I always thought about my skill set differences between my military police experience compared to the city, county and state law enforcement agencies. After retiring from the military, I wanted to pursue another career in the criminal justice field after graduating from Miami University. Even though in this profession today, it is under tremendous amount of scrutinization from the media and communities nationwide has never deterred me from this professional goal. This typical love and hate profession with the public did not detour me from my ambition to continue to serve my community in some form of law enforcement capacity. However, like most law enforcement organizations. These organizations have immediate eliminators to weed out the less desirable candidates in a diverse and complex society that we live in today. The one eliminator that I faced when I retired was my age. As for older military candidates, age can be one of the immediate eliminators from personnel attempting to apply for a position at the city, state, and even at the federal levels in Ohio. So, I had to do my research on agencies at the city, county, state, and federal levels to see which organizations did not discriminate against age for hiring within these agencies to apply for my internship. I felt the Butler County Sheriff’s Office would be good transition for me with my military experience and the department policy for hiring veterans without an age discriminator to apply for a position.
I am currently a senior this year and will be graduating at the end of May with the Class of 2016. I will be attending Dixie State University this Fall 2016. My intended major is Criminal Justice with emphasis in Corrections. I have always been interested in the Criminal Justice system, the way they use evidence to solve hard cases and how much Criminal Justice can make a difference to society. I also want to take that knowledge and bring it back to my community to help improve the Criminal Justice system on the Navajo Reservation including other neighboring different tribes. We have all seen the imperfect police officers and how they treat other ethnic groups or people who are in need, I want to show people that not all police officers are
My desire for a career in law enforcement started while pursuing my undergraduate degree at the University of Central Florida. As a freshman biology major with hopes of becoming a Radiologist, it did not take me long to realize the medical field was not for me. Peers in my classes had a passion and interest for the material that I did not possess. My grades poorly reflected the type of student I was. Realizing it was time for a change, at the end of my sophomore year I started seeking guidance. Unbeknownst to me, my disinterest in the curriculum was a major contribution to my poor performance. I completed career assessments and sat with academic counselors in several different areas of study. I was feeling more confused than ever because Criminal Justice courses often sparked my interest, but I hesitated due to the dangerous nature of police work.
Before the days when I had a confident mind about what I wanted to achieve in life in order to fulfill lifelong goals, committing to a career in service to criminal justice and law had always intrigued me as a way to earn a living. In high school there was an extracurricular Criminal Justice class that I remember having a profound impact on my life. The lessons of how the structure of the system worked as well as the importance of an honest and honorable way to earn a living played to a keen and personal interest I had in the field. At the time it was a very new post-9/11 world, and departments such as Homeland Security and other federal sectors of government were on my radar as possible outlets for a potential career. The outset of my young,
Many times, it comes down to extra training and education one can bring to the job. My Marine Corps training has taught me many different skills such as: leadership, first aid and combat skills that I can use in any situation. The main thing any police department would look at is my urban combat training. This training gives me the ability to make decisions fast and in the heat of the moment while the world around me is in complete chaos. Having been trained to keep a cool, level head about me as I encounter dangerous situations, will help me if I need to take down a perpetrator who decides he wants to fight it out or do something else to resist arrest. My choice of career has also been influenced by my self-study of police literature that I read in my downtime in my barracks room and the extra education classes I have taken from teachers and professionals in the police field at the educational center on Marine Corps Base Kaneohe Bay. I read books about police training, as well as books written by retired police officers about different situations that happened and could happen while they were on the job. The classes taken at the education center on base were about police/security jobs. The started from local correctional officer positions all the way to the FBI and the situations that came with them. From those classes, I can draw a baseline of what any police
My goal’s I attend to achieve in pursuing a certificate in Basic Law Enforcement are primarily to make an impact in the community. Furthermore, I enjoy the various jobs that Law Enforcement has to offer. Last reason, would be to be part of an exclusive organization that I can be proud of. My past experiences in my work history have been mostly related to customer service, problem solving, and interpersonal skills. I also have interacted with plentiful of people, on many different social levels and many diverse cultures.
