Best Practices in Police Recruitment

On November 14, Ben Haiman, executive director, Professional Development Bureau of the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., led a webinar, “Best Practices in Police Recruitment: How the Metropolitan Police Department Continues to Thrive in a Challenging Environment,” sponsored by IPMA-HR’s Assessment Services Department. Following are some of the highlights from Haiman’s talk. IPMA-HR members can access the full archived webinar through our Webinar Library.

The MPD needed to move candidates along faster. Haiman said that the number of handoffs of an application caused serious delays. One of their primary principles moving into the new process was how to get candidates from point A to B faster and more efficiently. In an effort to increase the pool of people considering the profession, the modified application process starts with an online application that now asks four questions: first name, last name, phone number and email address. As soon as someone says they’re interested, they target them with emails.
The MPD has taken their hiring process from 18 months to 3-4 months, reducing both time and labor.
Prospect Day serves multiple purposes: what used to take 16 weeks, now takes one day. Everything from the written exam to preliminary screening with investigators is handled in just one day.
Their recruiting and HR divisions are separate – recruiting takes care of quantity, HR takes care of quality. This method reduces the likelihood that the demand for quantity reduces the quality.
You need to first understand who your customers are: Who are you trying to recruit, who are you currently recruiting, and where is the issue between the two. Then you need to figure out where the applicants are and understand the demographics of different social media platforms. For example, in the MPD’s most recent round of hiring, 59% heard of the job openings from an online source, and only 1% heard about it from a job fair.

Want to know more? Listen to the entire webinar online. Not a member? Become one!

By Jenny Donovan|2019-11-20T19:18:55-04:00November 20th, 2019|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Joel Merry

The opioid epidemic and succession planning are my two top concerns right now.

In Sagadahoc County, the opioid epidemic is of real concern. There are a lot of issues related to it that require a great deal of our time, from the number of calls we take regarding overdoses, to investigators working on trafficking cases, dealing with the number of people in our jails who are addicted and getting folks into treatment and recovery – it’s a lot for any department.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel A. Merry | Image: Bangor Daily News

Succession planning is my top human resources issue. Retirement is the main reason we’re losing people, though we recently lost two transport deputies to the private sector. On the patrol side, we’ve had a very stable workforce, but we do have some pending retirements. This concerns me due to what my fellow law enforcement administrators are going through with recruiting. It’s a real concern. When I started my career in law enforcement 35 years ago, it was so competitive that I didn’t get my first two attempts.

We’re answering the call with life-saving aid, aggressive tactics, education and recovery.

Sagadahoc County is one of the first agencies to start carrying Narcan in Maine. We did this because we service a lot of small rural communities where EMS are 15-30 minutes away. Having a deputy with AEDs and Narcan can save a life.

The other thing we’ve done is get more aggressive on the law enforcement side trying to eradicate the traffickers and educate the public. We’ve trained patrol in interdiction strategies and we work closely with MDEA (Maine Drug Enforcement Administration) on public awareness, as well as some diversion tactics.

The tactic I’m most proud of is one where we connect people with a recovery coach and group counseling. Our programs deputy carries a caseload of 7-15 folks who are required to check in every night and meet with him face-to-face once a week. They are also subject to random drug testing and need to be employed or looking. We want to hold them accountable. It’s another level of probation and provides additional support to the probation office to help keep them on the right track.

Thinking ahead, we’re providing leadership training, adding specializations, and performing youth outreach.

Everyone who applies for a promotional position gets to attend a leadership training program through Granite State Police Career Counseling. It consists of a one-day leadership course and a three-day course on supervision, teaching them what supervision is within an agency, what does it mean and how will your role change as a supervisor.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Dept. attending a You Matter event at Woolwich Central School. The officers greet students as they arrive.

We’re also adding in some specializations to build skills and to help keep our deputies interested in this agency. To that end, we recently restarted a K-9 program, and we have another deputy who is specializing in accident reconstruction.

We have done some youth outreach, including Project ALERT, which is similar to DARE. Prevention work is something I would like to do more of. I’ve toyed with the idea of a visitation program such as deputies stopping by schools to say hello and have lunch with the kids.

9/11 was a defining moment in my career.

