Question(s) For Police Officers

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Just curious about a few things in the Police profession.

  1. What are the deciding factors of issuing a warning as opposed to a ticket in traffic violations? For instance, is there credibility to the quota theory?

  2. What kind of training do you endure?

  3. Is pay good?

There are probably other questions that others may have…so bring them on!

2

  1. Citation issuance is discretionary.

  2. Police academy then rookie teamwork. Quotas are illegal.

  3. Medium salary. Varies depending upon location (~$30K/Year).

3

Quotas are illegal but they do occur in some precincts.

4

I’m not a cop, so I won’t address the tickets. Below is the pay scale for Houston Police:


  Police Cadet                       $26,024.70 
 Police Officer      (Probationary) $28,169.18 
 Police Officer           (Minimum) $31,439.72 
                          (Maximum) $43,672.72 
 Sr. Police Officer *     (Minimum) $43,800.12 
                          (Maximum) $44,500.04 
 Police Sergeant * *      (Minimum) $51,081.68 
                          (Maximum) $55,697.98 
 Police Lieutenant * *    (Minimum) $57,852.60 
                          (Maximum) $63,085.62 
 Police Captain * *       (Minimum) $66,250.08 
                          (Maximum) $72,248.80 
 Assistant Police Chief   (Minimum) $92,966.64 
                          (Maximum) $97,639.36 
 Executive Assistant Police Chief  $107,403.40 

* Requires 12+ years of service and Level Four certification
*  * Pay is determined by years of service at time of promotion

So, once you’re a Houston cop, your income is in the top 50% of the country, and a Sergeant can make it into the top 75%.

Another site gives national salary info, but not as complete.

5

I work with cops on a daily basis and think I can answer these.

  1. They can generally give warnings whenever they please. Officers are expected to issue a reasonable number of citations though. Note that they don’t have a specific quota, but they are not expected to be the officer giving the fewest citations.

  2. Training varies. There is the academy. After that is on the job training. Most officers in Fairfax County where I work have college degrees as well, and a degree is almost required for advancement.

  3. They do very well as far as pay. With overtime most veteran officers make somewhere between 60-100k. Their benefits package is also far better than the average worker.

6

Why give a warning instead of a citation?

7

Because you are a good looking member of the opposite sex would have to be the first reason.

The second is that an officer will give a warning to a polite and apologetic person who commits a minor violation. Once you choose to be an ass that chance goes out the window.

8

Could we get a cite that ticket quotas are illegal?

9

From an article in the Claremont Courier:

Another article from a Washington (state) paper sounds as if quotas are periodically openly acknowledged policy.

Nebraska apparently had quotas as recently as 2000; I don’t know what became of Senator Schmitt’s bill, LB 204, to restrict the practice.

10

A very nice Florida Highway Patrol officer issued me a written warning in lieu of a speeding ticket. He said he had to do this so that the other drivers would think he was giving me a citation. I was sooooooo thankful! FHP is :cool: