Pinnacle of policing: Filliater undergoes FBI training

BUCYRUS – Anyone who has ever watched a cop show on television knows all about how the various levels of law enforcement don't get along.

The local police department begins an investigation, and then has to step back should the state police consider it worth its time to march in. Then, if the FBI swoops down and takes the lead, locals are forced to take a back seat. When that happens, feelings are hurt and cooperation between the agencies isn't the greatest.

In the real world, however, law enforcement doesn't work that way. Certainly, that's not the impression Crawford County Sheriff's Office Major Chad Filliater came away with after going through a 10-week training program at FBI headquarters in the huge Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia.

"It's training that the FBI puts on for local law enforcement, and it's been going on since the 1930s," Filliater said of the FBI's National Academy professional development course. "It's the pinnacle training for law enforcement, one of the top programs you can go through."

The FBI program offers several courses related to law, from the behavioral and forensic sciences to communications and terrorism. An intensive physical fitness regimen is also part of the program.

"I took more leadership courses than anything, and a couple of behavioral science courses," said the major, the second in command at the county sheriff's office under Sheriff Scott Kent.

Filliater, 39, was born in Marion, but went to high school at Wynford after his family moved to Bucyrus. His father, Greg Filliater, is a retired football coach, with stints in Crawford and Marion counties. The major and his wife, Leah, have three kids, ages 5, 9 and 11.

Filliater got started in law enforcement in Crawford County on the corrections side in 1997, moving over to enforcement in 2000. He now is operations officer for the sheriff's office. He earned his degree in criminal justice from Bowling Green State University.

The Crawford County Sheriff's Office only has about 65 people on staff, and half of those employees work in the county jail. Just 16 of its employees are in enforcement.

"We are a very small agency, we don't have all the resources. But they are a wealth of resources," Filliater said of the FBI's training program.

During his 10 weeks at Quantico, he shared living quarters with law enforcement officers from South Dakota, San Diego County in California and Memphis, Tenessee, all much larger communities than Crawford County. But he found that, professionally, they all had a lot in common.

"Dealing with personnel was a common factor. Drug issues were another, and the crimes that result from drug issues such as theft and burglary and things of that nature. That was a common thread with everyone I talked to," Filliater said.

"I was kind of naïve when I started here and I didn't realize the drug problem that our county had. I knew it was around, but I didn't realize how bad the drugs were, and how much they can destroy a life relatively quickly, relationships with family and friends and things of that nature."

Filliater's commanding officer, Sheriff Kent, has also gone through the FBI program.

"One thing that you find is that Crawford County isn't unique to any problem. Somebody else has already dealt with it, and there's no sense recreating the wheel when you have the networking and the contacts that you get from this," Kent said.

"Not only does he have the contacts of everyone who went through his session, but anyone who went through that National Academy. That's always an easy way to branch out to these other agencies if you need a contact in that area."

During his 10 weeks with the FBI, Filliater took a course on statement analysis that he said was an eye-opener for him, and he would like to incorporate some of what he learned in that course here. He also took away some valuable lessons on leadership. But echoing the sheriff, he said the networking that began there may prove vital down the road.

"You're busy with your nose in a book, and then you're busy with the physical fitness challenges. But it's not over when you graduate, it's just starting because of that network," he said.

As someone with a desk job, Filliater found the physical aspects of the FBI training program valuable on a more personal level.

"Other than getting out and playing with my kids, I don't get out and exercise on a routine basis, and this kind of instilled in me that I need to because there is life after law enforcement. The desk job, sitting all day, that's not good for me. I need to pick up on that aspect," he said.

Filliater's training began shortly after the first of the year; he graduated from the program on March 20.

"Ten weeks is a long time, I didn't like being away from my family for that long, my family didn't like it, but it was well worth it. I missed a lot of things at home, but no birthdays," the major said.

Kent, who nominated Filliater for the FBI National Academy program, said it's essentially free training. All the county sheriff's office had to do was continue Filliater's wages while he was at Quantico.

"One half of 1 percent of all the law enforcement officers in the world will get to attend this. It's pretty limited. It's a big thing, and I'm proud of him for completing it," the sheriff said.

thill3@nncogannett.com

419-563-9225

Twitter: @ToddHillMNJ