Fort Wayne Police Department

[Al Quandt]

any dumbass that plays sports could be an officer

My ex-Marine husband thought about joining. I tease him about it all the time.

lol...

and to clarify I am not saying that pnly dumbassess play sports

[poopstains]

The requirements on that are very vague, there is more to it to become a cop.

[quote]• First, applicants have to apply with the department. This is open to any with a high school diploma, or an equivalent, and must be at least 21 years old. Haven’t smoked marijuana in 3 years, done hard drugs in 10. You cannot have smoked marijuana more than 15O times in your whole life.
• Second, after turning in the application the potential recruits must take the fitness test (see hand out for specifics).
25 sit up's in one minute, 18 push ups, 14" veritcal leap, 300meter dash in 82 sec's or less, 1.5 mile run in 17 min, these are done in this order one after another.
• Third, there is the written test. This test covers police policies and other relevant material. The test takes into account for cultural differences and possible biases.
• Fourth, the remaining recruits must participate in an oral, panel interview.
• Fifth, the 80 candidates are given general background check, covering driving and criminal records. This process dropped 7 people; the remaining 73 are then assigned an officer in charge of running a thorough background check, on top of their regular daily duties.
• Sixth, the remaining 53 take a “Voice Stress Analysisâ€

[Aero]

All of those requirements are lax, and some are just stupid:

"You cannot have smoked marijuana more than 15O times in your whole life."

First of all....where does the number 150 come from? Who is going to know if you smoked a certain number of times or not? No one is going to say, "Well gee, I've kept a thorough, detailed log of my marijuana smoking, and I've done it 151 times...I guess I can't be a cop."

[cwallace]

All of those requirements are lax, and some are just stupid:

"You cannot have smoked marijuana more than 15O times in your whole life."

First of all....where does the number 150 come from? Who is going to know if you smoked a certain number of times or not? No one is going to say, "Well gee, I've kept a thorough, detailed log of my marijuana smoking, and I've done it 151 times...I guess I can't be a cop."

Notice it doesn't say ANYTHING about continued use AFTER you are hired...

Chris

[bassjones]

Other than the constant drug tests that is.

I would prefer a person had smoked marijuana less than 10 x's and had never done any hard drugs - a felony, btw.

Most of the FWPD agrees with me and are mad as hell at Rusty for changing the policy - something he felt he had to do to get more minority candidates in, btw. A belief which makes most of the cops of a minority race mad as hell.

[cwallace]

Other than the constant drug tests that is.

Yeah because we know there is no way around those when given the proper warning...

Chris

[poopstains]

All of those requirements are lax, and some are just stupid:

"You cannot have smoked marijuana more than 15O times in your whole life."

First of all....where does the number 150 come from? Who is going to know if you smoked a certain number of times or not? No one is going to say, "Well gee, I've kept a thorough, detailed log of my marijuana smoking, and I've done it 151 times...I guess I can't be a cop."

I can absolutely say I can't be a cop, because I've smoked pot way more thatn that. The numbers were given to me by the Captain in charge of hiring during one of our many meetings. The numbers come from my notes they may be wrong, but I'm sure that is what he said. They can ask you during the stress ananlysis test if you've smoked it in that range and will know if your lieing.

[GoDownProductions]

I was in high school and we were all leaving a basketball game in Butler.

I use to work in Butler. I worked there for 2 years. In that time, I got pulled over 6 times. Those same 2 years I got pulled over 0 times in Ft Wayne. Those cops will actually pull you over just because they have never seen you. 4 of those times I got pulled over I was in a different car each time. A friend of mine lives there and told me even he get's pulled over whenever he gets a new car. (he goes through a lot of junkers. hahaha) They are just dying to fine you for something.

[Oliver's Army]

An open letter from a real cop.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to introduced myself. I am a police officer. More importantly to this post, I am a police officer who is sick and damned tired of dealing with certain things on a day to day basis:

1) Contrary to what you might think, I am not an idiot. That ring on my finger is a BA from Texas Tech. My GPA was a 3.71 and I was in fact the president of my frat (which means I got a lot of stories that start out "So, this one time, we were messed up, and...). So, when I make the mistake of mispronouncing your name (the last name with 17 forking letters, only two of which are vowels), dont give me that look like I just kicked your puppy.

