Bailey23

As a law enforcement officer myself, I tend to shy away from analyzing other officer's actions for the primary purpose that I was not in that situation and a video will never cover the entire totality of the situation. However, I will state that based strictly upon what I observed in the video the officers were justified and this was certainly a deadly force situation. From what I can see, the taser deployment was too high (you cannot aim for the head) so my guess is that only one of the two probes hit the suspect. When only one probe hits, there is no exchange of electricity and therefore nothing will happen to the suspect. Electricity travels between the two probes, which is why it is important to aim for the middle of the back or the middle of the stomach for a proper spread of the probes. (The x26 taser conducts 50,000 volts of electricity and 1200 volts are transmitted through the body. Not a couple hundred as someone stated) The officers who took his eyes off of the suspect clearly put himself in danger, but this does not excuse the actions of the suspect whatsoever. When his reactionary gap closed, it now became 100% justified for the officers to use deadly force. Once the first round of shots were fired, the suspect remained on his feet and was still moving away from the officers. It would be justified to continue firing rounds to put him down since him fleeing the officers could likely cause great bodily harm to other innocent civilians in his direction of travel. Another round of shots were fired, at which point the suspect dropped to the ground. The officers did not fire another shot once he was on the ground, since at that point they had stopped the threat. --------------- The analysis on the video itself clearly shows the lack of knowledge by the creator. Holding a gun at a slant is the preferred method of fire when firing with one hand because it is easier and a more natural motion for the arm/hand. K9's will typically use this type of grip more often than others. Also, I will add that a gun shoots exactly where it is pointed so it doesn't matter whether the gun is perfectly level or at a slant. That bullet goes where the sights are aimed. In a situation such as this one, officers are utilizing a "point shooting" technique where you simply point the gun and shoot without taking the time to gain proper sight alignment. We're trained in this manner of shooting because you can't take a couple seconds to get a proper sight picture and sight alignment in a deadly force situation. As for releasing the dog... there is absolutely no justification for releasing the dog in this scenario. It is very likely that the suspect would have seriously injured or killed that dog.

Absolutely, and I would add that the average citizen is going to deal with an intense situation (car accident, death of a family member, observing a violent crime) maybe only a handful of times or even once in their life. Police officers deal with these situations every single day, multiple times per day. It is a crushing experience to watch innocent people hurt or killed by thoughtless individuals. On the other side of the token, and going back to my situation, can you also imagine what it must have been like to be the deputy who had to go to the young man's home and explain to his mother that his fellow zone partner had killed her son? That's another element of my job because typically death notifications must always be done in person except in extenuating circumstances. These are just all things to consider the next time an officer isn't as polite as one would expect. Every single person we come in contact with we are scanning their person for weapons and assessing the situation to determine if they are a threat or not. This is not a mentality that civilians understand unless they become more familiar with law enforcement besides what is seen on TV. It only takes one minor mistake for an officer to be killed. For me personally, I'm not going to give anybody the slightest opportunity to get the advantage over me.

