Press staff reports

ATLANTIC CITY — Mayor James Whelan swore in 18 new police recruits Friday in a brief ceremony in the Brighton Park Amphitheater at Park Place and the Boardwalk.

Police Chief Arthur Snellbaker, elected local officials, law enforcement officers and families of the new recruits looked on as the ceremony took place.

The recruits will undergo 21 weeks of training, beginning Monday, at the Atlantic County Police Training Center in Egg Harbor Township, said Sgt. Michael Tullio, public information officer for the Atlantic City Police Department.

That training will last until January, after which they will undergo six to eights week of on-the-job training with field-training coaches from the Police Department, Tullio said.

Ten of the new recruits were promoted from the rank of police aide to police recruit, he said. Eight of the recruits were from the existing eligibility list of the New Jersey Department of Personnel.

Following are the recruits, in order of their hiring eligibility:

Lisa Freeto, Dean Dooley, Joseph Leone, Annese Donnell, Robert Pennisi, Donnell Holland, Nicole Rifice, Gary Holmes, Priscilla Taliaferro, Shelly Kellerman, Kevin Francis, Julia Lawler, Kien Nhan, Mitzi Cruz, Alexis Smith, Christine Staines, Kiyia Harris and Susan Johnson.

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