dallas police department

[wolve]

They will be testing in my home state in april, I was wondering if anyone can give me any info von the departments written test and Pat test as well as any other info on the agency.

[Charlie]

First and foremost, I am an LE officer in the Dallas area but I do NOT work for the DPD. Never have... The following is my humble personal opinion:

Don't know what they're using right now for testing purposes in terms of a written exam. I assume a civil service examination. And, I don't know if they're using a B-pad test or not.

A possible source if you were not aware, should you want more detailed information, check out their web site as it may answer some of your questions:

http://www.dallaspolice.net/

In all honesty, DPD is going through some very tough times right now. Morale is at an all-time low, the city has a very high crime rate that is EITHER close to or right at the TOP of the list for a city over a million people, serious personnel shortages, equipment issues, salary & benefit issues, etc. (Probably similar to what a lot of other large PD's are going through across the country). They recently got rid of a Chief who was, in my opinion, a very poor Chief. In general, the damage he largely contributed to the department will take quite sometime for the department to recover from. And, they're still trying to find someone to fill the Chief's "hot seat" to help that department recover. (I pity the brave soul to assume THAT role...) Tough times for the DPD...

Of course, it all depends upon what YOU want and what YOU are looking for in terms of a LE career. Is DPD right for you? Don't know as this is a personal decision you'll have to make on your own. All I am saying is, generally speaking, the department has had happier times in the past and they are still on a very long road to recovery...

Whatever you decide, good luck...
--
Charlie

[RonChapman]

Dallas PD has by far the best retirement system in America, 27.5% city contribution, and a DROP program (which has made some officers near millionares), and a 457 and 401k program. It spends the most time and money training its officers as well.

[mcsap]

There isn't a retirement to look forward to if the morale is low, the crime is high, the leadership and equipment are bad. Sounds like a place ripe for a high turnover rate.

[cop4u]

most cops seem to all have heart attacks or die shortly after retirement for some reason

[MrTexas]

a good friend of mine applied to DPD. he said the testing was a joke, its your standard civil service test
. i went to an independent accademy in dallas county and was going to use those college hours and apply to the DPD. while i was in the academy i heard some pretty horrible things about the department. the morale, as far as i understand it, is one of the worst in the country... ex. i live in dallas, and i worked at a bar while i was going through the academy. while i was working one night my car got broken into, my dash board was ripped out and they where working getting my stereo out. well aparently a dpd officer cought the guy in the act and then let him go. i learned this because the lazy cop left a note on my window asking me if i wanted to file charges. of cours i want to file charges, only i could never get a hold of the guy. just an example of typical dpd officer who doesnt give a ****.

[wolve]

I guess this department is not as dificult to get into as the LAPD and other good law enforcement agencies. If morale is low, Are they still getting enough applicants.

[Charlie]

Mr. Texas--

Opinion in reference to your posted comments. Some speculative thoughts:

I don't work for the DPD but I do work for an agency in the DFW area. Nevertheless, I just wanted to add my two-cents to your opinion about the DPD officer leaving a note on your windshield about the BMV that occurred to your vehicle. Leaving the note MAY have been about the only alternative the officer had. Think about it from the officer's perspective for a moment:

DPD is already understaffed and they are spread thin often going from one call to the next as soon as they clear. They are likely required to clear a call ASAP. Burglary of a Motor Vehicle (BMV) is a class A misdemeanor (not a felony) offense in Texas. The officer might have caught the guy doing the crime BUT, you have to have a "complainant" for the crime. (i.e.: a complainant who is willing to prosecute).

It is also a possibility the Dallas County DA, (The Dallas County DA is notoriously well-known to do some things contrary to what state law says by the way), requires that the complainant must be located within a specified amount of time to file/prosecute the case and DPD might also have a policy about locating a complainant within a specific amount of time too. They're likely not going to waste a lot of time looking for someone under the circumstances you've described.

AGAIN, keep in mind DPD is seriously short on officers which is also inclusive of having detectives to follow up leads and filing cases. Time IS an issue when you're don't have enough people to follow up on cases. So, what do you think the priority will likely be? Most likely felony cases with particular attention to violent felony cases.

