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Careers: Police/im moving to america from england and want to join the police

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Expert: - 2/18/2008


Question
hi my names lee i am moving in a couple of years to America and want to join the police in America and someday SWAT it has been my lifetime ambition to join the armed police  in England but as i am in the British army SO19 (British armed police) wont let me join. I've tried to get my questions answered but have been unsuccessful. I hope you can help to answer this question for me. So my question is can i join the police in america when i move there. If so how long do i have to be a citizen for.

thank you for taking the time to read this letter and look forward to hearing from you

yours sincerely lee

Answer
Lee,

  Unlike the police in Great Britian there are no national hiring standards in the United States.  In addition there are 18,000 police departments and each has its own hiring standards so what might be true for one department is probably not true for the police department in the next town.

  I do know what most police departments require an applicant to be a citizen but I am sure that there are exceptions.  Honestly I would not move to the United States with the expectation that you are going to get hired unless you are absolutely sure that the department that you are interested in does not require citizenship.  So that would mean you would be making some long distance inquiries.

Careers: Police

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Jack Toomey

Expertise

U.S.: I am an expert in this category for the purpose of giving young people an idea what the hiring process involves for the position of police officer. I am getting a flood of questions from young people who are being influenced by unrealistic television shows. I'd ask you to consider that when you watch police shows on television that they are NOT realistic and most of what you see does not happen in real life. Please do not ask me about potential jail sentences that you, your friends, or family might receive in court. There is no way for me to know that. I am NOT a probation officer so I cannot answer questions about probation and parole matters. I am a retired police officer with 26 years experience.I worked in a variety of assignments including investigations, homicide, sex crimes, runaway investigations, missing persons, and fraud.I also dealt with the general public during that time giving a wide range of advice on matters such as domestic disputes, problem solving, teenage problems, civil/criminal matters, and dealing with the mentally ill. I am available to give sound and reasonable advice which can solve most problems. Please do not ask me to do homework questions or online interviews. Young people should not rely on the Internet for interviews. Local police officers are normally very agreeable to assist students with interviews and surveys.

Experience

Worked as a police officer/detective for 26 years.

Graduate of the University of Maryland.B.S. in Law Enforcement.Attended numerous schools and training courses involving investigations, interviewing, interrogations, crime detection, domestic violence, and others. Recognized in court as an expert witness.

Received numerous awards during my police career for expert investigations. Handled the most sensitive and confidential investigations. In 1999 I won an award for my work with high school students while working in my new career in a large suburban high school.

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