Need some input

[CAL]

After calling around I have two agencies that are my top two choices. They are both county level - one is the county I live in and one is not. My question is from a jurisdiction standpoint. Would it be better to work in the same jurisdiction that I live in or work for an agency outside of my area? Are there any advantages or disadvantages of either?

[DD78]

I prefer not to live where I work.

Simply put, this is why:

1.) I don't have to respond to the neighbor's house for a domestic.
2.) It discourages my neighbors from asking me dumb police questions or expecting me to go give parking tickets to the people they don't like down the road who put their left side wheels to the curb.
3.) When my kid hits the school system he's less likely to get into "Your daddy arrested my daddy" fights.
4.) The Town I work in is a shithole.

Upsides if you choose to live where you work.

1.) Short commute.
2.) You'll know more about the area quicker. After a year or two you'll know the players anywhere you work so this becomes a non-issue.

That is all.

[Broke Hoss]

I work in the city, but live in the county, so I don't know that I'm qualified to answer. I live out here because: I get tired of people, I like being able to go out my back door & shoot a gun or take a leak & nobody's around to complain.

Our SOP says you gotta live within like 50 miles, which is a plus. Take home cars don't go out of city limits-still had to drive my pu to/from on SWAT & CID even though with where I lived I was actually closer than my SGT who was inside city limits. K9's gotta live inside city limits.

When I worked for the SO, they liked for deputies to live in the county. It was a plus when you were being considered for moving from the jail to road duty.

These are some of the things you might want to consider. They may affect your career development on down the road. Weigh these out with the +/- of each department.

It's good that you have a choice to make; Good Luck.

[Reno911]

Ditto... Live in a different jurisdiction. If you need the popo for something you might not want someone you work with showing up. It stops the "they're friends who work in the same agency" arguments in court.



I prefer not to live where I work.

Simply put, this is why:

1.) I don't have to respond to the neighbor's house for a domestic.
2.) It discourages my neighbors from asking me dumb police questions or expecting me to go give parking tickets to the people they don't like down the road who put their left side wheels to the curb.
3.) When my kid hits the school system he's less likely to get into "Your daddy arrested my daddy" fights.
4.) The Town I work in is a shithole.

Upsides if you choose to live where you work.

1.) Short commute.
2.) You'll know more about the area quicker. After a year or two you'll know the players anywhere you work so this becomes a non-issue.

That is all.

[CAL]

So from a jurisdiction perspective it doesn't sound like there is any benefit to working where you live. What if you got involved in an off duty incident? Any difference?

[Reno911]

The drawback is that you may not know the officers responding. I think in another thread it was discussed whether or not you should get involved. Go with the agency that has more divisions to work in, such as detectives, motors, traffic, bike patrol, street crimes, narcs, etc. The more divisions to work in the less likely you are to become stagnant. Look at pay and benefits as well. That is if you ever decide to go full time popo.

Cheap plug..... if you anticipate getting into an off duty incident get a "Don't Shoot Me safety banner" at dsmsafety.com. Designed for the Miss America in you!

[Reno911]

So from a jurisdiction perspective it doesn't sound like there is any benefit to working where you live. What if you got involved in an off duty incident? Any difference?


The entire State of Nevada falls under NRS (Nevada Revised Statutes). They are the basis for almost all the laws. So if I were to travel to Las Vegas I could make an arrest there. The municipal codes for cities and counties are different, but there is always the NRS to fall back on. Is Texas that way or do all jurisdictions have their own ordinances?

[DD78]

So from a jurisdiction perspective it doesn't sound like there is any benefit to working where you live. What if you got involved in an off duty incident? Any difference?

1.) In my state I have police powers state wide. That being said, the local jurisdiction handles the prosecution. Naturally if I go pursuing crimes that occurred in other jurisdictions it's going to piss people off. That being said I am not expected to beg off of something that occurs right in front of me.

2.) Who cares?

I wouldn't count on anyone recognizing you in your own jurisdiction. Cornell Young of the Providence Police Dept. counted on that and it got him killed when he didn't drop his gun while off duty trying to detain a suspect.

Providence PD has somewhere around 500 cops and you aren't going to know everyone. Don't count on a banner or a badge to save your ass either. All that will do is buy you that split second you need to drop your piece and get face down on the ground.

That is all.

[Reno911]

Exactly. I'd like to think that if I was in an off duty incident and the uniforms show up I'd drop my gun immediately, no questions asked. That's really unfortunate. The "cheap plug" was a joke.

[retread]

There may be a requirement that you have to live in the county that you serve. When i first started thats the way it was, they have relaxed that a little bit but another thing to consider--- if you get a take home ride, they want let you park out of county. I worked on a multi-jurisdictional task force for 12 years and if i was using a fed car all was right, the moment i got a county car-- i had to be in the county.

[CAL]

Texas is a state wide jurisdictional state as well. Of course the ordinances vary somewhat from county to county, city to city, etc. Here in my county there are 36 or so agencies. I definitely don't figure on anyone recognizing me, especially since I'm going to be a reserve. I appreciate the feedback - I think I've made up my mind.

[Reno911]

Well? Whaddaya gonna do?

[CAL]

I think I'm going to try and get on with the S.O. that is outside of the county I live in.

[Reno911]

Is there an interview process for you in this whole thing?

[CAL]

Is there an interview process for you in this whole thing?
Yes. I imagine it is a panel of some sort. In addition there is a written test, psych eval, and physical agility test.

[Feet]

I have always lived in a different county than I work in and I like it tht way. I used to live 3 counties away from my job so I never saw any turds I dealt with.
Given the choice, work in a different county.:word:

[LPD655]

I agree... don't choose the same place you live... I live in a small town of around 1400 and I am 1 of 3 police officers that live here in the town. I have people come to my house after I am off to try and ask me questions or want me to respond to "a problem" that they are having. Choose a different county!