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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:09:50 AM EDT
[#1]
No, if u ask me. Wait until they disarm the police.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:13:34 AM EDT
[#2]
Tell him don't.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:13:36 AM EDT
[#3]
Be a Fireman instead and stay in the Fed system. Friend has done that all his adult life. Doesnt do shit. Sits at a half closed down base and collects $28 an hour to watch T.V. and drink coffee.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:14:32 AM EDT
[#4]
Federal LE would be a better route, he can buy his time back for an additional percentage of his high 3 salary years....plus starts earning 6 hours of annual leave a PP if he has beyond 3 years of federal service right out of the gate.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:23:01 AM EDT
[#5]
He sounds like a nice kid.
I’ve been in 10 years and have 18 left. Would never want my son to be a cop. Be a firefighter or go fed. FBI, IRS, etc. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:29:51 AM EDT
[#6]
Another vote to push him towards federal LE service.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:30:26 AM EDT
[#7]
The world needs good cops, sadly he will be under appreciated. Policing your own in a small town is not a good career.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:36:37 AM EDT
[#8]
Retired after 41 years as a police officer.
Not all law enforcement is bad ... it depends where you are. Last night in Philadelphia the cops ran away from the rioters while the rioters laughed at them. In Cleveland that shit got shut down right quick. When Trump was last in town BLM/ANTIFA hooked up to protest. They got together, had some snacks, and walked around a bit. Then they went home. You pay your nickel and you take your choice. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:38:31 AM EDT
[#9]
I am LEO 30 years. My son, against my wishes, is now LEO 5 years. Depending on your locale, it can be a good solid economy proof job that is great for the first few years. It does slowly drain you as you progress, but that's like any other job. There are high highs, and low lows. If I had it all to do over again I would go fire service, and I wish my son had followed my advice on this. (He'll learn
 ).Like someone else posted, if LEO he should go federal! |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:43:27 AM EDT
[#10]
Do the military thing, get college while in, then fed le after gets out.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 10:53:51 AM EDT
[#11]
God no.
I wouldn't do it again. Make a career out of the military. If not, learn a skill in the military whether it is diesel mechanic, helicopter pilot, electronics, anything. If he is smart, go and serve and make use of the GI Bill and go to school when he gets out. Career LE? Small town cop? HELL no. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:04:51 AM EDT
[#12]
That's what I did. Marines and then LE in small towns or counties. Small area politics are worse than big city. My advice is skip the Marines and go straight LE. Work in the jail or dispatch then academy and the street. Better yet join a union and become a crane operator or electrician.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:07:26 AM EDT
[#13]
No.
I can’t wait to stop working for the government. I will never work for another government entity. Good people are getting put in terrible spots by our politicians, and it’s only going to get worse. Our leaders are alienating the only support we ever had by their handling of the riots and the pandemic. It doesn’t matter if you’re federal, state, or local, you’re a law enforcement officer in the public’s eyes and there’s virtually no support. BTW- I’m not one of these “thin blue line” people who think cops can do nothing wrong. The issue is that cops can’t do anything right in the current environment. Thanks to the decisions that are out of their control. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:09:51 AM EDT
[#14]
Quoted:
My son is attending Explorer's and is a freshman in high school. He does very well in school and is a very good kid and very level headed. He wants to be a small town cop. He is thinking of joining the Marines, going LE and then once his enlistment is up, going to the academy. He knows what the current enviroment is and is fine with that. Is that that an overall sound approach? |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:12:54 AM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Do the military thing, get college while in, then fed le after gets out. THIS is the answer. No discussion. /thread |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:14:21 AM EDT
[#16]
If he is already doing Explorer stuff, then he is learning a little bit of what it is like to be a cop. Small town politics can be worse than big city politics, but depending on your small town, the citizen support can be amazing.
Nothing wrong with going military and then into LE, I work with several who have done it that way and probably 1 out of every 4 guys I know who are cops have done it that way. The rest either did college or puttered around after high school before becoming LE. He can't go wrong with college either, especially if his explorer program lets him stay in between 18-20. Again, not going to insert my opinion on if he should or not, he sounds like he is trying to think ahead and get things lined up. Things may change in the next 4-7 years before he can actually become LE which would cause him to re-evaluate. Tell him "Good luck" and thanks for being willing to do a job nobody else wants to do. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:21:49 AM EDT
[#17]
Don’t.