One of the defining moments of my career came when I was a lieutenant with the Bath Police Department. My chief at the time was away attending the FBI academy, which corresponded with 9/11. A lot of things were fast moving. There were so many unknowns: are we a target, are we next?

The USS Zumwalt at Bath Iron Works. Image: Bangor Daily News

In Bath we have Bath Iron Works, which is a major U.S. shipyard and producer of naval ships. We had a lot of protocols around that – we had to provide guards 24/7 to protect the military assets. We were working very closely with neighboring law enforcement departments and built strong partnerships during that time.

Working with other agencies in both the private and public sector, I had to learn a lot of communication skills very quickly and make sure information was being shared — that I was communicating with all stakeholders. I had to focus. It provided me with insight into what leadership needs to be: As a leader, you have to be thinking about the now and what happens tomorrow at the same time.

We care.

What is the one thing I’d want our community to know about law enforcement? We care. We really do care about the health and well-being of our community.

Our communities are a great place to live, work and play, and as members of law enforcement, we work hard to keep them as safe as possible so people can live without fear and enjoy their lives.

-Sheriff Joel Merry, Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office, Maine

By Jenny Donovan|2019-04-22T12:50:51-04:00April 23rd, 2019|Police-Community Relations, Public Safety Voices, Recruitment, Succession Planning in Public Safety|1 Comment

Law Enforcement Agencies Nationwide Respond to Crisis-level Hiring Shortage

This article originally appeared in IPMA-HR’s monthly magazine, HR News.

It seems you can’t open a newspaper or turn on the news without hearing a story about the hiring crisis in law enforcement. There’s no way around it: departments nationwide – from large metropolitan areas to small town America – are embroiled in a crisis-level hiring shortage.

The reasons for it are many, and none of them easily surmountable. It starts with large numbers of baby boomers retiring and a robust economy – officers who leave before retirement are often moving to the private sector for better pay, better hours and less stress.

The thriving economy also provides much more opportunity for those entering the workforce. And, given a choice between a job known for its high-stress, low-pay and nontraditional work hours, a 9-5, Monday-Friday in the private sector seems the obvious choice for many.

Then there’s the undeniable sullied image of the profession. Where once choosing a career in law enforcement was akin to that of superhero, now a solid percentage (34 percent, according to Pew Research Center) of the public hold a neutral or negative view of the badge and the people behind it. Among minorities, the number trends much higher.

The Millennial generation is also of a different mindset than any previous generation. They place a much higher value on work-life balance, need greater variety in their work assignments, and aren’t as patient with the lengthy hiring process: “… for some Millennials, there’s an expectation for immediate gratification: instant replies, constant communication. It’s labor intensive for my command staff,” said Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce.

“Today’s recruits are more interested in a work-life balance; they want time off,” said former Deputy Chief John Haas of the Arlington County Police Department. “The four-day workweek is very popular. Departments are going to have to adapt to the Millennial way of thinking and values. This is a different generation.”

And, while the job has always been dangerous, wearing the uniform today carries with it greater risk than in times past. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, there were 135 officers killed in the line of duty in 2016, twenty-one of which were the result of ambush-style attacks – such as the five Dallas police officers who were assassinated – the highest it’s been in over 20 years. If the trend for 2018 continues, the number of officers killed in the line of duty will increase by 13 percent, with 146 officers lost.

Departments are doing their best to maintain the safety of their communities despite the shortage; however, the fact is: open positions create gaps in patrol, leading to slower response times – and less safe communities. Quite simply, the lack of qualified applicants has left departments from coast to coast desperately searching for new and creative ways to recruit – and retain – good officers.

Addressing the issue in the short-term

There are a number of ways in which departments are seeking to address the issue in the short-term:

