Emergency protective custody

[bstacker21]

Just a question for those who may know. My ex-wife and i were arguing over the phone when i said i could not live with out her, dumb i know but the things you say when you are trying to keep a marriage together. she took it completely the wrong way and called the police. the detained me and sent me to the hospital for evaluation. a few days later i was released on my own accord. Needless to say we are no longer together. that incident was almost 5 years ago. i have since joined the military and will be getting out soon. as far as i know no charges were filled and nothing else was said of the incident. How will this impact my chances of getting onto a police department.
I have nothing else on my record no moving violations, no drugs, no alcohol incidents, no bad credit. and had a very high gpa while i was at college.
any insight on this matter will help me greatly. thanks

[Sgt. Slaughter]

Being held for a length of time such as you described cannot bode well for a police career.

[Neurowave]

You are ineligable based on Virginia Law. Also, in Virginia you would not be able to purchase a firearm.

Thank you for your military service.

Virginia Code

§ 18.2-308.1:3. Purchase, possession or transportation of firearm by persons involuntarily admitted or ordered to outpatient treatment; penalty.

A. It shall be unlawful for any person involuntarily admitted to a facility or ordered to mandatory outpatient treatment pursuant to § 19.2-169.2, involuntarily admitted to a facility or ordered to mandatory outpatient treatment as the result of a commitment hearing pursuant to Article 5 (§ 37.2-814 et seq.) of Chapter 8 of Title 37.2, or who was the subject of a temporary detention order pursuant to § 37.2-809 and subsequently agreed to voluntary admission pursuant to § 37.2-805 to purchase, possess or transport a firearm. A violation of this subsection shall be punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor.

B. Any person prohibited from purchasing, possessing or transporting firearms under this section may, at any time following his release from involuntary admission to a facility, his release from an order of mandatory outpatient treatment, or his release from voluntary admission pursuant to § 37.2-805 following the issuance of a temporary detention order, petition the general district court in the city or county in which he resides to restore his right to purchase, possess or transport a firearm. If the court determines that the circumstances regarding the disabilities referred to in subsection A and the person's criminal history, treatment record, and reputation are such that the person will not likely act in a manner dangerous to public safety and that granting the relief would not be contrary to the public interest, the court shall grant the petition. Any person denied relief by the general district court may petition the circuit court for a de novo review of the denial. Upon a grant of relief in any court, the court shall enter a written order granting the petition, in which event the provisions of subsection A shall no longer apply. The clerk of court shall certify and forward forthwith to the Central Criminal Records Exchange, on a form provided by the Exchange, a copy of any such order.

[Adrenolize]

Just a question for those who may know. My ex-wife and i were arguing over the phone when i said i could not live with out her, dumb i know but the things you say when you are trying to keep a marriage together. she took it completely the wrong way and called the police. the detained me and sent me to the hospital for evaluation. a few days later i was released on my own accord. Needless to say we are no longer together. that incident was almost 5 years ago. i have since joined the military and will be getting out soon. as far as i know no charges were filled and nothing else was said of the incident. How will this impact my chances of getting onto a police department.
I have nothing else on my record no moving violations, no drugs, no alcohol incidents, no bad credit. and had a very high gpa while i was at college.
any insight on this matter will help me greatly. thanks

I think we are missing some pertinent information here. In NC and TX, subjects detained for Involuntary Commitment are taken to a hospital or local mental health facilities for evaluation. If they are fine, they are cut loose or allowed to commit themselves if they feel unstable and need help. This process can take a few long hours, but not a few days. A few days is where said subject is commited (hence the title). Evaluated is just a detainment for safety and neither an arrest or commitment. If you were detained, and it was as you laid out in your limited description...then there would be no record and it would not affect you. A few day(s) commitment would trip you up for law enforcement in both TX and NC as they both have similar provisions as Neurowave showed Virginia has.

I would also suggest divulging all facts if you do apply to any police agency. Yes, you are dealing with a recruiter. That recruiter IS a police officer and trained to sniff out BS, especially with background investigations. They have seen and heard it all. This is different than the military, where they are TRYING to get another warm body in the door.

Good luck, and thank you for your service.

[bstacker21]

Thank you for the replies. The incident happened in MO.But I am looking into police work out in CA. I know it is based on a case by case basis but I would think that if I divulge the information and not trying to beat around the bush when it comes to the background investigation, I would not think it would look any better or worse when it comes to applicants who have used drugs in the past years. The incident was about 5 years ago is that not enough time for them to realize that people make mistakes and grow up and mature? I am just trying to get a good idea of what I can expect for when I get out.

Thank you again for the posts

[Sgt. Slaughter]

Thank you for the replies. The incident happened in MO.But I am looking into police work out in CA. I know it is based on a case by case basis but I would think that if I divulge the information and not trying to beat around the bush when it comes to the background investigation, I would not think it would look any better or worse when it comes to applicants who have used drugs in the past years. The incident was about 5 years ago is that not enough time for them to realize that people make mistakes and grow up and mature? I am just trying to get a good idea of what I can expect for when I get out.

Thank you again for the posts

You're mistakenly comparing willful participation in a criminal act (which too many states severely downplay, IMO), to involuntary committal due to psychological reasons. That's not even apples to oranges, that's apples to Mack trucks!