For what it's worth, I'm a sheriff's deputy at a large agency in Florida. Before I address some of the original poster's questions from my perspective, I'd like to make a comment regarding those in this thread who call "all" or "90%" of cops "dicks", arrogant, or that we possess attitude problems. First, unless you have met all or 90% of law enforcement officers then your argument is flawed, but more importantly, you are likely basing your opinion off one or a few isolated incidents. What people should realize is that we are human beings; no different than anybody else in any other career. However, we are and should be held to a higher standard as government employees, but there comes a time in all of our lives where we act in a manner that is not consistent with our normal behavior. I agree that there are officers out there who give all of us a bad reputation, but I caution you not to make sweeping accusations. With that said, I'm proud to be one of those officers who will still respond as quickly as I can to assist anyone who calls for my help... including someone who mother-F'd me all the way to the jail two days ago. I'll be the first to admit that I have treated people with disrespect who did little to deserve it, but it is not something that I do on a consistent basis. There are some shifts out there where I've been punched in the face and spit on by some dirtbag, then respond to a child who has been abused, then resolve a domestic between husband and wife, then respond to the scene of a murder, then attempt to locate a missing child.... then when you are with your buddies doing donuts in the parking lot, you can maybe see why I'm not as inclined to approach you with a smile on my face ready to kindly handle whatever reason you will spew for violating laws in my presence. I simply ask that you put yourself in my/our shoes before you state such insensitive remarks regarding myself and my brothers/sisters in my profession. To the original poster: Many of those who posted before me have provided correct advice regarding your questions. Typically, law enforcement departments/agencies are regulated by the state within which they reside. There will also be differences among and between the various agencies within that state. You should do some research into the agencies that you are going to apply to, especially because the agency is going to question you in the application process regarding your motivation for becoming an officer as well as why you want to work for their specific agency. You need to have a well formulated answer for them that sets you apart from other applicants. Education and physical requirements (remember these are minimums!) of course will vary by agency. Don't concern yourself with 10 codes or signal codes until you've been hired with an agency or you are in an academy because those vary by agency and you will have plenty of time and opportunity to learn them at that point. Due to my immense pride in my career, I love to see people wishing to do what I do and enjoy helping them do so. My advice for anyone considering a career in law enforcement is to become as informed with the details of the career as you can. This job is certainly not for everyone and there are many people who wash out or resign even after getting released to the streets because they really don't realize the elements of this job until it is too late. I urge you to do ride-alongs and really pick the officer's brain. Don't just sit in the seat and be a silent observer. Ask questions and make that officer explain things to you so you have a complete understanding of what is going on. From that point you must assess your qualities and abilities. Most people understand that this career is incredibly dangerous and stressful, and everyone knows we carry a gun on our belt, etc... Tough guys will always say they would have no problem doing what we sometimes have to do, but I always ask people one question and I tell them they cannot answer it to me. They must think about it and only answer the question to themselves. If the situation arises, can you take a life? This career is becoming more and more dangerous as time goes on, especially due to the economic situation in our country and other factors such as drug use and felons having easy access to weapons. I'm only 22 years old and I've already had to shoot and kill a suspect. That is not something that anyone can take lightly and I hope I never have to do it again, but I can also promise you I will do it again if needed, without hesitation. These are things that people know, but don't fully comprehend until they get handed their gun/badge and get put into the fire. I see many new officers resign for these very reasons. Side note to those earlier in this thread who said we're all jerks: The situation I mentioned in the previous paragraph regarding my deadly force response to a suspect occurred when I observed 3 teenagers in a county park after dusk. The park was closed and we had consistent problems with kids going back into the park area to do drugs and drink alcohol. One may see this as a very low risk scenario, possibly a scenario not too different from your negative experiences with a cop who didn't act as you would expect. I approached these three kids to simply tell them to leave the park, and one of them who I later realized had a felony warrant for grand theft decided he wanted to pull a switchblade knife on me and proceed to lunge at me. You can fill in the rest. Apply that to the thousands of other situations where a cop who doesn't know you is approaching your vehicle because you were speeding, or loitering in a parking lot, etc... How does he know you are innocent kids or wanted felons? I would hope the cop doesn't let his guard down and talk to you like he is your best friend, because it may not be you and it might be that wanted felon. If my guard wasn't up, can you imagine what may have happened if I wasn't ready to defend against the knife? It's food for thought next time you wonder why cops aren't extremely nice all of the time. I don't say any of this to scare you, but I say it so you understand what you are going to be getting yourself into. As long as you are able to do what we do in this job, then you will have no problems and I wish you the best of luck. Don't let anyone discourage you, including the very people in this thread who share such negative opinions of law enforcement officers. I'm always available via PM for questions. (Sorry for my rant, I just get irked when people try to paint law enforcement with such a broad stroke.) Good luck to you!

