Two new police officers recently hit the streets of Llano after completing their police academy training, city officials announced earlier this month.
Aric Steffes and John Miquel Zavala are the new officers in training. They graduated from the CAPCOG Regional Law Enforcement Academy in June and officially joined the team on July 1.
Steffes and Zavala bring the department up to four patrol officers, said Llano Police Chief Mike Scoggins. He said that he now has 8 police officers, also including one lieutenant, one sergeant investigator, one corporal of training and one animal control officer.
“Once we get these two officers done with training, we’ll be fully staffed and operational for the first time in my 18 months,” Scoggins said. “Our rookie officers will be allowed to work after they receive a minimum of 160 hours of Field Training with an experienced training officer.”
Then they will be monitored for another 160 hours before being allowed to work by themselves, especially overnight.
“Both of them are really looking forward to working alone and make a positive impact in our city.”
The new guys
Steffes and Zavala might be new to the Llano PD, but they are not new to the life of law enforcement.
“Officer Steffes is the first City of Llano sponsored student to graduate from the CAPCOG Police Academy to come work for us,” the chief said.
Steffes has been in the field of law enforcement since graduating from high school in Round Rock. He worked as a jailer for the Travis County Sheriff’s Office and as a dispatcher with the Austin Police Department.
“His previous experience in the different fields of law enforcement will help him be quick to adapt,” Scoggins said.
Zavala was in a totally different field of work when he decided to sponsor himself through the police academy.
“He comes from a family of public servants: his father has been an Austin police officer for 27 years and his grandfather is an Army veteran,” Scoggins said. “I think he’s familiar with the many different hours and roles that police officers have to play in order to be successful.”
A calling
Scoggins said that being a law enforcement officer usually is a calling, as it was for him.
“I had a family member working in law enforcement and felt the need to work in this field since high school.”
He began his career in 1974 with the Dallas Police Department and retired as a commander after 33 years.
“After retiring from Dallas, I felt like I still could contribute to the community through the training and policing of a small city,” Scoggins said.
Nationwide, police departments are facing recruitment challenges, and Llano PD is no exception.
“Our recruitment has been slim due to many reasons, especially since the protests have occurred,” Scoggins said. “But, on our last opening we had three good applications to select from and we had to decide to between a new rookie or a couple that had prior experience.”
He decided to hire new recruits for a reason.
“We’re heading in a new direction--toward more community policing,” he said. “It will take more time to properly train the recruits, but going in the right direction is critical.”
The new recruits are being trained specifically in community policing and developing relationships.
“Once we change our culture and work habits, residents will benefit.”
