wanting to be a Police Officer

[jb7988]

I live in MA and am a sophmore in college, i recently got caught up in a stupid mistake of getting caught with a littel marijuana i was arrested, ive never had a speeding ticket in my life let alone this, anyway it was later dismissed in court and i will be getting it expunged. I am a criminal justice major and want ot be a polic eofficer i know they will be able to access this in background checks will this have any effect on the hiring process have i ruined my chances?

 

[CdwJava]

I live in MA and am a sophmore in college, i recently got caught up in a stupid mistake of getting caught with a littel marijuana i was arrested, ive never had a speeding ticket in my life let alone this, anyway it was later dismissed in court and i will be getting it expunged. I am a criminal justice major and want ot be a polic eofficer i know they will be able to access this in background checks will this have any effect on the hiring process have i ruined my chances?

I am not certain about the laws in MA, but I will presume they are similar to those in my state.

In my state this would not remove you from the running pursuant to state or federal law. HOWEVER! Many agencies will have trouble with this! Many are NOT keen on hiring someone who has been in possession of marijuana as an adult. However, you are in a position where time can be your ally. If you are a sophomore, you have at least a couple more years of college to go. That gives you time to build that credibility and common sense back up and bury this stupid act.

Time and good works can probably overcome this. Get that Bachelor's Degree, maintain a good work history (good evaluations, steady and reliable history) and stay out of trouble and you will likely have a decent chance at any agency that does NOT have a "zero tolerance" drug policy. These "zero tolerance" agencies are few, but they still exist.

Before applying around, you might want to get familiar with the hiring practices with the agencies you are considering ... why waste your time if they will dismiss your application out of hand because of the arrest - even if expunged.

You do have a chance to recover from this, but you need to stay clean, avoid the parties (drugs and alcohol) and mature.

- Carl

 

[mike_lee]

You should post this on a cop board like www.officer.com but I don't think it will cause you any problems becoming policeman or sheriff, (based on my memory of similar posts on the police forum) it could cause you trouble becoming a state policeman.

Mass has very good expungment rules and is my state of birth. I was charged with hit and run with bodily injuries which was a bogus charge involving a union picket line who tried to block my pick-up truck from entering the job site. I stopped and then let the truck creep forward at idel speed. When it got to the picket lines bodies flew in all directions like a land-mine loaded with william shatner acting lessons exploded under them.

Then I got a inciting a riot for a fistfight in a racially charged environment. I got convicted on that. I was in high school turned the corner and a black guy I had argued with earlier tried to sucker punch me I got lucky with some Judo and hurt him early. Then other black guys started kicking me and of course white kids just melt away in those situations. Fortunately the police showed up before they Rodney Kinged my a$s.

Anyway those charges have never shown up in 25 years

 

[HomeGuru]

I live in MA and am a sophmore in college, i recently got caught up in a stupid mistake of getting caught with a littel marijuana i was arrested, ive never had a speeding ticket in my life let alone this, anyway it was later dismissed in court and i will be getting it expunged. I am a criminal justice major and want ot be a polic eofficer i know they will be able to access this in background checks will this have any effect on the hiring process have i ruined my chances?

**A: you need to brush up on your spelling and grammar first.

 

[CdwJava]

You should post this on a cop board like www.officer.com but I don't think it will cause you any problems becoming policeman or sheriff, (based on my memory of similar posts on the police forum) it could cause you trouble becoming a state policeman.

I suspect that many agencies would reject him based upon this act - even as time goes by. Selling drugs is a bad thing, and most agencies don't want that headache in the background. Because, if it's there, a defense attorney might one day dig it up.

- Carl

 

[mike_lee]

Selling? I didn't see that part.

 

[fcobarr]

just my opinion...but I take issue with someone studying criminal justice, gets caught breaking the law, weasels out of it...and then wants to pursue a career in law enforcement. That doesn't make sense. Uphold the laws you intend to enforce yourself. I'm sure a lot of people out there are in the same position you are, that's part of the problem...you get all these people into law enforcement who see it as a job, rather than holding themselves to a higher standard because they truly believe the laws are correct and make for a better society.

You're probably more upset you got caught, than really convinced you did something wrong.