From my own real world LEO perspective, I tend to go about it in a few different ways depending on the situation. Most of the time my call volume doesn't afford me the opportunity to help the homeless (yes, I said "help"). If it's slow in my zone, what I usually do is ask the homeless person if they would like a ride a homeless shelter or mental health facility, or hospital. Some take the ride because they know it might be a roof over their head for a night, while others generally want the help and are surprised that a sheriff's deputy would care to assist them. After spending enough time in my zone, I tend to get to know some of the homeless in my zone and I try to help them as much as I can. Now, if there is a complaint that comes in from a citizen and I'm able to locate the complainant and take a statement, I can trespass them in certain situations. In some cases they have drugs and I can make an arrest, but like posters above have stated, we don't need the homeless clogging up our jails. For some of these people, going to jail is what they want to happen because they get a bed and 3 meals. For a quick "protocol" type response, a homeless person is no different than any other person. If they are trespassing, then you handle them as you would any other person who is trespassing. Same if they have drugs, open alcohol containers, etc... The ultimate goal is to get them off the street permanently, so this is where I try to actually help these people when I can. On many occasions I have located necessary paperwork for some of the homeless in my zone to apply for jobs, food stamps, public aid, etc... I've been successful with a few people just in the past 6-8 months, and one actually left a message with one of our dispatchers for me to get back in contact with him. I did, and realized he has secured a decent job and now shares an apartment that he and other former homeless people have rented. I'd like to think that my way of doing things will help more people than just simply making arrests. I've been able to help a few people that I know of, and hopefully they pass it along and essentially pay it forward. I'd rather run down to McDonalds and grab an application for the guy instead of spending an hour or two making the arrest, filling out the paperwork and the report, just to have him out the next day. :thumbsup:

Be careful what you wish for Seriously though, I appreciate it and best of luck to you as well. It can be a very rewarding career for those who truly want to and are capable of doing the job. I recommend for anyone who is interested or seriously considering a career in law enforcement to go and immerse yourself as much as possible in the experience before applying and really getting invested in it. Many places allow ride-alongs so you can see what we really do on a day-to-day basis.

No, but I responded to this last night: http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/hillsborough-deputy-shot-while-responding-to-911-call/1194720 It's unbelievable what people will do....

I'm in the Tampa area :smile:

Curt, I would venture a guess and say that the quality of your interaction with the community would be crucial, rather than simply having a bajillion posts (and no life, as you put it). If I were selecting testers, I would want people who have a track record of dedication to the community through helpful posts in addition to some knowledge that would bring added value to the testing group. Articulate individuals who can search for bugs and properly document them. I wouldn't say that means you don't have a life. It just means that in order to be trusted and relied upon to test a product, you need to have a proven skill and dedication that the developers can count on.

Rushlink, I'm a real world sheriff's deputy and will attempt to answer your question. Based off of the information you have provided, it appears that the letters at the end of the transmission after reporting clear would be disposition codes. An example from my agency in Florida is that when I clear a call (we'll use a traffic stop for an easy example), I have to close the call out with the disposition or "result" of the call. So when clearing a traffic stop, I would either on my laptop or over the radio state that I'm clear and report the disposition. In the case of a traffic stop, the dispositions would be: Verbal warning, Written warning, citation, etc... Each of those would be signified with a letter, which is likely what you are hearing. It's also your lucky day because I happen to have a picture I took on my cell phone at work last week. In the image you obviously have the date and time of the call on the left side, followed by a reference number, then the type of call. Signal 72 is a 911 hang-up or misdial, 71 is a medical, 52 motorist assist, 41CS is my own initiated patrol such as checking out a school, church, or other business that we have as hot spots, and a signal 12 is a suspicious vehicle. Next column is the address of the call, followed by the priority (1= code lights/sirens, 2 is my discretion, 3 and 4 are non-code). The final column is the disposition code that I first described to you and this is likely what you are hearing at the end of the officers' transmissions. Then at the bottom it has the call details, who the call was initiated by (usually the dispatcher's name is here), etc... That my friends is what the real CAD/MDT systems look like. Enjoy :smile:

To the op: I've been able to resolve all of my crash issues with .95 except for this one. No matter what I do, I get a crash every time I call Noose as well. It seems like this is directly a .95 issues that will hopefully be resolved when the stable release comes out. Until then, just don't call Noose, use .91, or deal with the crashes. :smile:

Harper: Try doing what DanX stated, as I've had the same problem although it only happens on rare occasions for me. To the developers: Great job working with what you have been given. A forced release wasn't what you guys had planned, but most of the community understands that the product we were given was not ready and I'm happy to fight through the bugs until the true release. Keep up the great work! As for lomnutjo: age is merely a number. These 14 year olds appear to be more mature than you are currently acting; they spell better as well.

