Long story short I'm looking at applying for a PD in NOVA (probably more than one to start) as I draw closer to my retirement from .mil and need some opinions as to which one is probably my best bet.

So far people I have talked to said FFC and Arlington would probably be good to go. Good training at the CJA, good equipment, Lots of avenues or career paths to take and some opportunity to excel at what your good at.

I know I could probably get in to a federal police job when they open up on USAjobs like the zoo, BEP or something like that but I'm trying to stay away from federal and out of DC if possible.

IM me if you want.

Not a LEO, but Fairfax (County or City), and Loudoun Cty Sheriffs Office all seem pretty good.

Yes I have heard good things about FFC and Arlington county.

I know there are LEO's here who have answered my questions regarding this before but since time passes and things change I would like to get an honest assessment of the current culture and future of some departments.

I have a family on Arlington.  PM me if you want more info.

My BIL, my sister's best friend and the friend's husband all work in Loudoun.  Seems most aren't fond of the sheriff.  The county is currently operating with two shifts, used to be three.  They seem to be well-equipped though, certainly better than the average dept.

Prince William pd are class act officers by and large and great guys to work with.

But they have money problems often. When I started with them I think they hadn't gotten a pay raise in 4 or 5 years at that point. Another example would be one year where they mismanaged their budget so bad the county said too bad no bailout you can wait for your next fiscal year cash to drop. So we had to do without printer paper and new ink cartridges and felt like a third world outfit for a few months. Their tracking of HR stuff can be pretty bad too for example I did the address ch age process three times after I moved and after I quit they still gave officers trying to subpoena me my old address. Or the icing on the cake I had a medical issue on the job once was told it was taken care of county covered it. Well I don't work for them anymore and they with held my va tax return this year saying I owed them +$600 for that... Three years after it all happened and it took some work to clear that, get the bill dropped and get my tax return. For those reasons I would not recomend them or work there again myself.

I can get you in touch with a recruiter from Loudoun or Fairfax if you are interested.  They would probably be best to give you an idea of what to expect with your specific situation.

double tap

If you're a worthless jackboot that doesnt ever want to leave your cruiser or do actual police work when evidence or leads are handed to you with a bow on it..... Check out Manassas Park....

Or if your a level headed intelligent individual actually looking to improve your community... Check out Prince William County or Manassas PD...

My experiences with the 3 as a regular civilian have been commensurate with the requirements listed above...

(Not saying you're a JBT BTW)

Back in the day, PWCPD was the best in the Metro DC region.  Fairfax County has an amazing PR machine and is in many ways a victim of it's own "reputation".  They took a lot of credit for PWCPDs work and think they're a lot better than they actually are.

Stay with Fairfax County due to it's county retirement is much better than everyone else in Virginia who are on VRS which is a state retirement system.

From reading there recruiting announcement they don't rely on SS for it either.

But are the boots free issue?