Record-setting 121 troopers graduate from Indiana State Police Academy

ZIONSVILLE, Ind. – A record class of 121 troopers graduated Friday from the Indiana State Police Academy, a day after a veteran trooper was fatally shot in Wabash County.\nState Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell spoke of selflessness and sacrifice to about 500 friends and relatives of the new troopers during the graduation ceremony, which closed out 23 weeks of training for the largest recruit class in the department's history.\n"More men and women like you are sorely needed now ... with crime as rampant as it is," Whitesell said. "You have chosen to be the hunters in a society of the hunted, so be careful."\nMaster Trooper David Rich, 41, became the first trooper killed in a line-of-duty shooting since December 2003 on Thursday when he was fatally shot by a Michigan man who then reloaded the shotgun and killed himself.\nRich, an 18-year veteran, was shot in the chest by a shotgun after he stopped to help Joseph M. Vultaggio Jr., 21, of Gaylord, Mich., whom he thought was stranded. The trooper was on his way home and wasn't wearing a bullet-proof vest or uniform when the shooting happened.\nA funeral service will be held for Rich at 11 a.m. on Wednesday at the Honeywell Center Gymnasium in Wabash.\nThe shooting was on the minds of the new troopers and audience members during Friday's ceremony. Dorothy McCooe, 85, of New Albany, said she will learn to cope with her fears for the safety of her grandson, Brock.\nDanger comes with the hat, badge and sidearm, said Trooper Brock McCooe, 29, an Army veteran who graduated at the head of his class.\n"To say I don't have fear would be a lie," McCooe said. "The definition of courage is going forward in the face of fear."\nTrooper Edward Kaucher, 28, of Indianapolis, said his training prepared him and his classmates to face danger.\n"We realize this is part of the job," Kaucher said. "We go places where normal people do not go."\nLt. Gov. Becky Skillman said Rich's death and the deaths of others in law enforcement illustrate the dedication and sacrifice the job requires. She said there's no way to thank the new troopers enough for their service.\n"There's always a sacrifice inherent in police work," Skillman said. "In order to keep our neighborhoods safe, you have to risk your own safety."\nThe rookies will spend the next three months in field training, riding alongside veterans at their assigned posts.