Did she tell the officer that she had a license, because that would be perjury. What was the charge she was arrested on? That will tell you...

That's true but it cannot be applied carte blanche and sometimes is not entirely correct; and this is where a gray area is introduced in law enforcement, at least according to Florida statutes. You need probable cause for a traffic stop to result in a citation (ie: I observe the defendant violating a statute). You only need reasonable suspicion to detain for further investigation, example would be a DUI. You aren't establishing probable cause for a DUI arrest until after you can determine they are intoxicated, which can't be done by visually watching the vehicle. Florida Statutes in many situations don't differentiate between RS and PC, thus they are the same for those cases. However, in other situations it would be as you described. "RS to stop, PC to arrest" can be flawed logic if applied carte blanche. I've seen many cases (including solid cases with an abundance of evidence) thrown out over that very issue. Crooks vs. State of Florida is commonly referenced for this claim.

Our department policy doesn't allow me to post pictures of our own equipment or logos, so I'll supply public pictures for you to see then I'll show some interior pictures I have personally taken that don't show any logos. http://www.flickr.co...N08/4482681838/ http://www.flickr.co...N08/4482032581/ Now for my own:

Yeah in the US an officer needs probable cause for a stop, which I can find pretty easily on most people. Driving around in the middle of the night could equate to probable cause depending on the situation, and I have used that before in order to stop a vehicle that I was pretty sure would be involved in illegal activity. So as far as a "routine check" by the other poster, those would be illegal in the US. But, as I said, probable cause is pretty easy to come across because I don't know many drivers that follow every single law all the time. Most drivers, even "good" ones, are constantly breaking some sort of law that could result in them being stopped. Now that Florida made seat belt violations a primary rather than secondary offence, I can pull people over if I don't see them wearing a seat belt. This used to be only a secondary violation where I had to stop the vehicle for something else, and then I could write a seat belt violation if I saw it at that point. Since this is no longer the case, the law makes it much easier for us to find probable cause for a stop if we're looking for it.

Thanks haha, the first thing you learn as a law enforcement officer is to either 1) know the laws, or 2) know where to find them. :thumbsup:

If you're referring to Alabama, that is incorrect. Alabama Code 32 Section 6 explains the laws for you, which are similar to most other states. If you simply do not have a license, you will be fined. If your license has been revoked or suspended, then you can be taken to jail and the car impounded if a licensed family member is unable to be present and assume control of the vehicle.

Of course it is dangerous for everyone involved. You are intentionally crashing your car into another vehicle in an attempt to wreck them. It can't be safe As for who you will perform the PIT: usually the primary unit in the chase (the first car behind the suspect). If we can coordinate the PIT, sometimes we can set it up so a more experienced deputy or one who has performed PITs before to jump into the front of the chase and perform the maneuver. Usually we don't have that luxury. There aren't many times when we will be in a pursuit with FHP. If we initiate the pursuit, other agencies like FHP don't typically get involved and sometimes they don't even know it is happening. Likewise, if FHP is in a pursuit that comes into our county then sometimes we might assist and sometimes we might not. It depends where it is taking place and what the crime is, or where their warrant is out of if applicable. If both of us are pursuing, then one of the agencies will be the primary and they would likely perform the PIT. In all of the chases I have been involved in, FHP has never joined in and didn't have a reason to anyway. So I don't have any first-hand experience to state definitively what would happen if we were all chasing the car. Generally speaking, the agency that initiates the chase will retain control of it unless it goes outside of our jurisdiction. I've had a couple chases go into the county south of us and what happened then is that we patched our radio channel with that county so we were all talking to each other, then they picked up the chase. One or two of our deputies then becomes secondary in the chase while the rest disregard and remain inside the county. Once the vehicle is stopped in the county south of us, it then becomes a decision on which agency takes the suspect. Usually they go with the department who initiated the pursuit if it is fairly close.