Traveling and/or advertising far outside their typical recruitment area. Baltimore Police Department went to Puerto Rico to recruit bilingual officers, Scottsdale put up advertisements in the men’s restrooms of Fenway Park in Boston, Aurora (Colo.) sent its recruitment team to Dallas for the National Latino Law Enforcement Organization conference, and San Jose received over 150 applications from New Yorkers after attending a job fair in New York City.
Lowering requirements. Many departments are considering – or have already – relaxed the rules regarding past use of marijuana. Additionally, Chicago cut the minimum age requirement for its police academy from 25 to 21, and several departments have lowered their educational requirements for recruits.
Increasing pay and benefits. Phoenix Police Department is offering lifetime medical benefits; Tempe offers hefty starting salaries; some departments offer matching vacation or sick time new hires accrued at their former position; Durham is offering a $5,000 bonus for new and lateral officers; and, in September 2017, Palo Alto instituted a $25,000 bonus to officers transferring from another department.
Referral rewards. Salt Lake City and San Jose Police Departments are both offering bonuses to employees who refer an experienced officer to them – awarding anywhere from $600 to $6,500 per referral.
Mentoring applicants through the process. Another increasingly utilized method is the assignment of a mentor to help applicants through the process, which typically includes paperwork, computerized tests, criminal background checks, psychological exams and polygraphs. San Jose Police Department employs this tactic, assigning mentors to coach applicants through the process.
Modern and creative communication tactics. Fort Worth Police Department received quite a bit of attention for its “Star Wars” series of recruitment videos posted on YouTube, Philadelphia created an entire website devoted to recruitment; and departments everywhere are producing videos – some professional and informative and some reminiscent of the armed forces’ style recruitment videos where your average workday looks like an action movie.

Small agencies struggling to keep up turn to each other

Small, rural agencies simply can’t compete with the larger agencies in terms of budget or opportunity for advancement or variety of duties (e.g., tactical team, drug task force). In a small department, the loss of even one officer can deal a serious blow. Take Searsport, Maine, where the department is staffed by just three officers: Call the department, and there’s a good chance Chief Dick LaHaye will answer the phone.

In response to the hiring crisis, more small, rural agencies are looking into a merger with surrounding towns. For example, in New York, Spring Valley Police Department is looking into merging with neighboring Clarkstown and Ramapo, and in Maine, a voter referendum question is under review that could result in the merger of the Gouldsboro and Winter Harbor departments.

Other cities contract with neighboring towns or the county. This is the case in Lanesboro and Fountain, Minnesota, where city officials have a contract with the Preston Police Department for law enforcement.

A failsafe, short-term solution doesn’t exist

Departments nationwide are trying everything they can think of to get qualified applicants in the door who truly desire to be in law enforcement. But, try as they may, a failsafe, short-term solution doesn’t exist, according to Haas.

“They have to do more than hang a ‘help wanted’ sign,” said Haas. “It’s going to take time, thinking differently and investing in people early on, especially teens and college students. The agencies that are seeing the most success in hiring are those that have Explorer programs, that have programs and training on college campuses. They get people hooked on the profession early on.”

Programs such as Haas suggested are cropping up in forward-looking departments all across the country.

Fairfax County Police Department (Va.) has three Explorer Posts, a Teen Academy, Police Cadet program (ages 18-20), and participates in the Road Dawg Camp for “middle school youth who are at risk of substance abuse or gang involvement.”
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (N.C.) offers an Explorers program, College Cadets program (ages 17-22), college internship, and a high school academy, which is a “one-week, hands-on course for young people who are interested in a career in law enforcement or students who would like to find out more about the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.”
New York City Police Department offers a Summer Youth Police Academy, Explorer program, and the Police Athletic League, which “serves the youth [ages 3-21] of New York City with recreational, educational, cultural, and social programs.”
Seattle Police Department offers an Explorer program and the Seattle Police Activities League (SEAPAL), which “provides youth 5-18 years of age the opportunity to be a part of a variety of programming activities with police officers serving as coaches, mentors and role models.”

One constant amid the hiring frenzy

Departments are desperate for good recruits, no question. But there’s one standard that hasn’t changed in the face of the current hiring crisis: Every department from the big to the small wants people who are not only passionate about making a difference in their community, but who are inspired to begin – or maintain – a career in law enforcement.

“Policing isn’t easy,” said Michael Parker, consultant with The Parker Group and retired police commander for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, in a recent Police Magazine article. “People are under distress. Policing provides a great opportunity to help people in a great degree of need. But it’s also very difficult because you are in danger, both physically and emotionally. You really need to look inward to see if this is for you.”

Jenny Donovan is a freelance writer and former police officer who resides in Maine.

By Jenny Donovan|2019-06-19T13:47:20-04:00December 26th, 2018|News, Police-Community Relations, Recruitment|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Ty Trenary

Creativity is key to meeting the challenges we face.

