MADISON, Wis. — Anthony Moreno spent months working and learning to become a deputy with the Dane County Sheriff’s Office.

But just because he graduated from cadet school and became a deputy, didn’t mean training was over.

He’s been on the job with the Sheriff’s Office for a month and is now going through its Jail Academy. It prepares deputies to work in the county jail.

One of those preparations includes a self-defense class, which teaches deputies how to break up fights and get out of difficult situations.

“Practice for defense, a lot of the actual laws, and some health stuff, making sure we are actually taking care of ourselves, which I thought was nice,” said Moreno.  

Dane County Sgt. John Motz leads the Jail Academy’s defensive tactics training. 

“It is a really important skill for recruits to have, especially when it comes to some of the concepts they are learning,” said Motz. “The public expects us to make safe and efficient decisions, especially under stress.”

Motz said the training includes crisis intervention, and how to protect yourself and others. It also goes through how to handle medical and mental health intake and security protocol.

“Locking doors, security checks, just how to respond to, and work in a facility like a correctional environment,” said Motz. 

The training can be physically intense, but Moreno said it’s valuable to build the muscle memory to be ready for anything on the job.

“I think with the training that I have, it has all prepared me for it. I think it is just a matter of getting enough reps and actually getting the feeling of like, it all works as well as it should,” said Moreno.