Depends on the department, you are going to hear that a lot lol Most places use the PIT as well as stop sticks. At my sheriff's office everyone is trained to perform the maneuver. However, our pursuit policy is pretty strict and we won't usually pursue a vehicle except for certain reasons (forcible felonies). For the video I posted, which is the pursuit I was involved in, we were able to circulate the area quickly and since our aviation unit spotted the vehicle we were able to essentially set up a perimeter and keep an eye on the vehicle until we could get stop sticks out. There wasn't much of a "pursuit" involved in that until we punctured his tires, then we hang close and wait for a good chance to stop him. We aren't going to PIT if the maneuver is going to potentially harm another citizen or cause much damage. In the case of this pursuit, the PIT was at a slow speed coming out of an intersection with no traffic in the immediate vicinity of the car. This was a perfect opportunity as you saw in the video.

Yes I am in this one, which is why I posted it. If you look around that youtube channel you will find some other videos of pursuits that I was not a part of. There is actually one where the guy runs the vehicle through a canal of water, another video the suspect takes a boat out to an island. They are interesting if you enjoy true pursuits. I'd be more than happy to answer any further questions so feel free to ask. :smile:

Sorry for the double post. Here is a video of a pursuit from about a month ago in my county. I think it shows a great example of teamwork between multiple units (Aviation, K9, Patrol, a couple supervisors, a detective, etc...). Keep in mind the audio you hear is a tactical channel that we can switch to in order to talk more informally and not be on the actual district channels. The audio is slightly ahead of the video, but enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/user/HCSOvideo#p/u/0/VH1yP1hE89k

Yes sir, that is the boot camp I am referring to. Hopefully you watched the video As for your diverse police landscape question. Everyone I have ever spoken to from other countries always seems to hint at that same exact question, likely because we do things a bit different than Europe. I think our system in terms of jurisdiction and who handles what is fairly flawless, it works for us and I rarely see any issues with it. Movies tend to portray this battle of turf between federal and state or local agencies, but I rarely see that happening in the real world. The reason, I believe, is because we all have a job to do and we all want to go home at the end of the day/night. Generally speaking, each level of government stays out of the other guy's business, unless we need to share information. Frequently in my area due to the urban nature of my sheriff's office, we deal a lot with the FBI, DEA, and the US Marshals (in simple terms, all are federal agencies that track down fugitives who are wanted). I've rarely if ever seen a circumstance where we didn't have a steady flow of information between all of us. So to answer your question, I think our system is complex but logical. We all help each other with the same goal in mind: put the bad guys away. Don't let movies or TV shows convince you otherwise Unfortunately the answers to a lot of your questions come with the clause, "it depends on the agency/department". I know a lot of departments provide pay incentives for bachelors and masters degrees. Some departments, like my own, will pay for your tuition to pursue a bachelors or masters degree while working. Like I said before, this is going to depend on the financial climate in each department. What I have found is that for the departments that do provide a pay incentive for college degrees, it is usually about $100 a month ($1200 per year) which is usually about a 3% pay increase on a starting salary. Bottom line: The more education you receive is never going to hurt you. If you wish to pursue promotions and work your way up through an agency, that college degree is certainly going to give you a boost and may be the deciding factor for whether you get the promotion or not. If you desire to become a Police Chief or run for elected office (Sheriff), you will find that a master's degree is likely going to be preferred. As for promotions: In most departments, including my own, you must work a minimum of two years on road patrol. This is likened to what you see in LCPDFR, you are the front line responding to calls for service, being proactive and visible to deter crime, and doing some traffic enforcement if you wish. After two years, you can move to specialty units such as: K9, SWAT, Traffic/DUI, Aviation, Marine, Detective, Selective enforcement teams (narcotics, fraud, vehicle theft, etc...), and many more. Depending on the size of the department, you will see these types of units that you can promote into after a couple years on road patrol if you wish. Also, generally in that time frame you are eligible to test and/or apply for promotion of rank.