We’re facing four major challenges – all equally big. First, we’re one of the top five fastest growing counties in the country, and we’re having a hard time keeping up with that growth. We’re not currently staffed appropriately to provide the level of service we’d like to. Most days it feels like we’re throwing mud on the wall and seeing what sticks. We’re working with other elected officials on growth, helping them see why we need add staff, but it has been and continues to be a serious challenge.

We also police the transit system. Plus, a new commercial airport is set to open where Boeing is, and we have to police that also. We have got to staff up to these changes, and it’s been a challenge, especially in the current climate. We’ve had to become a lot of more engaged with the community and connect with youth.

Then come the big three: mental illness, homelessness, and the opioid crisis. All three affect how we manage policing. We’re constantly thinking about how to keep everyone safe and in the loop. These issues create challenges that force us to look beyond traditional policing. How do we retool ourselves?

We’re in the midst of a public health crisis: 60-70 percent of our inmate pop have reported metal illness in the last five years. The Snohomish County Jail isn’t staffed for or designed to be a mental health hospital. We can’t use the jail in this way. People aren’t getting the help they need. We can’t make them healthy and are thus sending them back out with same issues. We’ve enhanced our medical staff, brought in outside vendors, we use Facetime for therapy with outside providers, and partnered with the state to bring folks in part-time. But the state is backlogged.

And there’s the opioid crisis. Over 90 percent of our homeless population is suffering from an addiction or mental health issue. Some of our deputies are partnered with social workers, and they’re going out to homeless camps to try to figure out who needs help with addiction and get them treatment.

This is a nationwide crisis that’s on everyone’s mind; everyone wants to talk about it, and it’s going to be here for a while. The thing I’m proud of are the changes we’ve made: a pair of handcuffs and a trip to jail doesn’t work with this crisis. It won’t get us out of this. People say “take them to jail” all the time, but when we give people a hand up, we connect with them, we get them help, they’re not in our system anymore.

Ours is the one business that doesn’t want repeat customers. It’s not fair that we have to fix it, but nontraditional methods are working. We’re trying to be creative as we can. I deal with a lot of people — good families — who are dealing with this. These are human beings. We don’t choose who we protect and serve, it’s everybody.

Over 30 years in law enforcement has taught me a lot.

I’m getting ready to start my 32^nd year in this profession. Back when I joined the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Department as a deputy, I was chosen to be part of a community policing program. My experience with that program is something that has stuck with me and set me on a path toward working very closely with the community. I learned a lot from it. For example, I learned the importance of saying, “I’m sorry, we shouldn’t have done that.” And I’ve learned the importance of sitting with people and working together to find solutions.

Our motto is “community first,” and it’s the defining value of my career.

We understand our role as law enforcement; it’s a very honorable but contentious task.

If there’s one thing I’d like the people of Snohomish County to know about our job, it’s that we understand our role. We’re very fortunate to live in a community that supports law enforcement, and in turn we work really, really hard to reduce crime and be engaged in the community.

Every single day we work to engage and connect — and take our lumps when we need to. We don’t ever lose sight of that. Our is a very honorable but contentious task, and we have to be compassionate in everything we do.

-Sheriff Trenary, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, Washington

By Jenny Donovan|2018-10-03T16:52:23-04:00October 4th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Headlines from around the web regarding hiring, assessment and other human resource issues in public safety.

Maine firefighters head south to help responders to Mass. explosions

Bangor Daily News | A crew from the York Village Fire Department may have been the most welcome people in Lawrence and North Andover, Massachusetts, Thursday night, as they worked to feed upward of 500 firefighters, police officers, ambulance workers and other first responders battling multiple fires in a three-town area.

Hero Thrill Show returns to raise funds for fallen heroes’ kids

metro.us | On Sept. 12, 75 members of the elite Police Highway Patrol Motorcycle Drill Team displayed their finery during a pep rally to raise awareness of the upcoming Hero Thrill Show, to be held on Sept. 22 in South Philadelphia. Sixty-four years running, the Hero Thrill Show helps raise funds to educate the children of fallen heroes.

