On Thursday, 75 cadets from the Academy Class No. 426 were inducted into the County of Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department as deputies.

In front of a filled house at the College of the Canyons Performing Arts Center, Sheriff Jim McDonnell introduced the Sheriff’s academy’s 75 newest deputies.

“We have come together today to celebrate a major milestone in the lives of our recruits, but as importantly as the lives of all of you,” McDonnell said. “These young men and women have taken an oath that forever binds them to the community that they serve.”

Among those graduating were men and women from a variety of backgrounds including a few who had previously served in different branches of the military as well as individuals with experience from a wide variety of academic disciplines. Additionally, 40 of the cadets in the graduating class are multilingual, Mcdonnell said.

“Our standards have remained high, yet we’ve also maintained the diversity that Los Angeles County can be proud of,” McDonnell said.

In addition to acknowledging the active and former military in the room, the ceremony and Academy Class No. 426 paid tribute to Kenneth Copeland, an officer in the San Marcos Police Department who was shot and killed in the line of duty.

“On Monday Dec. 4, 2014, Officer Copeland was shot and killed while he and other officers attempted to serve an arrest warrant for a man wanted for a violent crime,” McDonnell said. “Officer Copeland’s memory will live on in Academy Class No. 426.”

Among the newly appointed deputies for LASD were eight cadettes that will be joining the Beverly Hill Police Department, Burbank Police Department, Glendale Police Department and the Inglewood Police Department.

While recognizing the deputies and officers that were graduating would be performing their duties in different parts of Los Angeles County, McDonnell said that their actions and relationship with the public would be judged similarly.

#LASD Class #426 getting ready for inspection . We are proud to have them begin their #lawenforcement career with us! Graduation is next up!
Watch the graduation live in 10 min at https://t.co/QIaZPmTIYS pic.twitter.com/NDlET4DjXH

— LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) February 8, 2018

“We live in an era where the nation has come to know of a place called Ferguson, Missouri. Subsequently, whether it was Baltimore, Chicago or Charlotte, the very character and integrity of policing across the country would be judged by the actions of officers hundreds and possibly thousands of miles away,” Sheriff McDonnell said. “And yet you and so many others of your generation, chose to invest your lives in pursuit of a simple fact: policing is, and always will be, a noble profession.”

For more information on how to to pursue a career in law enforcement, visit Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department career page by clicking here.

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