Seriously. Don’t. Find a job people want done. Never work somewhere that people cheer when you die. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:28:20 AM EDT
[#18]
fed agent/Border Patrol is a better job, tbh
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Posted: 10/27/2020 11:29:43 AM EDT
[#19]
Not LEO but hope my input is ok: I hate to see how LEO is increasingly demonized for political gain by the democrats. God bless your boy and you for raising him right. In my small town we love our cops. When I served as Alderman on my little mini-swamp council I managed to get all first responders a raise by shaming the rest of the board into voting for it. It's been 11 years with no bump in pay since they got that raise. LEO's don't get paid much here but there is no one disrespecting them and they know they are appreciated.
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Posted: 10/27/2020 1:19:21 PM EDT
[#20]
I took a similar route your son is thinking of. I wouldn’t do LE in the Marines. Go infantry instead. A young man grows up a lot in 4+ years in the military and he’ll gain valuable leadership skills in the military. The military has a FAR better leadership training program than anything offered in LE and he’ll benefit greatly. I can’t speak to OH but can give advise on anything else related to his interests. Don’t hesitate to IM me.
I get that a lot of people don’t recommend a LE career nowadays but LE still needs good people. And, if he gets in at the right place he’ll build a stable retirement. He won’t be rich but he should be financially stable if he makes the right decisions. |
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Posted: 10/27/2020 2:34:05 PM EDT
[#21]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Do the military thing, get college while in, then fed le after gets out. This. If he must be local LEO, which I would steer him away from, definitely talk him out of small or hometown type stuff. Too much political bs, and usually not a lot of room to advance. All I ever wanted to do as a kid was be a cop in the town I grew up in. Would never do it again. Ever! Find a nice mid to large-sized department where he can make different career choices and have opportunities to explore different assignments and make himself more marketable if he decides to change departments or paths down the road. I would not encourage anyone to get into LE right now, but then again, hopefully, that will change........ |
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Posted: 10/28/2020 8:07:11 AM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I took a similar route your son is thinking of. I wouldn’t do LE in the Marines. Go infantry instead. A young man grows up a lot in 4+ years in the military and he’ll gain valuable leadership skills in the military. The military has a FAR better leadership training program than anything offered in LE and he’ll benefit greatly. I can’t speak to OH but can give advise on anything else related to his interests. Don’t hesitate to IM me. I get that a lot of people don’t recommend a LE career nowadays but LE still needs good people. And, if he gets in at the right place he’ll build a stable retirement. He won’t be rich but he should be financially stable if he makes the right decisions. This above is actually what I was hoping for him. I also suggested he look at Fed LEO. He played hostage last night with the local sheriff dept swat and loved it. I got a kick when he said their guns look like ours :) I don't know the politics of the small town but what you're all saying makes sense. One of his lifelong best friends dad is the Chief and maybe he had some influence on his career choice. I don't sugar coat it and he understands the difficulties as much as one could at his age. His oldest brother was a Marine, second oldest is currently Navy so I'm pleased they all have a sense of duty and serving. I'm 100% sure I'm not changing his mind though. |
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Posted: 10/28/2020 11:04:14 AM EDT
[#23]
It’s hard to impress this on a young man....but try. He needs to think of his long term retirement. I didn’t but luckily I started working at a place that offered a fair retirement and when I moved to another agency, my retirement carried over. I know a few guys who worked for a number of year for a small agency that either offered no retirement or a very small retirement. When they finally moved up to a larger agency, now they have a decent retirement but will have to work longer to make up for the lack of retirement in their first agency.
Another thing he should also strongly consider....either consider staying active in the military for 20+ years or, if his heart is set on a LE career, he should strongly consider staying in the military reserves after he leaves active duty. I retired from the USMCR after 20 years and, while I won’t be able to collect my retirement pay till later, it’s going to be another source of retirement income (and was another income source during part of my LE career too). Also, depending on how good the LE agency insurance is, as a reservist he will also qualify for Tricare for both himself and his family (assuming he has one). He would have to pay for it but there is no better price for good health insurance than Tricare for a reservist and his family. Most kids don’t think about their retirement till they get into their 30s but encourage him to think about it. My dad never encouraged me to think about retirement and now he’s living on SS only and it sucks for him. He had to work much later in life than he needed to if he had some sort of retirement in place. Luckily for me, my early job choices didn’t hurt my retirement options but I was just fortunate. |
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Posted: 10/29/2020 9:34:57 AM EDT
[#24]
I showed him this thread to give him something to chew on.
I appreciate all the replies. I know he wants law enforcement its just a matter of what. Thanks again. |
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Posted: 10/29/2020 9:58:13 AM EDT
[#25]
When I was in college I got a job with the campus police to help make ends meet (I was a business major). It was a lot of fun. Our department was a branch of a large department in a neighboring city, so we had lots of interaction with them. I thought about changing majors to criminal law and pursuing a law enforcement career.
