Two Georgia State Troopers from Georgia State Patrol Post 17, Washington, are among 49 new Georgia State Troopers who will soon be patrolling Georgia roads after completing the 85th Georgia State Patrol Trooper School.

Governor Sonny Perdue was the keynote speaker for graduation exercises August 22 at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center in Forsyth.

Post 17 Troopers who graduated are Patrick N. Brantley of Wilkes County and Michael Screws from Baldwin County.

The new troopers have completed a 33-week, rigorous training school that included specialized training in impaired driving enforcement, pursuit driving, firearms, drug interdiction techniques, as well as extensive training in traffic crash investigations and self-defense.

Colonel Bill Hitchens, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Safety, said the 49 new troopers have earned the right to wear the traditional "big hat" of the Georgia State Patrol.

"These troopers have received the best training available in the country," Colonel Hitchens said. "They have undergone grueling physical, textbook, and field training to prepare them well for a career in the dangerous profession of law enforcement."

The new troopers have also completed 12 weeks of field training supervised under the guidance of seasoned troopers. "With the graduation exercises, the troopers are ready to begin patrolling in their newly assigned patrol post territory.

The graduates of the 85th Georgia State Patrol Trooper School have been assigned to vacancies at the State Patrol's 48 post locations across the state and will report for duty on Friday, August 29.

Georgia now has 793 State Troopers and the 86th Georgia State Patrol Trooper School began in early July. When that school graduates, the number of Georgia State Troopers will rise to almost 850, the highest number in recent years.