Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward had one piece of advice for the city's newest police officers: Never read comments on social media.
"Sometimes you're going to see a really great comment and say, 'Oh, I'm going to read this,'" he said. "Don't do that, because the next one will be horrible."
Ward delivered the remarks during a ceremony welcoming the Gainesville Police Department's five newest officers on Friday.
Following the oath, each officer was individually recognized and received a badge pinned on by a loved one.
Officers Sydney Harper, Darian Diaz, Andrew Barajas, Christian Crespo and Elwood Leonard were sworn in Friday. Each officer had a unique story from the six months of officer training preluding the ceremony.
Diaz credited his family, including his immigrant mother, for helping him reach the milestone.
His fiancee, Rachel Rickard, a 23-year-old nurse, said it was emotional to see him meet his goal.
“You really get those points in your career where you start to lose that vision of what you're doing it for, because it's very hard,” she said. “But just remembering both of our oaths and taking care of people as time goes on.”
The incoming class of officers also included a UF alumnus who lost nearly 100 pounds before beginning his law enforcement career.
For Leonard, joining the Gainesville Police Department is a way to give back to a city he came to love while attending UF.
“Assisting people when they're at their worst, helping people who are potentially helpless, who have nowhere else to turn to, potentially saving lives,” he said after the ceremony, “that right there in itself is very rewarding.”
The 25-year-old political science graduate said he delayed plans for law school because he was attracted to the service-oriented nature of policing.
The ceremony also welcomed a new assistant chief.
Noel Torres joined the department after retiring from the Broward County Sheriff's Office. Torres served in a variety of leadership positions during his law enforcement career and spent 21 years in the United States Marine Corps.
Gainesville Police Chief Nelson Moya urged the new officers to remember their oaths to support, protect and defend the constitution and government.
People typically call police during some of the worst moments of their lives, Moya said. He encouraged the recruits to slow down and listen to victims instead of treating calls as boxes to check.
Moya also said officers will encounter situations most people never experience. He encouraged family members to remain involved in the officers' lives and to support their mental and emotional well-being throughout their careers.
"We are here to protect and defend those that, at times, cannot," Moya said.
Contact Julianna Bendeck at jbendeck@alligator.org
Julianna Bendeck is a first-year journalism student and the Summer 2026 criminal justice reporter. She previously worked as a contributing writer and race and equity reporter at The Alligator. Outside the newsroom, she enjoys reading, surfing the web and playing video games.
