For the second year in a row, the DeKalb Police Department will be running a Citizens Police Academy in February to help inform DeKalb residents about what it’s like to guard the streets of their community.

“This program will give insight to the participants of what the police do locally,” said DeKalb Police Detective Angel Reyes.

The Academy will cover different types of police work that go on in the department, Reyes said.

“[It’s] very hands on,” Reyes said. “Participants will actually collect evidence from a mock crime scene like we would on the job.”

Participants also will get to use a laser gun in a training simulation showing them just how much there is to keep in mind while wielding a gun, Reyes said.

“It’s like a video game with a big screen and you have to interact with it with verbal commands,” Reyes said.

There are “shoot, don’t shoot” scenarios, and after it’s over, participants get statistics like decision time, whether the shot was lethal or non-lethal, and, like real police, they have to justify why they fired the weapon.

Although each participant will receive a group picture and certificate of completion at the end of the seminar, they will not receive firearms certification, Reyes said.

Spots are limited; people from last year’s waiting list are being contacted first but they are still accepting applications. Applications are available at the DeKalb Police Department, 200 S. Fourth St.

A background check is required before entering into the academy, Reyes said.

“We don’t want to show the criminals what we’re doing and why,” Reyes said.Event