Expert: Jack Toomey - 8/12/2007

Question
QUESTION: Hi my name is matt and I would like to become a detective or work in the forensic department of police work.  I know that before becoming a detective you need experience as a cop im most cases.  But I am asking what are the essential skills to becoming a detective and how would I hone these skills.

ANSWER: Matt,

   Normally professionals do not use the word "cop" so if you are serious about your career goals you might choose to drop that word from your vocabulary.  

   You are correct.  A new police officer must spend many years on the street learning the skills necessary to become a detective.  I realize that television makes young people think that they can step right out of a classroom into a detective office but that is wrong.

   Right now you can improve your writing skills because detectives do alot of writing and their documents and affidavits are entered as evidence in court all of the time.  I see the worst writing ever on this site.  

  If you are asking me what you can do now I would suggest getting good grades and having good attendence because all of these will be examined by your background investigator.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for answering my question, but I would like to know what skills do you learn when you are a police officer in the pre stage of becoming a detective?  Is memory a skill useful when solving cases?  Right now I am maintaining a high grade in all of my classes.  And I will take your advice and increase my writing skills.  Lately my friends and I have been setting up fake murders and mysteries and various sorts of conflicts throughout each others houses.  Then one person has to find out who committed the crime.  Will this help or is this just childish play nonsense.  I believe that even though this is amateur stuff were doing it is giving me the right mindset of a detective or so I would like to believe.  I would like your opinion though.

Answer
  
  This is the way it works.  During your time in uniform you will be constantly observed by your superiors.  Your report writing, affidavit writing, the number of quality arrests that you make, the number of tickets you write for serious violations, how you interact with the public, your interrogation skills, and how you express yourself.  

  I don't want to hurt your feelings but all of that stuff that you are doing now won't help you a bit.  What will help you is how you do in the police academy and how you do on the street.  If I said this before I am going to repeat myself.  Do not, under any circumstances, believe that police work is anything close to what you see on any tv show.