The chief of police is going back to school.
He will sit beside some of his department's recruits, learning Georgia law, how to shoot and how to drive an emergency vehicle.
It's something the 30-year law enforcement veteran would rather not do.
Last month, Berkow submitted a request to the Georgia Peace Officers Standards and Training Council in Atlanta to be exempt from having to attend the academy.
Berkow said he doesn't mind learning Georgia law, but he doesn't want to take the "basic recruit curriculum," such as firearms and emergency driving.
"I am deeply committed to the idea of state certification and will follow the rules of Georgia," he said. "But when a lawyer comes into the state, we don't require him to go back to law school. When a doctor comes, we don't require him to go back to medical school."
The council denied the request on March 21, saying the academy is mandated by Georgia law, said Patrice Kerner, POST director of program support. The council ordered Berkow to complete an abbreviated curriculum, which is 204 hours for any officer who is certified in another state. The regular police academy is 408 hours.
"We have an abbreviated course, where you learn Georgia law, liability and all the extra stuff that deals with Georgia," Kerner said. "He (Berkow) felt like he was an attorney and didn't need to go through the extra stuff."
"There are different laws for different states," said Harlan Proveaux, assistant director of the Georgia Public Safety Training Center's Regional Police Academy in Savannah.
Berkow said he offered to take an exam similar to the one he took in California to test his law enforcement skills and knowledge before joining the Los Angeles Police Department.
"It was a process that made a great deal of sense to me. I would be happy to take any test," he said.
Berkow attended the New York police academy in Rochester in 1976.
During his three-decade career, he has taught courses at various police academies across the nation, including California, New York, Florida and other states, he said. He also has served as instructor for the International Association of Chiefs of Police, teaching terrorism, investigations, leadership and other courses.
Berkow will get the more than 200 hours of training at the regional academy at Armstrong Atlantic State University. In addition to Georgia law courses, Berkow will learn peace officer liability and use of deadly force, Proveaux said.
The courses will be spread out over the next several months so it does not interrupt his job, he said.
Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Chief Michael Berkow is scheduled to begin training at the police academy today.
He will sit beside some of his department's recruits, learning Georgia law, how to shoot and how to drive an emergency vehicle.
It's something the 30-year law enforcement veteran would rather not do.
Last month, Berkow submitted a request to the Georgia Peace Officers Standards and Training Council in Atlanta to be exempt from having to attend the academy.
Berkow said he doesn't mind learning Georgia law, but he doesn't want to take the "basic recruit curriculum," such as firearms and emergency driving.
"I am deeply committed to the idea of state certification and will follow the rules of Georgia," he said. "But when a lawyer comes into the state, we don't require him to go back to law school. When a doctor comes, we don't require him to go back to medical school."
The council denied the request on March 21, saying the academy is mandated by Georgia law, said Patrice Kerner, POST director of program support. The council ordered Berkow to complete an abbreviated curriculum, which is 204 hours for any officer who is certified in another state. The regular police academy is 408 hours.
"We have an abbreviated course, where you learn Georgia law, liability and all the extra stuff that deals with Georgia," Kerner said. "He (Berkow) felt like he was an attorney and didn't need to go through the extra stuff."
"There are different laws for different states," said Harlan Proveaux, assistant director of the Georgia Public Safety Training Center's Regional Police Academy in Savannah.
Berkow said he offered to take an exam similar to the one he took in California to test his law enforcement skills and knowledge before joining the Los Angeles Police Department.
"It was a process that made a great deal of sense to me. I would be happy to take any test," he said.
Berkow attended the New York police academy in Rochester in 1976.
During his three-decade career, he has taught courses at various police academies across the nation, including California, New York, Florida and other states, he said. He also has served as instructor for the International Association of Chiefs of Police, teaching terrorism, investigations, leadership and other courses.
Berkow will get the more than 200 hours of training at the regional academy at Armstrong Atlantic State University. In addition to Georgia law courses, Berkow will learn peace officer liability and use of deadly force, Proveaux said.
The courses will be spread out over the next several months so it does not interrupt his job, he said.
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