Dissolution of NY Fire District Sparks Outcry

Firehouse | Town of Oneonta Fire District commissioners voted Thursday night 3 to 2 for dissolution, turning the job of negotiating a fire protection contract over to the Oneonta Town Board, which objects to the step.

Former Bears star Matt Forte goes on ride-along with Chicago police

ABC 7 News | Former Chicago Bears star running back Matt Forte says he has a whole new respect for police officers after going for a ride-along on the South Side in Chicago’s Auburn Gresham neighborhood. “The narrative, even to the young kids is that, all police officers are bad, and that’s not the case, so we gotta find some common ground,” Forte said.

PTC cops send hurricane relief to North Carolina

The Citizen | The Peachtree City (PTC) Police Department and members of the community lent a hand to those impacted by Hurricane Florence by collecting 21.5 tons of needed goods that were shipped to North Carolina on Sept. 19.

Federal court orders Dallas County to change its bail system

CorrectionsOne | In a major victory for civil rights groups, a federal judge has banned Dallas County from using a predetermined schedule to set bail without considering other amounts or alternatives that would allow the suspects’ release from jail. Though U.S. District Judge David Godbey’s order is temporary, his ruling Thursday indicated that the groups that sued the county earlier this year “are substantially likely to prevail on the merits” of their arguments.

Could Riverside County cities leave the Sheriff’s Department over a rate dispute?

The Press-Enterprise | Seventeen of the 28 cities located in Riverside County have a contract with the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. All are happy with the services they receive, but none are happy with the cost. But county officials say if anything, it’s the county that’s been getting a raw deal. County government, they say, isn’t getting enough to cover the cost of sheriff’s services to cities.

Text-to-911 Program Showing Early Benefits, Palm Beach County Says

Emergency Management | Since the program’s launch on June 25, 299 text messages had been sent to dispatchers across the county as of Aug. 21, although Koenig noted that figure includes test messages that were used in training. The sheriff’s office said that as of Aug. 21, it had received 23 emergency calls that originated as texts since the program’s launch.

HERO HIGHLIGHT

Police officer runs free boxing class for lower income and at-risk kids

WFLA | One police officer is watching out for the kids he serves, most of them Hispanic and Spanish speakers, by getting them off the streets and into the ring. He has the community saying Vamos Tampa Bay. He’s training kids to fight. In the ring and in life.

In his dying moments, Sheriff’s Deputy Kunze saved at least two lives

The Wichita Eagle | After a convict on a crime spree shot Deputy Robert Kunze above his protective vest and before the mortally wounded deputy collapsed, the lawman managed to kill his attacker. If Kunze had not kept fighting in his dying moments, Sheriff Jeff Easter says, at least two other people could have been murdered.

By Jenny Donovan|2018-09-22T13:56:59-04:00September 21st, 2018|From Across the Web, News, Police-Community Relations|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Travis Patten

It’s going to take everyone working together to eradicate the violence from our community.

“We’re losing our youth to gun violence at a rapid pace. Youth of all ages have murdered people throughout our community, and it’s increasing at an extremely alarming rate, not only here but across the nation. We had two or three murders last year; this year it’s up to eight in total – city and county.

“We’re working to help reprogram the minds of our youth to understand that every time you kill someone, you’re killing off a whole generation. You’re also not putting any value on your own life or anyone else’s life. These kids need to understand that every time they kill someone, they possibly just killed the next mayor, sheriff, governor or even the next president.

“We’ve embraced community policing as a part of that reprogramming. I pick a school once a week and walk the school. We attend community events for youth – everywhere there’s a youth function, you’ll see me or one of my deputies. The kids call me ‘Uncle Travis’ now. I give them my cell number and they use it. Their concerns are my concerns.

“Recently a young lady [age 17] who was pregnant was killed in a drive-by shooting. Within minutes information started pouring in to my cell phone, and less than 10 hours later we had all four of the perpetrators in jail. The people in our community have taken a stand with law enforcement; they’re breaking the code of silence.

“Faith-based organizations are stepping up and going into rough areas and praying over the grounds. There’s a major push going on to get gangs to lay down their guns and give families the control over their neighborhoods.