Then I started researching. I learned the national divorce rate for LEO was over 90%. In my extended department (campus + big city) it was 100%. That was enough for me (newlywed planning on a life with my wife and children) to walk away. I still think it would have been fun, but a potentially terrible cost. |
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Posted: 10/31/2020 5:28:35 AM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Like someone else posted, if LEO he should go federal! My dad was a city cop for 40 + years. I grew up seeing him and always wanted to be a cop as well. He was against it. I ended up finishing college and going federal and I enjoy going to work for the most part. More $ and semi better benefits going federal. So far we aren't having to deal with all the political BS that's going on right now. That may change, but right now it's not too bad. |
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Posted: 10/31/2020 5:03:10 PM EDT
[#27]
Quote HistoryQuoted: It's hard to impress this on a young man....but try. He needs to think of his long term retirement. I didn't but ... Most kids don't think about their retirement till they get into their 30s but encourage him to think about it. My dad never encouraged me to think about retirement and now he's living on SS only and it sucks for him. He had to work much later in life than he needed to if he had some sort of retirement in place. Luckily for me, my early job choices didn't hurt my retirement options but I was just fortunate. I never thought I'd live long enough to retire. I didn't even take out medical insurance until my thirties. Planning for retirement and the long game is essential. I am finding out the hard way at 50 and not having an exit strategy. Colt, I am glad you brought this one up; it really is a Big Deal. |
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Posted: 11/1/2020 2:33:42 AM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted: QUOTED FOR TRUTH I never thought I'd live long enough to retire. I didn't even take out medical insurance until my thirties. Planning for retirement and the long game is essential. I am finding out the hard way at 50 and not having an exit strategy. Colt, I am glad you brought this one up; it really is a Big Deal. I didn’t pay as much attention to my retirement as I should have in my earlier days but I also got lucky. I do pay attention to it now and I’m so thankful for the decisions I made and continue to make. I certainly won’t be rich in retirement but I’ll be in better shape than probably most people in this country. Way better financial situation than my dad and most or possibly all of my siblings. That said, I would only stick it out in large liberal cities if I was close to retirement (meaning a couple years at most). If I was years from retirement in a large liberal city, I’d be leaving as fast as I could find a job. To the OP, there is nothing wrong with your son getting his foot in the door at a small agency but I’d be looking at mid size agencies for where he should end up at. The retirement offerings should always be strongly considered regardless. I don’t know how retirements work in OH but that would be something to research. |
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Posted: 11/1/2020 1:55:31 PM EDT
[#29]
I was a city police officer in the mid to late 90s for five years. I loved the job but the pay sucked balls. As such, now I’m a federal agent and I’m eligible to retire next year but will probably stay on for maybe three more years after that just to make sure my financial needs and wants are taken care of so I don’t have to work again unless I choose to.
No fucking way I would ever go back into this line of work with the way society is today. If your son is adamant then tell him to go federal. Get a degree and pick up an 1811 slot with an agency. It’s probably the least painless way to go about it. If he goes in the military and picks up some active duty time while he’s working toward his degree even better since as a fed you can buy back that active time toward your pension. The work is better, the pay is better. Still plenty of bullshit but he’s less likely to get his head caved in by some asshole on the street. And if he does go that route tell him to pick a fucking degree in something non-law-enforcement related so if he is on for a couple of years and decides it’s not for him he can make decent money in a separate field. Trade school is probably as good or better as well but for most of us a bachelors degree minimum is required to even apply. |
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Posted: 11/1/2020 2:23:18 PM EDT
[#30]
I’ve been a LEO for 23 years, I had a chance to work with some Secret Service field guys a few weeks ago, security for a Pence visit. If I could go back and guide my singe 20+ year old self into a career, this would probably be it. Still LE, Federal system. I’ve been in municipal LE my whole career, I wouldn’t go in to it now unless i couldn’t get into other fields.
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Posted: 11/1/2020 2:37:31 PM EDT
[#31]
Since he can’t get hired til he is 21
He needs to go to college and get a good degree Preferably in a hard science and not basketweaving 101 Cops with college degrees go farther in the work place and have more options And since 2/3s of cops get out of LEO work in less than 2 years, he will have a four year degree to fall back on if it happens If he goes federal, tell him to skip applying to the DEA and BATFE |
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Posted: 11/1/2020 2:42:35 PM EDT
[#32]
Tell him to be a civilian firefighter for the DOD. He’ll make a lot of money, have great benefits and he’ll spend a lot of time getting paid to watch tv, play video games and hang out with other Firefighters.