While I may not be an idiot, I am human and I do f**k things up from time to time. When I apologize for pulling you over because I thought your tags were out, just take the sorry and be on about your way. DO NOT get a high and mighty attitude. Our state has over 5000 traffic laws, I can find one to help you get over your tude.

2) No, I do not have "real criminals" I should be out looking for. Did you happen to notice the forking Harley parked behind you with LED's blinking? Lemme give you a hint - if you see a motorcycle officer, our entire job relates to butthead drivers. butthead drivers are the ones who make your daily commute dangerous (Or, a complete standstill, once they wreck out). With that in mind, shut up about the other "important" things I "should be doing." Believe it or not, I tried to get this job. Dont act like you wouldnt like to get paid to ride a Harley for 8 hours a day. But, the main benefit of this job, is I dont have "Real criminals" to f**k with. No shagging calls, dealing with domestics, and so on. My worst days are telling someone they lost a loved one in a wreck I just worked. Which, brings me to my next point:

3) If I was a d*ck from the beginning of the stop, I apologize. I mean that with all sincerity. I am human. If I've dealt with 10 assholes before I stopped you or maybe delivered a death notification, I may have done the wrong thing and assumed you were gonna be one too. Believe it or not, after my shift on the way home, I'll probably reflect on my day and feel a bit sh*tty if our interaction stands out because I was a jerk. Yours wouldnt be the first citation I've "lost" because I thought I was being an overbearing prick at the time I wrote it. We all have our bad days.

4) No good deed goes unpunished. I know that. But, if I give you a warning - DO NOT assume I pulled you over for a bullsh*t reason and then lost my nerve. Just because I didnt write you for 7 over the limit, doesnt mean I was profiling and you should set up a meeting with my Chief and your NAACP rep. You complaining that "He stopped me for nothin, oterwise he'd have given me a ticket," is bullsh*t and, frankly, is the reason most of us have stopped giving warnings.

Profiling is bullsh*t, by the way. You're hauling ass past me at 70+ mph. I have to see your speed, if you have a front license plate, registration sticker, inspection sticker and if you're wearing a seatbelt in the split second you pass me. I couldnt give two sh*ts if your black white or green.

5) No, you may not see my RADAR gun. For a few reasons. First, I dont have to show it to you. You bestfriend's roommate's boyfriend who talked to a cop once is forking wrong. I dont have to show it to you, I dont care what you heard. Second, I dont want to show it to you, because I dont want you out of your car. Why? You may not know that you're not gonna attack me, but I dont know that. If you're seated, you're less of a threat and I like feeling as comfy as I can. Also, I dont have a RADAR anymore. I have LIDAR. If you're gonna act like a lawyer on the side of the road, get your sh*t squared away first and know what you're talking about. Finally, you cant see the LIDAR for your own safety. You feel that way your car rocks every time an 18 wheeler flys by? I'd rather not get sued becuase your stupid ass fell into traffic and got killed on my stop.

While I'm on my good pal LIDAR, it has some neat features. It's a laser beamed device, so - no, I couldnt have gotten the guy next to you. It's got a scope on it, and the scope's dot was aimed directly at your car's grill. Also, it tells me the distance in feet that i clocked you at. So, dont tell me, I couldnt have gotten you from that far, because I can. Its accurate to 2500 feet (half a mile or so), and I can clock you, get two swigs of coffee and eat three donut holes by the time you get close enough to see my motorcycle on the shoulder.

6) Arguements take place in court, not on the side of the road. No exceptions. And, yes, I will show up to court. Even on my day off. I get paid (by you, thanks for reminding me) OT to show up to court, and I'm trying to con my wife into letting me buy a new boat, so I need that money. Now, once we get to court, follow a few easy rules:

Dont lie. My bike has a video camera on it, and that box on my belt is a mic. The camera is hooked into my fixed 4 way RADAR, so it shows your speed (if I didnt clock you with a LIDAR unit, that is). Oh, and judges dont like all those cuss words you used out at the scene...