“I personally engage with gang leaders and the people are, too. It’s a multidisciplinary team approach. We’re using what I call the ‘three C’s’: consideration, communication, and collaboration. Law enforcement didn’t start this violence – no officer has shot anyone in this community – and it’s not going to end with us. It’s going to take everybody to eradicate this problem from our community. I’m of the ‘it takes a village’ approach, and it’s yielding very positive results.”

The journey to becoming sheriff is something I’m proud of.

“When I ran for sheriff in 2015, the community was extremely divided. The racial makeup of Adams County is almost evenly divided between black and white. But as I went door to door, people started to see my vision; they started to buy in. For me and the people who voted for me, it was never about race or color. The community showed by their vote that it was about doing the right thing, even if it wasn’t the popular thing to do. It took the entire community’s support through a grassroots effort to get me elected.

“When I put my name on that ballot I’d never run for anything in my life, never spoken in public. I’m a Navy veteran, was a mortgage loan officer and a K-9 officer in narcotics. It was me against an incumbent and another guy who had 30 years of experience. I had no major backers and virtually no funding. It was truly a modern-day David vs. Goliath story.

“Some people tried to scare me away. They took my political signs across the river to Louisiana and sent me videos of my signs being used for target practice – shooting at my face – or being burned. But we pushed forward.

“The community of Adams County bought into my vision wholeheartedly, and for that I am extremely grateful. We overcame the odds. Ninety-five percent of the people here are good people who want change. We’re not going to let the 5 percent win.”

Whether you’re the janitor or the president, everyone deserves to be treated equally.

“If there’s one thing I’d like people to know about us [Adams County Sheriff’s Office], it’s that we have compassion in our hearts for the community we serve. We are not what they’re seeing all over the country. There’s a war going on between law enforcement and their communities, but we are not at war with the people of Adams County. We will always put them first while serving them. Our goal is to show the rest of the nation how well a community can thrive when law enforcement, the schools and citizens work together.

“I wish people understood the weight that rests on law enforcement’s shoulders. We’re almost like street pastors: People are looking to us for the answers to everything. A lot of people have problems, and for many, we’re the solution. I don’t take that lightly. When they bring those issues to us, we’re going to act on it.

“We’re always going to be transparent. People deserve to know what’s going on. Politics shouldn’t have a place in law enforcement. Whether you’re the janitor or the president, everyone deserves to be treated equally. You have a lot of outside influences trying to get you to go this way or that way, but I will not be bought or compromised. That’s what I want every citizen of Adams County to know.”

-Sheriff Travis Patten, Adams County Sheriff’s Office, Mississippi

By Jenny Donovan|2018-08-23T11:01:08-04:00August 23rd, 2018|Police-Community Relations, Public Safety Voices|2 Comments

Headlines from around the web regarding hiring, assessment and other human resource issues in public safety.

Justice Assistance Grants (JAG): Federal application period for local and state funds just announced

PoliceOne

The Federal application period for the annual state and local Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants (JAG) has just opened with an application deadline of August 22, 2018. The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) will make up to 1,147 awards to local jurisdictions totaling an estimated $84.5 million.

Video to aid in Columbia County Sheriff’s Office recruitment

The Augusta Chronicle

The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office’s newest recruitment tool is a video produced by a pair of Grovetown High School students, in hopes of attracting more people to a profession having difficulty finding applicants.

Tribal Access Program Expanding

Department of Justice

The Department of Justice is expanding the Tribal Access Program (TAP) for National Crime Information, which provides federally-recognized tribes access to national crime information databases for both civil and criminal purposes. Tribes interested in participating in TAP must submit the application by October 1. TAP allows tribes to more effectively serve and protect their communities by ensuring the exchange of critical data.

Police-Youth Dialogues Toolkit Provides Guide for Improving Relationships and Public Safety Through Engagement and Conversation

COPS

The Center for Court Innovation and the U.S. Department of Justice COPS Office developed this toolkit as a resource for communities that wish to implement police-youth dialogues. Drawing from projects across the country that use dialogues, the toolkit consolidates expertise, providing strategies and promising practices.

Ill. lottery game to help families of fallen officers

PoliceOne

On Monday, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a bill into law that will create a new scratch-off game, funds raised from the game will help the families of LEOs killed or severely injured in the line of duty.

