LEO's keep trying?

[GMANtt]

Hello Calgun LEO's. My dream coming out of high school was to be a DEA Agent, or a Narcotics officer at a local police department. Last year I applied for the LAPD. I was denied, well, not really denied more like "put on hold" until 2016, or 2015 I can't remember. I threw the papers away because I was so disappointed.

The LAPD basically said I was a piece of crap, I admitted to some things I had done because my law and legal teacher in high school who was basically my mentor told me to fess up to everything I did because it was the right thing to do. I haven't committed any crimes, I was never convicted of anything, and besides a few speeding tickets in my name, my record is 100% clean.

My question is, should I still keep applying at police departments? I know they will contact the LAPD about my application and why it was halted, and they would get all of the answers and everything I had admitted to, truthfully, on my questionnaire. I don't regret what I confessed and I would rather not say what I did but I was hanging with the wrong crowd from work and I have since dropped those people out of my life. I just think it's sort of a lost cause now that I'm labeled by the LAPD for a variety of reasons, immature, poor judgement making, etc.

The couple of ride alongs I had went on made me want to be a police officer more. And they usually always told me, if you want it, just keep applying. But won't excessively applying draw a red flag?

I'll be happy to answer any questions about me if it will help you guys in my answer, may it be vague or precise.

[mkingwin]

How old are you?

[Coded-Dude]

The LAPD basically said I was a piece of crap, I admitted to some things I had done because my law and legal teacher in high school who was basically my mentor told me to fess up to everything I did because it was the right thing to do. I haven't committed any crimes....

you didn't commit any crimes but you confessed to things that gave them that type of impression?

[BoJackUSMC]

You have 100% clean background, but they still put you on hold?
Are you sure about that? Every department is different so you should keep applying.
Good luck... I am also in the hiring process, but not with LAPD.

You sound very young, maybe enroll in college for few years or join the military to clean up your past life.
Most departments like having military background applicants.
Sent from smartphone

[Falconis]

Look at it this way, even if you never said, an omission is a lie which will perma kill your "dreams" faster than being in the wrong crowd which only halted your app process. Sorry for the run on sentence.

Either way, looks like you need to find a path that will mature you in life.

[GMANtt]

I graduated in 2007, I'm now 22. I meant clean as in no convictions of any misdemeanors or felonies. I've been attending a community college since I've graduated, I'm 10 units away from my AA and close to transferring to a university.

[Falconis]

ok let me put it to you this way. What have you done that you can prove, that makes you think you deserve to be a police officer? What have you done to prove that you can be provided with the trust and responsibility of serving any community as a police officer?

If you can't honestly answer those questions, you're probably going to have a hard time passing any background.

You may not be done with law enforcement, but you'll have to wait a while and do some things to prove that you have matured and grown. 21 is just the minimum age, not the age where they HAVE to hire you. Best answer I can give you without knowing specifics.

[BoJackUSMC]

So you were disqualified because of your friends?
I am asking because I am in the hiring process right now also.

[Falconis]

To answer that last question, yes excessively applying will draw a red flag.

[BoJackUSMC]

I do not know the full detail, but as a fellow applicant who wants to become a LEO in the future. I recommend you to sign up for volunteer programs from your city to show you have mature over the years. Also, bring up your GPA to 3.0 or higher and stay out of trouble.

Good luck on your career and your school life.

[Regulus]

If you truly want it, and have no disqualifying background issues, I would recommend that you keep trying. I went through the process with LAPD, LASD and about 14 cities in LA County over a period of three years before I was hired. Do not get discouraged because LAPD (your first attempt?) didn't pick you up. Also, keep in mind that you don't need to apply with one department at a time. The entire process can take several months and applying with one agency at a time will take forever. Apply with as many agencies as you can find that are taking applications and test with all of them simultaneously.

There are a couple of alternatives you might consider as well. If you have the ability, you could look into putting yourself though an academy. With the economy today, many smaller cities are struggling financially and would likely prefer this approach as it will save them the cost of paying for your academy training, as well as paying your salary while you are there. The down side to this approach is if you do have issues in your background, you could invest a lot of time and money for something that will never happen.

Another option you might consider is starting as a Reserve Officer. There are a lot of upsides to this approach and it has worked for several guys I used to work with. You are not (really) in serious competition for a few full time positions, you will go through the same testing/screening process as full time candidates then if accepted you will attend a reserve academy, which is helpful if you need to work full time to support yourself. After you complete your training, put in as much volunteer time as you can. I believe most agencies do no pay reserves, or pay only a few dollars a year, but you will gain valuable experience and work closely with the full time officers on the department. When a full time position opens up you'll likely be number one on the list. The downside to this approach is you may have to go through a second (regular) academy if hired full time.

Bottom line, if you really want to pursue this career and you have nothing in your background that would disqualify you, keep trying. It may not happen for you, but everyone should diligently pursue their dreams.

Good luck.

[Regulus]

ok let me put it to you this way. What have you done that you can prove, that makes you think you deserve to be a police officer? What have you done to prove that you can be provided with the trust and responsibility of serving any community as a police officer?

If you can't honestly answer those questions, you're probably going to have a hard time passing any background.

You need to prove you that you deserve to be an LEO or you won't pass a background investigation?

To answer that last question, yes excessively applying will draw a red flag.

This was not my experience (20 years ago), but times may have changed.

[Falconis]

Need to prove that you deserve it more than the 2000 other applicants when the packet hits the Chief's desk. That was my experience.

*EDIT*You mean to tell me they didn't even go that route during the oral interviews with you. Questions like what have you done to prepare for this job, why do you want to become a cop ... so on and so forth. Way I saw it, backgrounds was a way of verifying everything you ever did and didn't do. You don't think the Chief asks himself why does this guy deserve to be a cop in one form or another. Could be that he is asking why should I hire him or some variation of that. All boils down to the same thing. Also, to me, it seemed like it was the background investigator's job to either advance or stop the process of individuals based on what they saw in the candidate. Way I phrased the above statements may have been a little vague.

[Falconis]

Way it was explained to me is that if you applied 100 times over 10 years and continually got rejected, they would look into why and spend a little more time with your packet. Was it that you kept getting edged out by more qualified candidates or did every department find something to DQ you for?

Regulas is right about one thing, don't put all your eggs in one basket. Applying to a bunch of departments is one thing, continually applying and continually getting rejected is another.

[ckim34]

Sounds like you need to mature a bit more. Finish getting your degree (BA/S would be best) then start looking around again. Not bashing your age, I was hired at 22 and that was little over 4 years ago.