Wayne: Florida works on a points system leading to a suspended license. Various citations (moving violations) will put points on your license if you plead or are adjudicated guilty of the violation. - 12 points within 12 months = 30 days suspension - 18 points within 18 months = 3 months suspension - 24 points within 36 months = 1 year suspension Citations generally carry points ranging from 3 up to 6. Off the top of my head I know speeding 15+ over the limit is 4 points, less than 15 over is 3 points. Reckless driving is 4 points and unlawful speed contributing to an accident is 6 points. The majority of other moving violations are 3 points.

I apologize for being so long-winded, but I enjoy sharing my passion for this career and like helping others do the same. Let me clarify just a couple points first, then I'll get to your questions. Our requirement of a minimum of two years college/university is not always the case for other departments. There are still many police departments, sheriff's offices, etc. that only require a high school diploma or GED (equivalent exam for high school). I've also seen some departments that require a bachelors degree (4 years of college). Keep in mind these are the minimum standards and most likely those with more education will get hired assuming all other factors are competitive among applicants. The CJBAT, in my opinion, is way too easy but it does provide an accurate measuring tool I guess. There are people who fail it (you need a 70% if I recall), which is great because they are never going to make it in this career if they can't pass the CJBAT. Our minimum physical standards are EASY to attain (20 push ups per minute, 25 sit ups per minute, 1.5 mile run under 15 minutes), but you won't get hired if you only meet the minimum. Great thing about my sheriff's office is that we have to re-qualify each year to similar standards as these, and it is a requirement in order to be eligible for promotion. Our boot camp, although physically demanding, is more of an assessment tool to measure applicants' command presence and ability to handle pressure. The cadets must work as a team to accomplish various physically and mentally demanding tasks, and this boot camp usually weeds out about 3-5 people out of a class of 30. This is the final step before the academy so it is important to have a strong class that is capable of handling this career. Most departments don't have a boot camp like ours, but they still require physical training during the academy. The boot camp really instills teamwork and friendship, and I'm happy to say that I am now best friends with a couple cadets from my class and we work the same shift now in the same zone, which is excellent and a lot of fun. I know if I need help, they will be there ASAP and vice versa. I think teamwork and friendship are the utmost important aspect of my job (besides your integrity). If I'm getting my butt handed to me by some 300 pound monster, I need to trust that when I ask for help I'm going to get it, and get it quickly. You really don't understand how long 3-4 minutes is until you're in an all out fight with somebody twice your size, and your back up is 3-4 minutes out. Luckily, everyone on my shift is good friends and many of us are excellent friends who hang out off-duty. When those guys ask for help on the radio, I'll drop everything I'm doing and get there as fast as I can and this does happen from time to time. you have to trust who you work with, and be trusted in return, because one day your life might be in their hands or their life in your hands. ----------------------------------------------- Now for your questions: 1) The application process, academy, and field training are about the same as you will see anywhere (local PD, county Sheriff, or state). Our boot camp is definitely not something you will see everywhere, and keep in mind my sheriff's office is one of the largest in the country and we have a very large budget. As such, we are lucky to have the money to put towards excellent training and equipment. Not once have I ever felt like I didn't have the best equipment to do my job. 2) Police departments are typically local such as a town or city. Sheriff's offices cover the unincorporated county (all of the county that isn't in the city limits of a PD). State police cover the entire state, however, in Florida our state police is the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) and they primarily only handle traffic and crashes on state roads and interstates. FHP does very little police work outside of traffic enforcement. Now, to use my area for example. Tampa, FL has the Tampa Police Department and the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (there are other local agencies and counties in the area, but we're keeping it simple). As a county sheriff's deputy, my jurisdiction is the entire county but we have an agreement with Tampa PD that they cover the city limits. But, if a resident of the City of Tampa requests the sheriff's office to respond then we can go into the city limits and handle their call since they are paying county taxes. For the vast majority of the time, we remain outside of the city and patrol all areas of Hillsborough County that are not covered by city PD. Also, there are actually small areas outside of the city limits that Tampa PD covers, and a neighborhood inside the city limits that we cover. This is because it is more feasible for us to respond there. There is also mutual assistance between and among all of our local agencies when needed. 3) My academic background was unique to say the least. I always wanted to be a cop since I was little, but went into college thinking I'd go into another field to make more money. Senior year I realized I should follow my passion and not the money, so I graduated with a bachelor's degree unrelated to anything having to do with criminal justice or law. Also had my EMT license and worked on an ambulance in college, so I had some experience in the emergency world before going into law enforcement. 4) Due to the political correctness of today's world, the training is evolving a bit. With all of the lawsuits out there for almost anything, many academies are shying away from pepper spraying and/or tasing recruits, primarily the latter. Some academies make it the cadet's choice rather than a requirement, but some agencies require you to have the equipment used against you before you can carry it. I was both pepper sprayed and tased, and I did it so that I would know what I'm doing to other people and how they are going to respond to it. For that reason, I think everyone should be tased and sprayed before you get your badge but that is just me. It is scary at first, but it is over quickly and I appreciate the tools more since I know the power that they have.

