Erick Bengel: Everyday People: Seaside officer graduates from FBI National Academy

Sep. 26—Last summer, an officer with the Seaside Police Department went back to school.

His alma mater: the FBI's National Academy.

Lt. Guy Knight was among 235 law enforcement officers selected for a 10-week program at the academy in Quantico, Virginia. Knight graduated earlier this month.

It's an elite program. Officers must pass a background investigation that looks at their leadership skills and moral character. Their department must recommend them, and the FBI must invite them.

Once an officer is chosen, the bureau pays for everything. Seaside Police Chief Dave Ham and former Seaside chief Bob Gross also graduated from the FBI academy.

From July to September, Knight took intensive classes in executive leadership, communication and fitness. He had electives in new technology, community relations and social media.

He trained among officers from both civilian and military agencies. His cohort hailed from throughout the U.S. and from 21 countries. Knight found himself among police chiefs and upper management from organizations whose staff number in the hundreds or thousands.

The students knew each others' names but didn't talk rank; everybody had an equal voice, Knight said.

They were there to get better at their jobs, and learn how their knowledge can benefit their departments and communities. In Knight's case, this may involve community-building techniques — he would like to bring back Coffee with a Cop and National Night Out — or just leaning on the relationships he formed with other police officers or FBI agents.

To qualify for the FBI program, officers must pledge to stay in law enforcement for at least three years after returning. Knight, who is raising two young children with his wife in the Lewis and Clark area, plans to be on the North Coast for many more.

Knight always felt a need to serve, he said. His father served in the U.S. Coast Guard, moving his family around the country and leaving for high-seas patrols.

"I missed him a lot when I was a kid," said Knight, who ultimately eschewed the military route, deciding, "'I would like to serve, but be local.'"

In his early 20s, Knight volunteered as a reserve officer at the Astoria Police Department. He left to build a family and worked in sales at Lum's Auto Center in Warrenton. In his 30s, when he had more free time, he considered reserving in Seaside.

Jason Schermerhorn — then a sergeant at Seaside and now the Cannon Beach police chief — remembered Knight and encouraged him to apply for an open officer position. Knight joined the department in 2009.

"I'll tell you what, it was the greatest decision I ever made," Knight said. "I love it."

Children are a special focus for Knight, who coaches youth soccer, baseball and T-ball.

One of Knight's most rewarding experiences was with United Way of Clatsop County's Lunch Buddies program, serving as a mentor for two at-risk youths who needed a role model. For several years, he had lunch with them regularly and discussed their lives and challenges.

Knight's lunch buddies are now in high school. "They're thriving, and it's just great to see," he said.

In 2016, Knight was running the detectives unit and came across an abuse case involving a father who punished his infant son by slamming the child's head into a door jam and, another time, suffocating him. The situation could have turned fatal.

Knight interviewed the mother. Soon, charges were filed, the father was convicted, and the boy and his younger brother were eventually adopted by the same family. Knight was invited to the adoption ceremony.

"The kids are the innocent (voices) that can't speak for themselves sometimes," he said. "So when you can help a child, that's powerful."