When an individual chooses a career in law enforcement they realize it can be a very rewarding, yet dangerous career path to take. Most people often hear about all the potential dangers such as officer involved shootings and physical confrontations before making the choice to join the ranks of the few who will always stand for what is right. However, today there is a new danger to law enforcement known as the mass media which adds a whole new realm of difficulty to an already taxing job. The negative effects of the media can be felt nationwide by law enforcement agencies and these effects include creating a divided community, unrealistic expectations, and the devastation of current and future law enforcement careers. This presentation
Finding a career in which you feel personally rewarded by helping others and knowing that you are making a difference should be one’s main goal. Officer Mares, was able to achieve this goal when he joined the LAPD as a police undercover agent back in 1996 when he was only 21 ½ years old. Nineteen years later, he is going strong, satisfactorily performing his duties as an officer and serving the community of Los Angeles. He feels rewarded, with this career and loves his schedule, and he is happy when he goes to work. He focuses on knowing that he is making a difference one person at a time. He states, “ I may not change the world, but I am making a difference one individual at a time, which in turn makes a better community for our kids to grow in.” (Mares) Back in the days, around 1960 being a police officer or becoming part of a department that served and protected the public was highly regarded. However, that is no longer the case. Now the Police Department is an affiliation you almost do not want to be involved in.
In our project, we will be targeting Veterans who are seeking to transition from the military into the police force. According to a Hire Heroes USA, 20% of returning veterans are seeking civilian law enforcement jobs. Within this group, we will be targeting, specifically, women and minorities since the Jacksonville Sheriff Office seeks to increase its diversity numbers by recruiting individuals from these groups.
If you really enjoy helping people and being around people then it’s enjoyable, but if you’re not into that kind of thing then it’s probably not the right career for you.” You are dealing with the public and you have to be reasonable and good at speaking with people. You can’t have a temper and you have to be a good judge of character. You really have to have an eye for detail and constantly be on your toes. You have to be somebody that really helps people out. He went on to tell me how I should seriously consider this career knowing my accomplishments in the Army and currently being in school studying Criminal Justice. He told me, “The State is looking for guys like you when they go to hire a person. Someone that stands out above the rest, is honest, has integrity, and is more than willing to work hard and treat people fairly in the world.” I think highly of Randy and what he has done and accomplished. He has been more than a mentor for me and I know I can always count on him. After gaining insight on his career, it is still something I would very much like to do. It is interesting and now more tempting than ever to put school on hold and enlist in the Academy as I am having my doubts on whether or not school is for me. In conclusion, the life of a law enforcer is very different and less entertaining than how it is portrayed on television and in the movies. It is also very different from my career as Military Police but it is still very much a career choice of mine. Because of this new insight and my experience, I am able to compare these stereotypes with the actual roles of law
A Need for Change: The Importance of Continued Training and Education for Modern Day Police Officers Michael- Criminal Justice Institute
Based on the ethical and professional practices of each of the branches, the law enforcement career path is most in line with my ethical beliefs and professional disposition. I feel I have a high code of ethics of what is right and wrong while it may
The first step in consideration of law enforcement selection, is recruitment and Conser (1978) explained mandated minimum state standards for selection dates back to the early 1950 's; albeit the actual reinforcement of established selection standards emphasized to the states until 1975, when The Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations found police selection standards lacking (Conser, 1978). This lead to enacting legislation, employing the development of state commission councils of policing standards composed of local officials’ and law enforcement agencies, whose main responsibilities were to: oversee, implement and enforce the screening and evaluation of potential candidates; ensuring properly provided services and protection of local communities (Conser, 1978). The commissions set minimum standards of: 21 years of age or higher, good physical health, set minimum and maximum height and weight requirements to ensure the abilities of candidates would meet the physical demands of law enforcement work (Conser, 1978). Equally important officials’ sought out characteristics of candidates’ skills that consisted of: high emotional and stress level, endurance, confidence, public trust, and knowledgeable, psychologically sound individuals (Cosner, 1978). Moreover, officials’ conducted personality profiles, checked citizenship, verified addresses, and ran background checks (Conser, 1978). In addition, Cosner (1978) state the process also also involved: oral interviews,
A growing number of entry-level criminal justice practitioners have college degrees. This paper will explore whether or not law enforcement agencies should require applicants to have a post secondary degree as a condition of employment and will college-educated police officers will be resistant to organizational change.
There is a debate that is as controversial as police officers holding a degree and that is whether the law enforcement career is a profession or craft. Although, the classification of police work as a craft, trade, or a profession was the subject of intense controversy, there appeared to be little doubt that the trend toward professionalization was exerting a powerful impact on the field of law enforcement. Many officers argue that policing is a craft that you must have passion for and academies are irrelevant to learning police work. In order, to become a good officer one must gain experience and knowledge on the job. Then you have others who say that policing is a profession with education a central feature. They believe that one
For as long as I can remember I have wanted to be a police officer. I’m sure, as a little boy, what first caught my attention were the flashing lights and sirens on the police cars. It could have also been then the facts that police officer were permitted to carry a gun and had the ability to run red lights. This is why as I grew up and played games like cops and robbers, I was always the police officer. During my teenage years, I later joined the police explorer program and really started to learn about police work. That’s when I