Dont yell at me outside the court room. This is not a personal matter to me, even if it is for you. After this, Im going home and watching my Texas Rangers f**k up another promising season. You will be the furthest thing from my mind.


Guys and gals, we are the same as you. We've got a home life that might suck, bills to pay, college loans, the damned team that never wins (Tech losing in the first fornicatin round! Damn you Bobby Knight), and so on. We have feelings, personalities, and dreams just like you. When Im at your window, look at my face. You met a hundred guys like me in college, and loved em. I was that guy a few years ago, and not much has changed. Im still a nice guy, treat me like one and you might just get a warning.


Location: DFW Area TX

[cwallace]

Where is that from?

Chris

[poopstains]

I loved it, it says everything it should. People that piss and moan about the cops should read it.

[deek]

Yeah, he does sound like a good guy. I mean, that's got to be a tough job at times and the last thing you would want is some asshat jerking you around...

I think I have done what several others have commented on...just be polite, non-confrontational and move on. Not that I like getting speeding tickets, as I think it is a crock, but oh well...I suppose that is the price I pay to drive faster...

[mike_delia22]

ya, hooray for vigilanties!!!! everyone get a gun and some cuffs and we'll make up our own police dept to police the police and the infernal affairs dept.
ive been arrested numorous times for many different things and have yet to know the real reason other than i didnt belong in that crowd at that time!!.
yes i have a gun and yes i carry it. i feel that the only thing a cop is good for is filling out the death report!!
nuff said!

[shattered existence]

Worst experience I've ever had with a cop:

First time I was ever pulled over. I was about 17 at the time and I was driving a big piece of sh*t 1986 Econoline van that I had painted John Deer Green. It was the middle of winter, cold as hell, and I had the back of the van stuffed full of music equipment that we were going to set up for our first band practice. It was about 10 o'clock at night and a state trooper pulled me over because I had a headlight out. I wasn't speeding or swerving or anything like that. I only had a headlight out, oh yeah and he complained that my muffler was too loud. Anyway, as the cop approached my window he had his hand on his gun. My friend was in the passenger seat with a guitarcase in between his legs. The cop sees it and says, "What is that, a shotgun or a pool stick or what?" I say, "It's a guitar." He then proceeds to make me get out, walk to the back and place my hands on the van. He then patted me down. He even patted down my balls. WTF!? He threatened to search the van several times, but never did. Then I had to go back and sit in the front seat of his car while he ran my information. Then I received a warning ticket and was sent on my way. All because I had forking headlight out!

[The_Dude]

Worst experience I've ever had with a cop:

First time I was ever pulled over. I was about 17 at the time and I was driving a big piece of sh*t 1986 Econoline van that I had painted John Deer Green. It was the middle of winter, cold as hell, and I had the back of the van stuffed full of music equipment that we were going to set up for our first band practice. It was about 10 o'clock at night and a state trooper pulled me over because I had a headlight out. I wasn't speeding or swerving or anything like that. I only had a headlight out, oh yeah and he complained that my muffler was too loud. Anyway, as the cop approached my window he had his hand on his gun. My friend was in the passenger seat with a guitarcase in between his legs. The cop sees it and says, "What is that, a shotgun or a pool stick or what?" I say, "It's a guitar." He then proceeds to make me get out, walk to the back and place my hands on the van. He then patted me down. He even patted down my balls. WTF!? He threatened to search the van several times, but never did. Then I had to go back and sit in the front seat of his car while he ran my information. Then I received a warning ticket and was sent on my way. All because I had forking headlight out!

1.) You had a headlight out. It's against the law. You got pulled over for it. Nothing wrong with that.

2.) That cop isn't popping into the situation thinking, "Oh, I'm gonna f**k with these band geeks." He's protecting his own ass. For all he knows, that loud kidnapper van with one headlight is full of a bunch of stolen band gear and is being driven by a criminal.

3.) You got a warning. If he really wanted to be a d*ck, he could have given you a ticket for having a headlight out, a noise ordinance ticket, etc.

What exactly is the problem here? Yeah, it was inconvenient for you for what, 10, maybe 15 minutes? The cop was doing his job. Bottom line.