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Careers: Police/How do I become a law enforcer?

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Expert: - 5/9/2009


Question
Jack,
 I am 12 years old and want to be a police officer when I grow up.  My questions are...
What College can i go to near Nebraska for law enforcement?
What kind of grades will I need to become a law enforcer?
What degree do you recommend for me?
Do I have to go into the service before becoming a police officer?
How long do i have to go to school?
 Please contact me with some answers at...
              
                                                   -Jeff

Answer
Jeff,

  You still have ten years before you would be eligible to become a police officer.  That is nearly equal to the time that you have been alive.

  It is way to early to be wondering about colleges.  To recommend colleges and certain degrees wouldn't be wise right now seeing that you are not even in high school yet.  You will have four or five years to talk to counselers about this kind of thing and a lot can change in your life in that time.  What you should thinking about now is getting excellent grades in middle school and high school.  You should also have nearly a perfect attendance record and very high GPA.  

  By "service" do you mean the miliatry?  If so then answer is no.  If that was the case we would not have any police officers.

  Get back to me when you are in college ok?  

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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