The Erie Police Department is now back at full strength, 173 officers. Three new officers were sworn in today, filling 3 vacancies created by recent retirements.
Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott today gave the trio of new officers their badges in a city hall ceremony. Many family and friends were there.
All three new officers are graduates of the Mercyhurst Police Academy. Two of them have worked at smaller departments. The third new officer spent 4 years in the U.S. Army.
They will formally begin their careers on April 1, with 90 days of training.
Erie Police Chief Steve Franklin said, "It takes about 3 months to go through the field training process. They will have field training officers working with them. Three months from now, we'll cut them loose on their own. I'm sure they will do very well."