The value in participating in the #LipSyncChallenge and other viral crazes

PoliceOne

It’s become “a thing” with multiple mainstream media outlets picking up on the craze and reporting on their local agency’s entry into the challenge. Do they do anything to “move the needle” in reducing anti-police sentiment? Probably not (or at least, not much). But they do serve some purpose.

Citing increased danger, union for Minn. corrections officers demands higher staffing levels

Minnesota Public Radio

AFSCME Council 5 Correctional Policy Committee, the union representing corrections officers in Minnesota prisons, demanded the state hire more staff to address what it calls unsafe conditions. The union stated “assaults on staff have skyrocketed since January.”

HERO HIGHLIGHTS

Frederick County woman commends deputy, good Samaritan who came to her aid

The Frederick News-Post

Rita Potter was having one of the worst days of her life when she met one of the kindest people she knows, a Frederick County sheriff’s deputy named Bryce McGuire.

How one patrol officer goes beyond the traffic stop to make a lasting difference

Quiet Warrior blog

When Austin PD Officer Jason Borne responded to a call this summer about a pedestrian in a busy roadway, he had no idea it would become an opportunity to make a big difference for a struggling single mother of two.

By Jenny Donovan|2018-08-03T19:49:58-04:00August 3rd, 2018|From Across the Web, News, Police-Community Relations, Recruitment|Comments Off

Headlines from around the web regarding hiring, assessment and other human resource issues in public safety.

3 Factors that Motivate Volunteer Firefighters to Join the Service

FireRescue1

It will come as no surprise to members and chiefs of combination fire departments that the faltering volunteer firefighter system is one of the largest and most daunting issues in the fire service today. Allowing volunteer firefighters to be emotionally fulfilled by serving their communities and [to] feel a part of firehouse camaraderie will help recruitment and retention efforts.

What Seattle’s new police-chief pick Carmen Best means for law enforcement

The Seattle Times

Public-defense leader Lisa Daugaard, a longtime criminal-justice reform advocate, explains why community activists and the police union are happy about Mayor Jenny Durkan’s police-chief choice.

Cleveland City Council OKs hiring consultant to tackle backlog of complaints about police conduct

Cleveland.com

A Chicago-based company that specializes law enforcement consulting will begin working through nearly 380 unsettled complaints made in 2015, 2016 and 2017 to Cleveland’s Office of Professional Standards about police officer behavior.

Veteran officer to be Boston’s 1st black police commissioner

PoliceOne

Boston police veteran William G. Gross made history yesterday when he was named the city’s first black police commissioner. “It shows that any kid in Boston … will have the opportunity to be the mayor, the commissioner or the chief,” Gross said. “If you want to change, you need to change, that is why I became a police officer.”

Sheriff: Shortage of 25 correction officers at St. Joseph County Jail shows need for better pay

South Bend Tribune

St. Joseph County Sheriff Mike Grzegorek estimates a shortage of 25 correction officers at the jail, contending raises are needed to correct the problem. He said the shortage of correction officers is mainly because they’re being promoted to county police officers or leaving to take higher-paying jobs at other police agencies.

Palo Alto raises police pay but recruiting is rough — even with 25K signing bonus

Palo Alto Daily Post

A $25,000 hiring bonus for officers transferring from another police department, implemented in September and one of the highest in the state, hasn’t been enough to attract more cops to work for Palo Alto, Keene said. A $10,000 hiring bonus was offered to new police-academy graduates. An official said in September that the department had 12 vacancies overall.

HERO HIGHLIGHT

Video: Officer helps homeless man shave beard for job

PoliceOne

A homeless man said he needed to be clean-shaven to get hired at a McDonald’s, so Officer Tony Carlson of the Tallahassee Police Department stepped in and helped.

By Jenny Donovan|2018-07-26T16:38:15-04:00July 27th, 2018|From Across the Web, News, Recruitment|Comments Off

Headlines from around the web regarding hiring, assessment and other human resource issues in public safety.

Alabama troopers concerned about road safety amid trooper shortage

WKRG News | During the 2018 Independence Day travel period, Alabama State Troopers worked 18 traffic fatalities. They say many of those accidents are a result of fewer troopers on the road. Right now, Alabama has about 342 troopers on the highway, but they say they need 700 more.

