Chief Trull graduates from police academy

  • Published
  • By Shawn Jacobs
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. --  Chief Richard Trull of the Arnold Air Force Base Police Department (APD) graduated from the Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy May 21. Trull received state-required basic police training in the academy and is now certified by the Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) Commission.

Trull's previous training was through the Air Force Security Forces, but the POST certification is required training for police across the state and will make it easier for him to present cases in court.

"With this certification, we gain instant credibility and recognition in the court systems without having to establish and ask for acceptance of our military/federal training," Trull said. "This saves time and money for our officers as well as the court system."

He said the course covered Tennessee law, practical firearms, defensive tactics, emergency vehicle operation, drug and alcohol identification and testing techniques, vehicle accident scene management and many other topics.

"The most enjoyable part of the training for me was the academics, especially the Tennessee law block," Trull said. "They tell you up front that the law portion is the most challenging and demanding and they were right. However, it's also the most intriguing and the most useful when you begin preparing to take a case to court."

Trull began his work with APD in June 2002 as a training officer. He was promoted to chief in April 2007. Prior to that, Trull was an Air Force security forces member for 25 years. His last assignment was executive officer and contingency operations superintendent at Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command/Security Forces Directorate.

Trull said the training is a huge milestone in the modernization of APD. "Changes in
our security programs such as integrated defense and joint anti-terrorism philosophies opened the door for us to move to this new level," he said. "The foresight and encouragement of our Air Force oversight office as well as the support and cooperation of Franklin County Sheriff Tim Fuller, Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves, State Representative Judd Matheny and POST Director Brian Grisham made this possible.
Obviously, we greatly appreciate the support and encouragement of our ATA senior management team in bringing this opportunity to fruition."

Three other officers are either currently attending the academy or scheduled to attend upcoming classes. The remainder of the department is already POST certified.