No one is spared from the boss's watchful eyes. In photo, Gaffney Police Department School Resource Officer Audrey Jolly flies through the department 's annual firearms qualification exam while Police Chief Rick Turner follows close behind with a stopwatch. While he had held the rank of police captain and lead firearms instructor for many years, Rick Turner was in some ways just one of the guys when he put Gaffney Police Department members through their annual firearms qualification exam.

Now, he’s the boss and he has no problems adding to the stress his officers face while trying to prove their proficiency.

“That was one of the things I promised myself (when I became chief) as well as I also told (city) council,” said Turner, who took over as city police chief about a year ago. “I did plan on keeping up with maintaining my instructor certification so I would still have the heaviest hand in the training of the officers here and so they were trained the way I wanted them to be trained.”

On Monday, Turner and the department’s other certified firearms instructor, Capt. Mike Segina, put the first batch of Gaffney police officers and reserve officers through their paces at the Gaffney Board of Public Works shooting range. Department members will be taking the exams every Monday this month until all officers have completed and passed.

The course Turner and Segina designed for this year is meant to simulate the types of situations officers may have to deal with out in the field if they’re ever called upon to draw their service weapons, from looking for cover to firing at odd angles.

“This course encompasses (tests of) accuracy, movement, shot placement and judgment,” Turner said. “It encompasses quite a bit more realistic training than just shooting holes in a static piece of paper hanging there.”

And, of course, each officer is carefully judged by Turner and Segina and an unforgiving stopwatch.

Officers have to complete the 50-shot test in under three minutes to pass while achieving an accuracy rate of at least 75 percent.

Leading by example both Turner and Segina ran through the course in just about a minute with no shots wasted, though Turner was critical of his own demonstration afterwards. If you want to see the test performed, The Gaffney Ledger will post videos of Turner’s and Segina’s demonstrations at gaffneyledger.com.

Rank has no privileges in these tests, as all officers in the department, from volunteers all the way up the ranks, have to complete it and pass. And even those who pass aren’t above some constructive criticism, as Turner and Segina meet with each officer to offer critiques and suggestions about their actions and technique.

Next month, officers will have to go through their annual driving qualifications testing.

While instructors like Turner and Segina are looking at any number of things, perhaps the most telling thing about the examinations is how officers handle stress. That’s why Turner and Segina say training and repetition is so important.

“The more you train, the more you remember what to do in bad situations,” Turner said.

Timing the tests also forces the officers to make quick decisions, since the real world rarely gives you a lot of time to ponder a reaction.

“An officer has to be able to make a decision and make the right decision,” Turner said. “With that time limit on them, it makes them make that decision about when to shoot, what to shoot, a little more urgent.”

The Gaffney Police Department typically opens its annual qualifications exam to other area police departments and law enforcement professionals. Several officers from Cowpens and a state Constable participated Monday.