By Staff
Melissa Cason
Franklin County Times
RED BAY – A firearm is one of the least used pieces of equipment carried by law enforcement. It is also the most important piece.
Police officers are well trained in firearms to be ready to use it if the need arises, and often times they can get such training from their fellow officers.
Sgt. Scotty Chandler, who was trained as a firearms instructor at the federal law enforcement training center in 2005, conducts training for the Red Bay Police Department.
He also teaches the refresher firearms course at the Northeast Alabama Police Academy at Fort McClellan, which is a division of Jacksonville State University.
"This course is designed to give police officers their 12 mandatory training hours in one day," Chandler said.
Chandler teaches the refresher course sporadically, and without pay. He is also a certified instructor for basic firearms.
In addition to being a firearms instructor, Chandler also serves as an operator for the Franklin County Special Response Team
"[Operators] are the most important part of the team," Chandler said. "They are the meat of the SRT."
Chandler began his police career with the Red Bay Police Department in 1999, and he doesn't think there's anything else he'd rather do.
"Being a police officer is a calling," Chandler said. "Not just anyone can come in off the street and become a police officer."