Careers: Police/military

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Expert: Eric Potts - 11/26/2008


Question
Hi,

I'm twenty years old and I never knew what I wanted to do until very recently and that was to become a police officer. I do have some college under my belt and I'm currently taking courses in criminal justice, but now I'm actually thinking about serving a few years (2-4 years specifically) in the military. First, how beneficial is the military towards me becoming a police officer and second, what branch would be the best for that career path?

Answer
Hello Brian,

Certainly serving in the Military can help in your Law Enforcement career and particularly serving as a Military Police Officer-I of course am particular to the Army since that is where I served, however I would advise you to speak to recruiters from each branch of the service and get information from them as to job descriptions etc for Police in that branch of the service. This will allow you to make a much better and more informed decision.

Careers: Police

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Eric Potts

Expertise

I am a Veteran of The United States Army where I served as a Military Police Officer for 6 years and have been a Municipal Police Officer for 20 years. I am a certified Arson Investigator, as well as a certified Community Police Officer. I am a DARE teacher in the local schools. I am a Defensive Driving Instructor and worked for years as a Detective specializing in White Collar Crime. I'm qualified to answer general law enforcement questions, general procedure questions (all departments have different rules and regulations. I can answer questions about how to become a law enforcement officer, and questions that might help someone understand why an officer acted a certain way. I am also a Police Suicide Awareness trainer and a member of the NJ Critical Incident Response Team. PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME ANY QUESTIONS PERTAINING TO SWAT-I AM NOT QUALIFIED TO ANSWER THEM AND WILL REJECT THOSE QUESTIONS.

Experience

I have 27 years total Law Enforcement experience in a wide range of areas. I have worked as a Detective and a Patrolman and have made well over 2,000 arrests in my career.

Education/Credentials
Graduated from the United States Army Military Police School Basic Law Enforcement Training Arson Investigators School DARE Officer Training Interview and Interrogation School Police Suicide and Awareness Trainer

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