Thinking about joining LAPD. Have some questions...

[Tha Twin]

First of all, I just want to thank all of the LEO's here for doing an excellent job at protecting our cities and country. It's a very admirable job.

As the title suggests, I am considering a career in LE.

I'll be 21 in a week so I'm old enough. I'm an African American male and I've lived in Los Angeles all my life. Lets just say I've seen my share of good and bad cops. I know how some of my friends feel about Police Officers and I want to help change that perception. I've been interested in LE all my life, ever since seeing my first episode of CHiPs as a child. lol.

But as with all decisions, I must do a detailed investigation and make sure this is the right profession for me. So I have some questions.


1. How dangerous is police work?

I expressed my thoughts about becoming a police officer to my mother, and she replied, "Sure, it sounds good. If you don't mind being shot at!" And while my girlfriend is supportive, I can tell she'd be worried about me coming home every night. So I was wondering, is it really that dangerous? Do police die every day? It seems that there are about 3-5 police deaths a year here in Los Angeles. I may be wrong. But I don't know if I could do this job knowing I may be leaving my family behind. I don't worry about myself dying as much as I do those I love not being able to have me around anymore.

2. Do you regret your decision in becoming a LEO?

I hope I don't cause anyone to make a career change! lol. But I must be honest. After initially joining the police force, have things that you experienced in your line of work caused you to question your reasons for even being there? I guess a better way of asking it is, does the bad outweigh the good? Because I think with every profession there will be days that you don't want to do it, but are those days more than the days where you can't wait to go to work?

3. Are the work hours/shifts really that bad?

I see it on TV and hear about it all the time. People say that the hours are horrible and cause families to break apart, etc. I thought initially that it could be the marriage/family bond wasn't strong to begin with, but it seems it happens a lot, and I don't think there are that many bad marriages and families out there. Maybe there really is something about the job that causes this. The reason I am asking that is because I value family very much and I love my girlfriend/future wife, and I don't know what I would do if we broke up. Yeah, I know, sounds corny. lol.

4. Do police officers really get things done?

I've been watching The Wire lately, an HBO Original Series, where it's something like cops and robbers. It's based in Baltimore and deals with the Baltimore Police Department. It seems like the bad guys outsmart the cops 9 times out of 10. Witnesses end up dying/missing, evidence disappears, bad guys get away, etc. It almost seems like they get nothing done. Tell me this isn't true!

5. Is being a normal police officer that bad?

Some shows and movies (Training Day) make the normal officers in the cars look like Pawns or expendable infantry soldiers who don't really make a difference, and they make the Detective positions (and upwards) look like the glamorous ones to have. But I see the "normal" cops more than I see the Detectives and Sargeants and Captains.

Those are just some of the questions I have. I don't want to overwhelm you guys. I'm sure I'll be asking more in the near future.

Thanks in advance for the replies/answers!

[MORA Ranger]

Do police die every day?

One every 52 hours.

I love my job and can't imagine doing anything else. I don't regret it for a second. Don't believe everything you see on TV. :D

[tpd_six]

Thank you for the kind words, I'm sure you will get many responses. Hope I can help a little-

1. I don't really consider my job much more dangerous than many others out there. Yes, there is an inherent risk in placing yourself intentionally in situations most "sane" people run from. You will likely be injured on the job at some point, I don't know many officers who have not been. But, IMHO the good outweighs the bad, and you learn how to minimize the risk to yourself.

2. I don't regret it at all, I think it's one of the most fun, enjoyable jobs out there. You will have bad days, and see and do things good and bad which you will never forget. The job will change who you area after a few years. You will look at everything differently.

3. The hours can be tough, most departments make you rotate through shifts. I would love to work graveyard shift all the time if I could, so for me the tough part comes when I have to work day shift. After a while, you just learn to live with it and it doesn't bother you that much.

4. Yes, we do get things done. It's not like TV, though a great deal of the crimes reported to us do go unsolved. Occasionally, however, you will get the satisfaction of making the difference in a case. Criminals aren't in their line of work because of their intelligence, and do not generally "outsmart" anyone.

5. Being a "normal officer" is the best job there is, if you mean being a street cop. That's where the action is, you get more flexibility in your function, and it's just plain fun sometimes. I don't see the desk jobs as being at all glamorous, and street cops aren't looked down upon by anyone. A cop is a cop.

Oh, and though I thought "Training Day" was entertaining, it nowhere near represents reality. There are a few bad cops out there, we are all human, and it is unfortunate that a few give so many a bad name. The vast majority of officers are some of the best people you will find out there, and for good reason.

Best of luck to you in your decision-

[MORA Ranger]

You deserve a better answer than the one I gave you. Try reading things like Force Under Pressure by Blum or any books on Police stress and I think you'll get a better idea of what the job is like.

[Tha Twin]

Thanks for the quick replies!

When I mentioned Training Day, I wasn't so much talking about the crooked cop aspect as I was being a Detective vs. being a street cop.

The scene I'm thinking about is where Ethan Hawke, the trainee, begins to have second thoughts about the job. Denzel Washington pulls over and points out a street cop changing a tire. He says that if he wants, he can go back to being a street cop, changing tires and placing flares, or be a detective and make the "big busts."

