why do police depts. have different standards for the hiring of their officers.?

Question

why do police departments have different standards for the hiring of their recruits? In the state of fl they allow a new recruit to have had a previous conviction for misdeamors and less and still become a police officer. do all departments do this and why? isn't this a risk to public safety and national security?

Answer 1

The law says that officers cannot be convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude or violence.

Misdemeanors do not involve the type of offenses that would preclude them from employment.

If you looked at what involves misdemeanor offenses...you'd not ask if these were offenses involving public safety or national security.

Answer 2

A traffic violation that you pay is a plead of guilty to a misdemeanor. So are you saying someone who got a speeding ticket and paid it should not be allowed to be a police officer.

Different departments have different standards just like any other company, but they all follow a close guideline. The departments may add here or take away there, but for the most part, they all look for the roughly the same qualities in their recruits.

When looking at applications they take into account what the misdemeanor was. If its a traffic violation it only becomes a major decision if the applicant habitually violated the traffic laws or if two applicants with the same qualities are up for the same job. If it's another type of Misdemeanor they look into that as well. Lets say the applicant was arrested for Public Intoxication. This is a misdemeanor too. Now did the applicant go out on the town, get drunk, make a fool of himself and cause a scene or was the applicant drunk, had a designated driver, who did not live up to being a designated driver, got arrested, and the officers had to arrest the passenger too because they could not let him walk or drive home.

For the most part, misdemeanors do not say your a bad person. It just means you broke a law. People break the law all the time, sometimes with good intentions, sometimes by mistake, sometimes they meant to because they do not care. The later are the types we want to weed out in the application process.


Ok Hutub here is your answer. Credit problems and bankruptcy are a major issue because of how many levels it plays on.

Level 1: An officer makes very little money. Depending on the department, they may pay for somethings an officer needs, but not all. An Officer may have to purchase his own firearm, boots, flashlights, ets. Most departments buy the Uniforms, but the officer has to have them dry cleaned. If an officer can't manage his money before being a cop, whats to say he will do it afterwords.

Level 2: You already mentioned it. If an officer is hurting for cash, it makes them that much easier to be bribed, steal, etc.

Level 3: Chashing hot checks is a crime. If you can't manage your finances then eventually you may end up writting hot checks.

Level 4: If you can't take contorl of your personal life and stay on top of your finances, then how are you going to be able to help take control of someone elses life who is going through the same problems.

Answer 3

Why _shouldn't_ different departments be able to have different standards? If not, who would decide the standards? Some committee in DC full of people who have no idea what the problems and requirements are for policing in rural Nebraska?

Answer 4

Different areas have the right to make their own qualifications. There is no national standard here, which may be a good thing. Why would you allow someone to NOT serve if once when they were a kid they had a beer underage or something like that.
Guess what? Most people in their lives have done something stupid, look how many people respond to questions on Yahoo.

Answer 5

Ya know that's a good question, a friend of mine said "he got bumped from becoming a sheriff because he had filed bankruptsy in the past, and because he filed that means he can't be trusted, if one: he get desperate for money he has a chance to become a dirty cop and steal from what he confiscated from crooks". I assume from history that must have happen, so because of that he could never become a police officer?? So i'm just adding to your question, i would like to know as well??

Answer 6

all jurisdictions have different requirements and processes on hiring new recruits. some areas have lower standards because if it didnt then there wouldnt be anyone applying for the job.

Answer 7

I think they would have to put them with a partner to make sure that this recruit doesn't do anything before he is on his own.