Is there a downside?

While veterans can be a perfect fit in law enforcement, they must seriously evaluate whether or not they truly want a job with the potential for retraumatization, a subject addressed in an article by Gary Peterson, which is available at www.military.com/veteran-jobs/search/law-enforcement-jobs/military-transition-to-police-force.html.

Still, several departments’ testing processes will discover instances of post-traumatic stress disorder.

In San Jose’s case, Donahue said it hasn’t noticed any difference between military versus nonmilitary when it comes to
any issues.

“We have a robust crisis management unit,” Donahue said, adding this includes offering peer support, mental health counseling and other resources. He agreed if a candidate suffered from PTSD or other conditions that would affect their ability to serve, it would come out in the testing process and the candidate would be weeded out.

For Newport News, Drew agreed, “That’s not been my experience” before adding it’d be more likely to be an issue for someone coming from an area where they’ve not been exposed to any violence versus a veteran.

However, the drawback that Newport News has experienced with hiring veterans is them moving on after a few years. Drew said they come to Newport News because they or a family member has been deployed there, but after a few years, they decide to move back to California or Ohio or wherever their family is.

Drew hasn’t been losing officers to other departments, but when their time is up, they tend to move on. “I just lost a very good special victims detective; her husband was in the military, and when he got out, he wanted to move back to the West Coast.”

He definitely is seeing more turnover with military hires versus civilian.

Drew said he doesn’t think people come to a job or leave one because of a couple of thousand dollars. To retain officers, he believes in training, support and then letting them do their jobs without micromanaging. People want to have a voice and those who are quieter may need to be drawn out, according to Drew. Sharing the department’s goals and treating everyone with respect is what attracts people.

When asked if that can be translated at a job fair, Drew said that it could by sending people who embody what they believe and stand for and who show the diversity on the force. Newport News wants to show potential recruits the benefits of working for its department, offer to show them around, spend the day and then follow up within 24-48 hours.

Drew came to Newport News after spending 25 years at the Richmond Police Department, and he said his recruiter used to call him once a week to check on him. “It was a no-brainer that I would go there. We built a relationship; I felt like I mattered to him. He still calls me once in a while.”

Drew is humbled to work for a fantastic organization and great men and women.

He also advised, “In an urban police department, it’s critical to have diversity — male, female, black, Hispanic. The military does a phenomenal job of diversity because they bring people together from all over the country. The military is also great about moving females into leadership positions.” Donahue said he “absolutely thinks hiring vets is something to pursue. They are a huge benefit to law enforcement in enormous ways. We really embrace and value our military veterans.”