Edit: After* college that is. |
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Posted: 11/1/2020 4:50:51 PM EDT
[#33]
As a federal agent, I worked in some really big cities (Dallas, New Orleans, Baltimore, and Miami), and in some really small ones later in my career.
Law enforcement in big cities, and in small cities, is a completely different job. I would say being a cop in a small town (especially in the south) is still a good job. Being a cop in a big city, is bad and is going to be worse in years to come. |
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Posted: 11/1/2020 5:04:29 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted: God no. I wouldn't do it again. Make a career out of the military. If not, learn a skill in the military whether it is diesel mechanic, helicopter pilot, electronics, anything. If he is smart, go and serve and make use of the GI Bill and go to school when he gets out. Career LE? Small town cop? HELL no. yep. No way in hell the way things are going. I am counting months. If I was counting over five years I would change. Then again we have Cuomo bail reform. 
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Posted: 11/2/2020 2:57:05 PM EDT
[#35]
Do him this favor......
Tell him to max out in whatever retirement program he can as soon as he gets hired. He gets a 3% raise? Ship it to deferred comp!. He won't miss it, and will thank you down the road. Other than "go be a fireman", best cop advice I ever got. 
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Posted: 11/2/2020 3:04:53 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Other than "go be a fireman", best cop advice I ever got. This is sound advice, otherwise have him get a decent degree like Engineering then be a cop, that was he has a nice career escape route. |
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Posted: 11/2/2020 5:40:17 PM EDT
[#37]
-Edit Bama-
I think the national statistics say that more cops kill themselves every year than die in the line of duty. My wife and I have a very strong marriage and are happily raising our two young children together, but she told me last week that in the 7 years that I have been with my current agency (12 yrs total as a cop), she doesn't remember a time when I was happy. She also said that the job has changed me. I'm still me, just me with a ton of mental / emotional baggage. Most of it administrative, and very little of it from the gore and death that I've seen on the street... If my son decided to be cop I'm not sure how I would cope with that decision. If I could go back to 20 and give advice to myself, I may still have stayed in the profession (I'm highly motivated to be a cop), but I surely would have taken a different career path than small agency cop in a big city. |
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Posted: 11/2/2020 5:51:43 PM EDT
[#38]
Yes, but in this environment I would be concern with my son becoming a cop
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Posted: 11/4/2020 3:53:28 AM EDT
[#39]
Don't know OP. I'd try to steer my kid from LE at this point but if he's anything like me, he's hard headed and at that point it support him and pray for him.
I did 5.5 years Military Police when I should have done that time as infantry. I would have been happier but I had no one to advise me. Family were WWII and Vietnam vets and it was anything but infantry for advice. The last 23 years I've spent as a civilian cop. Patrol, Swat, Detective and back to patrol as a supervisor. I wouldn't trade that experience for anything, I met the love of my life as a Detective, she prosecuted one of my murder cases. BUT, LE ain't what it was, the public will throw you under the bus for a legit use of force and cunt politician DA's will happily prosecute you, for doing the job you were trained to do the way you were trained to do it. I worry about my nephew, he idolized me and followed in my footsteps, except he took my advice and went infantry.  He's a sheriffs deputy now and just beginning a career in the world of LE as mine winds down. I hope he's not punished for doing his job and I pray for him and all the younger guys who choose the profession. They've a tough road ahead. |
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Posted: 11/6/2020 4:36:53 PM EDT
[#40]
Federal, can move to different areas, even International TDYs, or even jump to different agencies.
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Posted: 11/6/2020 4:53:53 PM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Be a Fireman instead and stay in the Fed system. Friend has done that all his adult life. Doesnt do shit. Sits at a half closed down base and collects $28 an hour to watch T.V. and drink coffee.  Attached File |
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Posted: 11/12/2020 4:23:34 PM EDT
[#42]
I did the exact route you described in the OP - Marines to LE.
Does your son like pain? 
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Posted: 11/12/2020 7:48:18 PM EDT
[#43]
Research and limit the areas you are willing to work.
