Expert: William Payne - 9/9/2006

Question
Hello, my name is Guy A. Augustin and I currently live in Brooklyn, NY.  In December I am going to move to Virginia and plan on becoming a Detective.  However, my problem is how do I start?  Do I have to take certain criminology classes or do I have work as a police officer for a period of time?  What is the procedure?

Answer
Guy,

Thanks for the question.

You don't say whether you want to be a detective with a police department or a private detective, so I'll try and give you information for both.

1. Private Detective: It really depends on what the requirements are in the state you live. Some states require certification from a state agency, or being hired by a dective agency and then being able to get your certification. Some states ask that you verify certain qulifications prior to granting certification. Most likely it will require you to be bonded/insured, business license, and etc. Check with the Virginia State Police or their Attorney General Office to get the exact requirements for being a private detective.

2. For a police agency: Unless you already possess certain qualifications, more than likely you will work in some other billet before being eligible to become a detective, and it's usually several years before you can become eligible.

For training and preparation, take all of the forensic  classes you can get. Classes like evidence handling, evidence processing, interviewing, photography, search & seizure, and etc.

I hope this will get headed in the right direction.

Best of Luck!