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May 7, 2008 5:45 pm US/Pacific
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Women In SWAT, What Does It Take?
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
Shots ring out at the SWAT training grounds in Sacramento. What once was a group made up only of men is slowly starting to integrate women. CBS13 got an inside look at what it takes to become a SWAT officer.
SWAT the unit is so elite since LAPD started it in 1967, then Hollywood came calling, mostly portraying an all-male military like culture.
"I've been asked to do interviews before but I really didn't want to do them because all I want to be is part of the team," says Denise Phillips.
Denise is the first and only female to pass grueling admission standards to be a part of Sacramento's SWAT team.
"I know there were some people who didn't think I would make it," says Denise.
It took Phillips, now retired, almost five years to make SWAT, but during her nine years with the unit, she says being a woman never held her back.
"Being in SWAT doesn't mean about being the strongest or the biggest," she explains.
So, Elyce Kirchner decided to give it a try tackling one of the endurance tests.
And proving Phillips is right and as Lt. Campas says, "The old boys network may be changing."
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