Right now I'm working in a county with a DA I'm not a huge fan of. There are DA's that absolutely terrify me. Looking to relocate to a rural, conservative county working under a decent sheriff or for a small town. Do your homework. The being in the wrong county can ruin your life in this line or work. |
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Posted: 11/13/2020 6:11:40 AM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryQuoted: edit bama I think the national statistics say that more cops kill themselves every year than die in the line of duty. My wife and I have a very strong marriage and are happily raising our two young children together, but she told me last week that in the 7 years that I have been with my current agency (12 yrs total as a cop), she doesn't remember a time when I was happy. She also said that the job has changed me. I'm still me, just me with a ton of mental / emotional baggage. Most of it administrative, and very little of it from the gore and death that I've seen on the street... If my son decided to be cop I'm not sure how I would cope with that decision. If I could go back to 20 and give advice to myself, I may still have stayed in the profession (I'm highly motivated to be a cop), but I surely would have taken a different career path than small agency cop in a big city. Dude, you're so cool. |
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Posted: 11/13/2020 7:15:12 AM EDT
[#45]
Tie his hands behind his back and give him the saturn V lego build kit.
Tell him if he can complete that in 2 hours with detailed instructions on how it was put together he should be a cop. He will have 4 hours after to write the report. Give him the instructions after he fails. |
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Posted: 11/13/2020 10:10:58 AM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Since he can’t get hired til he is 21 ... If he goes federal, tell him to skip applying to the DEA and BATFE I know there's no minimum age to become a federal LE agent. I've met one federal agent who was hired at age 17. He'll be able to retire a millionaire before age 50. Border Patrol is the place to start. Not only are they almost always hiring, but they also offer some of the best experience. Work on getting a degree online or something while racking up that much more valuable experience (and fed LE retirement credit). DEA and ATF love hiring BP Agents. So does the FBI, but I'd avoid the FBI. Plenty of other great fed LE agencies to work for, too. |
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Posted: 11/16/2020 10:57:56 PM EDT
[#47]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I know there's no minimum age to become a federal LE agent. I've met one federal agent who was hired at age 17. He'll be able to retire a millionaire before age 50. Border Patrol is the place to start. Not only are they almost always hiring, but they also offer some of the best experience. Work on getting a degree online or something while racking up that much more valuable experience (and fed LE retirement credit). DEA and ATF love hiring BP Agents. So does the FBI, but I'd avoid the FBI. Plenty of other great fed LE agencies to work for, too. There are multiple fed agencies that do in fact have minimum age requirements. Not to mention informal age requirements for qualifications (ie impossible to meet minimum requirements without x amount of years of experience) I'm curious what alphabet agency hired this person at 17? I agree that USBP is a good option as a foot in the door (or even career), for the reasons listed above. To the original poster, its going to boil down to individual passion. The feds are very good at certain things, but traditional LE (PD, SO, State) is a whole different animal. I will say that if someone truly has traditional law enforcement pumping through their veins, 99% of fed gigs will leave them disappointed. I have nothing but respect for my local brothers/sisters on patrol or in specialized units. They're the tip of the spear and basically make 75% of my job possible. |
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Posted: 11/17/2020 12:41:54 AM EDT
[#48]
Quote HistoryQuoted: There are multiple fed agencies that do in fact have minimum age requirements. Not to mention informal age requirements for qualifications (ie impossible to meet minimum requirements without x amount of years of experience) I'm curious what alphabet agency hired this person at 17? INS hired someone as LE at age 17. I've heard (but haven't seen firsthand) that Border Patrol does it every now and then. Like you said, the experience requirements make it difficult for 17 year olds to be hired. I think most of the other fed agencies have the luxury of being a bit more selective. Border Patrol has a lot of not-so-nice area to cover and not as many people as they'd like to cover it, and other agencies are constantly poaching (or BP Agents are moving to greener pastures, depending on your perspective), so they're constantly hiring. BP is like a boot camp for fed LE in some ways. |
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Posted: 11/19/2020 8:24:33 PM EDT
[#49]
Military service will help him get his foot in the door and will make it easier to adjust to a LE Academy and his first few years on the job. I would highly suggest going to college and getting a degree in anything other than criminal justice before going to an academy though. The degree will help him move through the ranks and switch agencies/departments later on in his career.
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Posted: 11/20/2020 9:50:46 AM EDT
[#50]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I would highly suggest going to college and getting a degree in anything other than criminal justice before going to an academy though. The degree will help him move through the ranks and switch agencies/departments later on in his career. Great advice. And, although I'd never want to work for them, the FBI is constantly looking for accountants, lawyers, and foreign language speakers. Alternatively, although who knows what the next 20-25 years will bring, a career as fed LE with no degree is a great example of a good career that you don't have to screw around with school for. Retiring as a GS-12 is nothing to sneeze at. But, yeah, moving up means even more $$$, and the degree makes it much easier/more likely for someone to move up. |
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