APD Adds 7 New Officers as Lateral Class Graduates

June 21, 2019

Mayor Tim Keller and APD Chief Mike Geier welcomed seven new officers to the department as the 22nd Lateral Class graduated today.

The lateral class represents the next phase of APD’s new recruitment pipeline, which has contributed 123 new officers to the department. Another class of 19 police cadets is scheduled to graduate in July.

“We are welcoming a third class of experienced law enforcement officers – the 22nd Lateral Class – in just one year,” Mayor Keller said. “We are also meeting our goals for recruiting new cadets. Before my election as Mayor, the city was losing more officers than it could bring in. We have reversed the trend with competitive salaries, revamped leadership and a focus on community policing. This lateral class puts qualified officers on the ground immediately, which will help us sustain the progress we’ve made to tackle crime from all sides.”

Chief Geier said APD is benefitting from the combination of lateral transfers and new recruits. “We created a thoughtful and comprehensive strategy to rebuild APD by recruiting and training new officers, reaching out to officers with experience in other agencies, and incentivizing existing officers to commit to staying here.”