How to Succeed as a First-time Supervisor

POLICE Magazine | … For those who aspire to become supervisors, your preparation for the test and process started the day you walked across the police academy stage. Those who wait to read the announcement for sergeant testing and only then start preparations will probably fail. Read the requirements ahead of time, as some may take some time and effort to meet.

How should you handle negative employee morale in corrections?

CorrectionsOne | In this episode of Tier Talk, Anthony Gangi discusses how to deal with staff members who have a negative view of the workplace. Listen in as he talks about being the voice for positive change and fighting through the negativity.

Heroes of Public Safety Highlight

We have not one, but three Hero Highlights this week!

Officers go above and beyond to help elderly woman in flooded house

PoliceOne | Three Moss Point police officers responded to a call for a busted water pipe at the home of an elderly couple early Thursday morning.

It’s not like police officers don’t do that sort of thing as part of their job to help the community. But in this case, they not only braved a spewing kitchen water pipe to turn it off, but they also stayed to clean up the mess.

Student who walked 20 miles to work helped by officers, gets new car

PoliceOne | An Alabama college student who walked 20 miles to work after his car broke down was gifted a new vehicle, and it all started after he was helped by a group of officers.

Off-duty Calif. deputy stops assault on woman

PoliceOne | The video – with more than 600 shares on Facebook as of Tuesday afternoon – showed a woman struggling to get out of the driver’s seat of a car as a man in the car wrapped his arm around her neck, choking her from behind. The incident occurred Monday in the Walmart shopping center on Harter Parkway. As the woman just manages to free herself, a man pointing a gun approaches and tells the suspect to get out of the car.

The Good Samaritan was an off-duty Sutter County sheriff’s deputy, Undersheriff Jeff Pierce said Tuesday.

By Jenny Donovan|2018-07-20T17:00:11-04:00July 20th, 2018|From Across the Web, News, Police-Community Relations, Recruitment, Resources, Succession Planning in Public Safety|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Kevin Joyce

We’ve been forced to make a lot of changes in our hiring practices.

“Filling vacancies – specifically in corrections, and to a lesser extent in patrol – in today’s workforce has forced us to make a lot of changes in our hiring practices. To start with, we have to move a lot quicker, which causes anxiety in HR at times: the whole ‘haste makes waste’ adage. But for some Millennials, there’s an expectation for immediate gratification: instant replies, constant communication. It’s labor intensive for my command staff.

“We’re also finding that fewer and fewer applicants make it through the entire application process. Before, we used to get a mass number of applicants for an opening, and it would take about eight applicants to get one good candidate. Now, only 2-3 at a time are dribbling in.

“We spend a lot of money just trying to recruit people. We’re competing against employers who don’t have the rigorous vetting process we do, and against the current reputation of law enforcement in general, as well as the nontraditional work hours and demands of the job.

“Attending local job fairs and placing job announcements in the paper used to be all it took in terms of advertising, but now we have to hit every job fair – even those a couple hundred miles away. We even installed an electric message board at the end of our driveway to advertise vacancies.

“There are people who still respect what we do, and there a lot of people doing good work still. But the role of our command staff has changed to some degree; they’ve had to become cheerleaders for their staff.”

Thirty-two years on the job, and I wouldn’t change a thing.

“The reality of the job is that there are a lot of calls and ways you assist people that have an impact on their lives. The job is whatever you make of it.

“I have 32 years on the job. It’s gone by fast, and I wouldn’t change a thing. You see danger, trauma – what people would consider a lot of negatives. But you see a lot of positives, too.

“I’ve had several people whom I’ve arrested for various issues, or given tickets to, who have later shaken my hand and thanked me because at the time it happened, they were misguided, and if I hadn’t done that, God knows where they would be. That’s the real reward of the job.”

The job isn’t about one officer or one agency – together, we make an impact.

“As an officer, you are a member of a profession that together works as an aggregate. We all make an impact, it’s not just one officer or one agency: It’s everybody working together.

“We have to hold ourselves accountable while trying to hold the people we serve accountable. We have to work to keep the profession honorable.”

–Sheriff Kevin Joyce, Cumberland County, Maine, Sheriff’s Department

By Jenny Donovan|2018-04-23T19:19:44-04:00March 13th, 2018|Assessment, Public Safety Voices|Comments Off