I know not to believe everything I see on TV, and I'm glad you guys told me about the misconceptions. Art imitates life, but a lot of things are exaggerated. Thats exactly why I came here.

[tpd_six]

Lol, I actually get a lot of satisfaction when I can assist someone who needs help changing a tire. :D

[Tha Twin]

Okay, I was obviously wrong in thinking that I should be posting my Background and questions about the Hiring Process in the Background Check/Hiring Process forum. One of the moderators told me not to "cross-post," thus changing the definition of "cross-post" for me that I have held since joining the internet years ago. He/She made it clear I should probably only post in one forum. So here is my background as copied from the other topic I created. Feel free to offer any suggestions/comments. Thanks.

Hello everyone.

As the topic suggests, I am considering applying for the LAPD. But I was wondering about my background.

I'll be 21 on the 13th of November, so I'm old enough. I'm an African American male and have been living in Los Angeles all of my life. I've attended magnet schools since second grade and I guess you could say I'm pretty intelligent.

I've always received high marks in english and any classes involved with writing, so I don't think filling out reports would be any problem for me. But my H.S. grades aren't the best. I think my GPA was about 2.5. I got an 1110 on the SAT's my first time, and 1150 the second time, so I managed to squeek my way into college.

I went to Cal State University Northridge because my family told me to. Needless to say I'm not motivated by school nor a regular 9 to 5 job. I had periods in college where I would get either A's and B's or D's and F's. This was NEVER due to excessive partying. I'm pretty introverted and although I do enjoy music and dancing, I never really party. Believe it or not, I can't afford it (parties are $20 to get in nowadays!). lol.

I was dropped from CSUN and they told me to go to a community college and come back. But I honestly can't stand school. If you want to know why, let me know and I'll tell you. lol.

So I've taken a semester off to save up some money because college is so expensive and left me in debt. I've had one credit card deferred to a collection agency because without that card my brother and I would not have made it out of our first year. All our books, groceries, school supplies and dorm room expenses were on there, and we couldn't work enough to pay it off. I finally got it paid this year. I read here that this is asked on your application, and that your credit rating is also taken into account. I also read that it varies from department to department. Does anyone know if this matters much to the LAPD?

I've NEVER smoked marijuana, but I have drank alcohol before.

I've been an active participant in sports my entire life. I've ran track, played football, basketball, and baseball. I've played baseball since I was 6, and was on my high school Varisty team two years. I'm not sure if that means anything or not.

I currently work Customer Service at the busiest theater in Los Angeles, The Bridge Cinema de Lux. I've been there for approximately a year and a half, and am currently one of the best employees there (any of the managers would vouch for this). I like to call it Cuss-to-me Service because I get cussed out AT LEAST once a day. I'm sure that would prepare me for police work.

Before that, I worked very briefly at Uncle Darrows Cajun Creole Eatery where I basically prepared food, but had to leave because one of the locations closed. Thats when I started at the theater.

I'm a pretty smart person, but I know a lot of things in America are what you do ON PAPER, and not what you are capable of doing. So I know my grades will probably automatically eliminate me from consideration, whether I'm intelligent or not.

Physically, I'm 5'7" and about 155-160 lbs. I'm not sure because I haven't weighed myself in a while, but I stay in that range.

In high school I ran the mile in 8-9 minutes, but I haven't done to well in keeping in shape. I'm not too far from my H.S. form, but I just need to get in the gym. I was timed from home plate to first base (30 yards) in just about 4 seconds while swinging the bat, so I estimate my 40 yard dash time is probably about 4.5+ seconds. I have no idea how well I would do dragging a 165 lb. dummy, but my legs are pretty strong so I think I'd do okay. As for the 6' wall jump, that wouldn't be a problem. I've hopped plenty of fences and walls in my life, whether it's taking the short way to the neighbors house or having wall-scaling contests with friends at school. I don't think that would pose a problem.

What do you all think about my chances? And am I leaving anything out that I should have mentioned?

Also, how long does the hiring process usually take? I was thinking of starting the process at the beginning of this coming year.

Thanks in advance for reading and/or replying to my post!

[Valor55]

Generally law enforcement is not as dangerous as some jobs like contruction. What we face which is unique is that people want to murder us because of our job. We also face a higher risk of serious car accidents because we are in them for so long and we take bigger risks driving (emergency response, pursuits.)

I would figure out how to do a ride along if I were you. That will get you out there and you will be able to get a much more realistic view of the job. (Hours and hours of routine boredom and seconds of terror and excitement.)

Keep in mind that you will start in patrol. We all have to push a cruiser to pay our dues. The skills you need as a detective are learned in patrol. Frankly I can't imagine being a detective. I solve the interesting cases I get and the ones I send up for detectives are the crap ones I don't feel like working! :D

Also keep in mind it will take you 6 to 12 months to get hired. You will face an average 6 month academy and at least 3 months of field training. So you have a couple years before you will even be alone in a car. Getting this job is going to be a test of how bad you want it. Most folks are turned down at least once before getting hired. If you don't have a college degree at least start taking some classes and getting credits --that shows you are interested in a career and bettering your life in the future.