Yeah, I know,... the officer could have checked the registration of the vehicle but you know what often happens? People will sell cars and the new owners don't always get the registration changed as quickly as they should. Hence, it is quite common to come across cars that are still registered to a previous owner. AND, ...if you were at work when your car was broken into, EVEN IF the car IS registered in your name, how in the hell is the officer supposed to know where you work??? :confused:

Anyways, my best guess is the officer caught the guy breaking in your car but I suspect the guy may have gone to jail anyways for perhaps outstanding warrants or, maybe the officer was able to file other charges on the offender. Judging from your post, I suspect your speculating the officer let the guy go and simply left you a note. Consider yourself lucky that the officer even left you a note to begin with! :eek:

I too have come across a fair number of DPD officers I was not too impressed with but this principal can also be applied to members of numerous other departments I know of and personally dealt with. AND, even my own department as well! BUT,...my gut feelings tell me, when realistically taking into account the overall recent conditions many DPD street officers currently find themselves working under, the officer's actions in your case were likely both logical and reasonable under the circumstances. Did you realistically expect an officer to stand by your car all night long till you showed up?

There are some officers out there who don't give a $*^@ without a doubt. BUT,... if you live around the Dallas area, then I assume you've heard a lot about what that department is experiencing. It's a mess... Therefore, my vote is to cut those guys/gals out there some slack...

Just my humble opinion.
--
Charlie

[911]

Great post Charlie.

[sbrad]

The officer might have caught the guy doing the crime BUT, you have to have a "complainant" for the crime. (i.e.: a complainant who is willing to prosecute).

I dunno. I am a police officer in GA and I know if I caught someone breaking into a car then I would be the complaintant and would hook them up. I would then need to find a victim.
Case in point: I caught some kids breaking open Coke machines (well, I didn't but an officer at another department did and they confessed to doing mine as well). I charged them and THEN found the victim, who happened to be Coca Cola and Pepsi.

[MrTexas]

charlie-

i understand that BMV is only a class A and the kid would only get maybe a fine and some probation, but my car was the second car that kid broke into that night. i found a cell phone and some other property that belonged to a guy who had his car in the same paking lot. aparently when DPD rolled up on him, the kid dumped all the stuff from the first car into mine. the point is, that kid, who was actually kicked out of the bar i was working at for underage drinking, was caught breaking into a car while intoxicated and then was let go. what kind of message does that send to him and his friends. i know that DPD is one of the most understaffed departments out there and i really do feel sorry for them. i know that they have bigger fish to fry. but does DPD only serve and protect the citizens in felony cases? since when is a class A a waist of an officers time.

it is quite a transition moving from richardson, who is one of the most proactive departments i can think of, which is just about 10 miles north of where im living now, to dallas, who is strictly a reactionary department.
i want to retract what i said earlier about that particular officers moral. its not right for me to pass judgement, especially on another officer, without knowing all the circumstances. BUT. whether or not the department is understaffed, or if that officer was lazy, or the DA is an *******. has nothing to do with the fact that what happend was messed up.

i guess it doesnt matter that much since my radio was stolen about a month later anyways. :p

[Charlie]

Good post! I understand your point much better now and agree with much you've said...

Unfortunately, much of what you say is a reality in Dallas. How do we "fix" this is beyond me. I only hope that somehow through the insanity, enough of the rationale Dallasite voices will be heard and the city will wisely select a new Chief with 'real' leadership skills who can lead DPD down the road to some much needed changes and improvements.

There's simply no easy fix to DPD's problems as they are indeed numerous and complex. All I know is, ANYONE who is brave enough to assume the Chief's job in Dallas is faced with significant challenges.
--
Charlie

[wolve]

One final DPD question, The personal History form on their website is that the oficial bi packet that they use. The reason I ask is because the packet does not ask some questions that all lawenforcement agencies ask. For example nothing about drug history, credit history, and criminal history

[RonChapman]

The drug questions are on the huge polygraph packet you will get after passing the physical test. If you look again at the BI packet you will see their is a section about criminal history, you need to check it again. I hope you can do lots of pullups because Dallas is one of the few cities left that requires their applicants to do those. The background check in Dallas is very tough, much more nowso than ever before. Theyve changed things up alot.