, 21 Wichita police officers – who graduated from the academy Friday during a ceremony at Maize South High School.

“I wanted to be able to help people besides just with numbers,” said Gardner, the class president representing the Wichita Police Department. “I wanted to make an actual difference.”

About 100 families and friends filled the auditorium for Friday’s commencement ceremony to watch their future deputies and officers walk across the stage in their dress blues or browns.

Starting last January, the graduates endured about six months of basic training.

It’s “grueling,” Gardner said, “but it’s worth it.”

The training covers interpersonal communication, policy and procedure, defensive tactics, firearms training and mental health awareness, among other things.

“And did I mention push-ups?” graduating sheriff’s deputy Kyle Broussard said, jokingly during his commencement speech.

Speeches during the ceremony touched on the growing tensions among law enforcement and residents. Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter said in his speech that law enforcement is a career that is both rewarding and challenging.

“With the events of unrest and incidents of violent crime that are happening all across the United States, these young men and women will be challenged to make quick, sometimes life-threatening decisions, through the onset of their careers,” he said.

To combat those tensions, Wichita police Capt. Brent Allred said common sense is a big part of being a law enforcement officer.

“We really stress communication and being able to communicate with people and treating them fairly,” said Allred, the group’s training commander. “Every day we talk to them about how you have to be able to talk to people.”

Gardner said police officers aren’t like the ones in the news who have been charged with crimes.

“That’s just 1 percent of people,” he said. “It’s not everyone.

“It’s the things we’ve been taught. They’ve been training us about having professionalism and integrity and ethics. And understanding the diversity that we encounter. We’re well trained.”

Gardner’s mother said she is proud of her son.

“People have been asking me, ‘Am I afraid for him?’ ” Claudia Garnder said. “I said ,‘No, I’m concerned.’ As a mother, I prayed over it, (but I’m) not afraid at all. He’ll be all right.”

Local professional boxer Immanual Thompson graduated Friday as a new Wichita police officer. He said he decided to join the academy because of the variety of duties.

“One day I’m in the courtroom in a suit and tie,” Thompson said. “The next day I could be chasing someone or knocking down a door to go and render medical aid to somebody or arrest somebody. The next day I can be in the classroom talking to students.”

After the ceremony, the graduates gathered with family and friends grasping bouquets of flowers and posing for photos.

“The main thing is I want to go out there in the community, and I want to set a positive example,” Thompson said. “Not all contact with the police is negative.”

This story was originally published June 19, 2015 at 3:43 PM with the headline "Newest deputies, officers graduate from Wichita/Sedgwick County academy."