I'm a sheriff's deputy in Florida, USA, so I can answer your questions for my particular department. In the United States the requirements vary by state and by department, but are generally fairly in line with one another. For my sheriff's office the *MINIMUM* requirements are: - Minimum of an associates degree (2 years of college/university) OR 3 years in the U.S. military with an honorable discharge - 21 years of age - No felony convictions or arrests involving domestic violence, false statements, or criminal traffic offenses (reckless driving, vehicular manslaughter, etc...) - No illegal drug use in the past 3 years - No tobacco use in the past 6 months - No visible tattoos when wearing a standard uniform Application process (can take up to 6 months): - Apply to the county's civil service office and provide proof of education and passing score on the criminal justice basic abilities test (CJBAT) - Once approved by civil service, fill out the actual sheriff's office application which will be reviewed by a background investigator/detective. - Must pass the physical abilities assessment (timed push ups and sit ups, vertical leap, 1.5 mile run, 300m run). Applicant will be scored on these events. - If you meet the minimum physical standards, you then have an initial application interview with a background investigator to go over your application, your history of criminal activity or drug use, work history, etc... If the background investigator wishes to keep you under consideration for a position, then you complete these steps (at this point, it begins to start costing our sheriff's office for these steps so attempts are made to cut applicants that we feel won't make it before this point). - Polygraph examination: this is an extensive polygraph that goes through your entire application, work and criminal history, drug use, alcohol use, moral and integrity issues, etc... - IQ test and writing sample of why you want to be a sheriff's deputy and why you want to work for our office - Oral board interview (tough interview in front of 3 ranking command staff where you are scored). If they recommend you continue, then: - Background investigation: The detective checks out your entire background including family, work history, education history, they speak with your neighbors, check your references, etc... At this point your file is sent to the chief deputy and if he approves, you are then "selected" for the position and given a conditional offer of employment. Then you complete these steps: - Another polygraph - Psychological testing (two 500 question exams which are scored, then you meet with a psychologist to go over the results. This is basically another interview to determine your mental stability) - Medical testing (physical, chest and back x-rays, all vaccinations up to date, eye and hearing tests, urine analysis and drug testing) Then you complete a two week military style boot camp, a 6 month police academy (laws, patrol techniques, vehicle operations, firearms, investigation, etc...), then you become a certified law enforcement officer. At this point, you complete about 2 months of further training with the sheriff's office to get certified on the patrol rifle and learn all department operating procedures and to iron out any vague issues from the academy. Then you are sworn in and begin field training. For 4 months you ride along with various training officers who analyze and score your performance every single day. After those 4 months, you receive your own take-home patrol car and you now patrol solo for about 5-6 more months where you are still on probationary status and your actions are under more scrutiny and review, with proper feedback to perfect your technique and skills. Sorry for the long post, but you asked for good information. Most departments in the USA follow this type of structure and have similar requirements.