Seymour’s newest police officer knows a thing or two about small towns.

Hailing from Henry County, Kentucky, with a population just more than 15,500, John Armstrong, 23, said he feels like Seymour is a good fit for him and vice versa.

“My entire county has less people than the actual city of Seymour,” he said.

Armstrong was sworn in as an officer by Mayor Craig Luedeman during the Seymour Board of Public Works and Safety meeting May 24.

He said he always has had an interest in law enforcement and has worked at a maximum security prison in Kentucky. That experience gave him the opportunity to interact with convicted criminals and learn how to assess situations and people, he said.

“It’s just something I’ve always found interesting since I was a little kid,” he said of his career choice.

But he’s not following in anyone’s footsteps. His family used to own a farm, and his father now works maintenance in a factory and his mom is a schoolteacher.

After graduating from Henry County High School in 2013, he attended Morehead State University in Kentucky to play football and tried out different areas of study, but he kept going back to law enforcement.

He had enough college credits after two years to become a police officer.

“It was a good fit, so I decided to stick with it,” he said. “I wanted a job that helps people.”

With his girlfriend and her family being from Seymour, Armstrong was somewhat familiar with the community. But being new to the city has its advantages, he said.

“I feel like I’m a fresh face, someone new, and so far, I love Seymour,” he said.

His hometown had a population of just 80 people, so Seymour is big city living, he said.

So far, Armstrong said he has enjoyed meeting all of the officers and other employees of the Seymour Police Department.

“It’s a great staff,” he said. “I have great support here, and they are giving me a lot of great opportunities to advance my career.”

Although most officers have a couple of months of on-the-job training before heading to the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Plainfield, Armstrong had just three weeks. His first day at the academy was June 18.

In his three weeks with the department, he was able to receive instruction in emergency vehicle operations, where he learned how to drive a police squad car, firearms training and defensive tactics training.

He said the prospect of going to the academy both excited him and made him nervous.

For 15 weeks, he will receive advanced training in a variety of areas, including criminal and traffic law, firearms, accident investigation, domestic violence, crime prevention and drugs and narcotics.

With Armstrong, the department stands at 42 officers.

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Name: John Armstrong

Age: 23

Hometown: Henry County, Kentucky

Education: Graduated from Henry County High School in 2013 and attended Morehead State University in Kentucky.

Job: Newest officer with the Seymour Police Department

Past experience: Worked at a maximum security prison in Kentucky.

Family: Parents, Tommy and Lori Armstrong; siblings Clay Armstrong and Kait Cain; girlfriend, Lexy Thomasma

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