It’s been quite some time since the Perry Police Department has had a full staff of officers, but with two hires in the last couple weeks they are finally there.

Police Chief Eric Vaughn says both new officers, Erna Mujakic and Trevor Hickey, are in field training right now. Mujakic, however, will be ready to go sooner than Hickey. “She’s a certified officer, so we’re in training with her and hopefully we’ll get her out on the road by herself here in the next month or so. It’s always great to hire new officers, but it’s always great to have a certified officer that we can get out on the street to help us out a little quicker.”

Hickey is not a certified officer, so he’ll be in field training until he leaves for the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy, which Vaughn says should be around the start of 2018. Once he graduates from the academy, which should take around 14 weeks, he’ll return for more field training. Vaughn estimates Hickey will be ready for solo work by May if all goes well. The addition of Mujakic and Hickey brings the department up to 12 full-time officers, which is a full staff, according to Vaughn.

To hear more about the Perry Police Department, listen to today’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.