Sorry for going on a tangent. Just my .02 worth. Good luck.

 

[CdwJava]

Selling? I didn't see that part.

My bad - mixed it up with another post elsewhere.

Still, many agencies are not going to be able to overlook it. Those that do will want a lot of time to have passed - 3 to 5 years seems to be good ... provided everything else is outstanding.

- Carl

 

[mike_lee]

just my opinion...but I take issue with someone studying criminal justice, gets caught breaking the law, weasels out of it...and then wants to pursue a career in law enforcement. That doesn't make sense. Uphold the laws you intend to enforce yourself. I'm sure a lot of people out there are in the same position you are, that's part of the problem...you get all these people into law enforcement who see it as a job, rather than holding themselves to a higher standard because they truly believe the laws are correct and make for a better society.

You're probably more upset you got caught, than really convinced you did something wrong.

Sorry for going on a tangent. Just my .02 worth. Good luck.

That would cut available officers in half.

 

[CdwJava]

That would cut available officers in half.

What?

I do pre-employment backgrounds for law enforcement candidates and it is very rare that we even get an applicant with a prior arrest for anything, much less for dope. Not accepting people that were caught breaking the law would NOT cut available applicants in half - it wouldn't even come close to 10%.

Though, in recent years I have had an applicant with an active bench warrant out of another jurisdiction, and, I have had a guy apply who was on active probation for DUI and had two subsequent police contacts for alcohol problems in another jurisdiction. Neither was hired.

Then there was the guy who admitted to buying marijuana for his wife about 3 months before he applied with us ... ugh.

- Carl

 

[mike_lee]

So it's only bad if they get arrested? The background that cops come from at least 50% of them you can assume from national averages smoke pot at some point between jr high and Sr. high.

 

[CdwJava]

So it's only bad if they get arrested? The background that cops come from at least 50% of them you can assume from national averages smoke pot at some point between jr high and Sr. high.

The discussion here was about someone who had been CAUGHT by the police, not about someone who might have smoked in their past.

And, yes, there are still many agencies that have a zero tolerance policy about ANY drug use EVER. Granted, those agencies are fewer, but they still do exist.

Admitting to past use is far different than actually have been arrested/charged for it. An arrest will weigh heavier than self-admission of past use.

- Carl

 

[mike_lee]

The discussion here was about someone who had been CAUGHT by the police, not about someone who might have smoked in their past.

And, yes, there are still many agencies that have a zero tolerance policy about ANY drug use EVER. Granted, those agencies are fewer, but they still do exist.

Admitting to past use is far different than actually have been arrested/charged for it. An arrest will weigh heavier than self-admission of past use.

- Carl

I agree with what you said I am responding to this phrase

"just my opinion...but I take issue with someone studying criminal justice, gets caught breaking the law, weasels out of it...and then wants to pursue a career in law enforcement."

Which I interpreted as "If you smoked pot you shouldn't become a police officer. However, some past trouble with the law gives a police officer a unique perspective. There are only two places mercy is available our system. The arresting officer and the judge. Police seem to have lost all perspective about this. Arresting a 15 year old for having a roach in his pocket can really destroys a young persons life - yes the kid was wrong - but hes a kid, his brain cant comprehend the long term effects of his actions. Sometimes the officer should make a judgment call, and just call the kids parents.

 

[CdwJava]

Arresting a 15 year old for having a roach in his pocket can really destroys a young persons life - yes the kid was wrong - but hes a kid, his brain cant comprehend the long term effects of his actions. Sometimes the officer should make a judgment call, and just call the kids parents.

I guess it depends on your state. In CA marijuana possession is the ONLY CRIME in the state that disappears after two years; the records must be purged. The crime mandates a fine only (generally paid for by the parents), no matter how many times a kid is caught. So, law enforcement has resorted to citing the kids for possession of tobacco products (the papers and the pipes) since it includes at least community service and counseling along with a small fine. The tobacco offense at least will have an impact - a marijuana cite does not.

In my state it is more serious to be charged with underage smoking than marijuana.

But then, we are a state where we pay for ads to vilify a product legally available over the counter yet tax it in an attempt to pay for new medical care programs that have outstripped the potential for this tax ... Go figure - California.

- Carl