Careers: Police/police hierarchy

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Expert: - 10/6/2005


Question
Good evening Jack,what I need to know is the typical rank structure and who is in charge of what.
example: Chief is in charge of the city police as a whole? who reports to him? Wher do Detectives, lieutenants and Sgt. fit in and who do they report to? Chain of comand.

Answer
   Again this depends on the police department you are dealing with.  In some departments the head of the department might be called "Chief", on other departments "Director of Police", on others "Commander", etc, etc.  But you would be safe by calling him "Chief of Police".  The rank structure under the chief would be much more variable with some departments having assitant chiefs, others haveing deputy chiefs, other having inspectors, others having majors, etc, etc.  Under that level there would be captains in charge of stations, lieuentiants in charge of shifts, sergeants in charge of groups of officers, and so on.

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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