The Los Banos Police Department has announced that three recent Fresno Police Academy graduates have become the newest members of local law enforcement.
Officers Abel Rodriguez, Bradley Roland and Tyler Northey completed their training and received their badges at a graduation ceremony held on June 25.
The trio joins Los Banos officers Alexander Valdez, Salvador Castaneda, Brit Lippincott and Gilbert Garcia, who were recognized by the department in May for being new graduates of the police academy.
Police Chief Ray Reyna said the crop of new officers, fresh out of the academy, is not part of the plan for the department to get younger.
“There’s no strategic move,” he said. “Many of our officers did something else first, like the military, before going to the academy.”
However, Reyna said, he does believe it is important to have a balance between newer and tenured officers. He said Los Banos currently has that balance.
The Los Banos Police Department is authorized to have 52 sworn officers. Reyna indicated the department is close to that number, but is planning to hire two more officers presently working for other police departments.
The added personnel have allowed Los Banos to form specialty divisions designed to concentrate on specific types of law violations.
“We are very in tune with what the citizens want,” Reyna said. “We understand the public’s concerns very well.”
The department has established a traffic unit and a gang unit in response to Los Banosans expressing a desire for more policing in those areas.
The recent police academy graduates have been assigned to field training officers who will supervise them for 12 weeks as they help enforce the law in Los Banos.
On social media, the Los Banos police congratulated the new officers and expressed optimism about the positive impact they will have on the city.
In a separate telephone interview, Reyna said that, as of now, the department does not have any more recruits in the Fresno Police Academy.
