Wife wants to move out of FL. She is looking at DC due to work. She would be making a ton more money. If we do the move I would have to find work. Of course I want to stay in police work. So looking for some help here. We would want to live in NoVa due to gun laws.

Get a job with MPD. You'll get to shoot crack dealers all the time, and there's plenty of dogs around here too!!

Seriously though.. If you're in it for the action then MPD is the way to go. All the cops I know in DC (and I know a lot of them) tell me that they wouldn't want to be a cop anywhere else.

Just stay away from Prince William PD.

Do NOT apply with MPD.  

There is a reason everyone is leaving.

Many other Depts. depending on what you like.  Fairfax, Arlington, Alexandria.  Even Montgomery and PG County have given recent raises to their troops.  Some of these Depts. have take home cruisers as well.

Good luck

Do you like "cop work"?
If so apply here: Fairfax, Arlington, Alexandria.
If not apply to Capital police, and Pentagon Police.

There is always Metro Transit as well.

http://www.wmata.com/careers/mtpd_form.cfm

You can't throw a rock in the DMV without hitting a cop. There are so many different agencies out here it's ridiculous. Federal, State, County, Municipality and every federal building have their own police force. That doesn't include all the private security either.

ETA guess I'm 2 years late to this party!

this guy may have more info than me, but my interactions with PWC have all been great.

Want to work in a  dept with a bigger budget than they probably need? look up manassas park pd. we have an anti-mine vehicle for a population of 14k

Come live out by me in Loudoun County.

The LoCo Sheriff's Dept is great.

Still looking? PM me, we have a vacancy.

Prince Georges County, MD police are always hiring.  That place is the GHETTO (I lived there).  Stay away from Maryland at all costs. Think Baltimore riots.

I know tons of cops here in the DMV and many are close friends. This is what I have been told:

Pentagon police are bent on promoting minorities, as with all departments here.  A couple friends have quit over this issue.

Fairfax PD is a very professional force to work for.  I have dealt with them and they actually are.  Take home cars.

Stafford County Sheriff's office is run well. Never had trouble with them.  Few speed traps.  They worry about criminals, not commuters.

Loudon is OBSESSED with pulling over speeders.  It's like their life depends on it.  

Capitol Police are the most highly trained force in the US.  They have a ton of money thrown at them.  Take home cars.

On a side note, I cannot stand the VA State PD.  What is up with the whole enforcement of 80 MPH and not illegal aliens?  They have minds of their own don't they?  Enforce slow drivers in the passing lane for once!  rant over for now.

I would also like to know your reasoning.

If she's involved in anything Federal/Navy, look at the Hampton Roads area (norfolk, portsmouth, chesapeake, suffolk, virginia beach, newport news, hampton).  Every single PD is hiring, Cost of Living is lower, and it doesn't involve DC politics, which is nice.

DIA police are hiring.  Look at CIA police dept. (called SPOs) too.

Come on up, you’ll get hired....pay might suck, hell, get a local gig, then apply with the feds as a 1811.....pm me....I live in Fairfax, a mile away from the NRA museum....

You do NOT want to live in Washington, DC.

The 'nice' parts are painfully expensive.

It has some of the most restrictive handgun laws in the USA.

Maryland is a close second on ridiculous laws.

Virginia is shall issue Concealed Handgun Permits.

All of Virginia lethal force is case law, and we have been at it a long time.
We do not have, or need, a 'stand your ground' law.

It is deeply embedded in our case law.

If you are legally present in a location
(like a public street) you have no duty to retreat and may meet deadly force
with deadly force under a 'reasonable man' standard of fear.

The police have no special protections except if they point a gun at you it is NOT
brandishing as long as they follow their departments rules.

The CIA police do not rotate around to other agencies for the most part.
They are cleared to a pretty high level for the most part and stay there.

A Federal judge comes a couple times a year and holds traffic court fr tickets.

I was working there when John Sirica came over.
The guy from Watergate.
The small cafeterias was jammed with spectators.

I was a photographer (P&PD/Color Lab).
We shot numerous pictures of folks standing with the Judge.
He seemed very flattered anyone would want a picture with him.
We did it against a wall so that no one would accidentally get caught in a picture.

Made a lot of prints for peoples offices.
Some did eventfully get declassified (often at retirement)
so they could be removed from the building.

ETA - HOLY GHOST THREAD BATMAN - actually my fault for scrolling 1/2 way down the DC page - not much activity in this HTF!

Having been in this area for a long time, and working in the government space, I would make the following recommendations:

1. Look at the federal agencies and their Police departments. I have been in a few alphabet soup agencies that have their own departments and those departments get you a few things such as into the federal system, great resources, and often times tons of OT if you want to pad your salary. Getting into the federal system makes you portable, and frankly pays well. Many of the police at the last agency I sat at full time were making six figures w/ IT.

2. Local departments - focus on where you want to live. I personally live in Fairfax County - and have most of the time since 1992. Fairfax County PD is, as others have said, a good organization. Most of the county is pretty mellow from a law enforcement perspective, but there are some areas that have plenty of activity (petty crime, property crime, car theft...). To give you an example of how mellow - we had 3 officers dispatched to our neighborhood after a fight between two 5th graders. Apparently it needed a big response (eye rolling). Also, You want to balance your commute with your wifes commute too. A lot of LE find themselves commuting in some.

3. If you are going to commute in this area - try to find a "reverse commute" - i.e. - west when others are coming east, and east when others are coming west. You can cruise by and WATCH traffic but not have to sit in it. If you live in Fairfax, but commute out to Loudon in the AM you will have a far easier commute than the reverse. Of course, with shift work this can quickly become harder to predict.

I can tell you, about every agency here is hiring as fast as they can...

-shooter