Chicago would become one of few cities that have an application-only process. Applicants would need to have at least 60 semester (90 quarter) hours of college credit or four years of continuous active duty in the U.S. armed forces — or 30 semester (or 45 quarter) hours of college credit and one year of continuous active duty in the military.
Chicago has not held a police exam since Nov. 5, 2006.
Fraternal Order of Police President Mark Donahue said the idea “sounds too stupid to be true.” It appears that it is true.
The city plans to add 86 officers — far less than what is viewed as necessary for the optimal size of the force.
It would appear that you do not want just minority officers but the most qualified minority officers. Rather than drop the entrance exam, the city would be better off removing any bias in the exam and actively recruiting minority officers from Chicago and the military.
Chicago may be repeating the mistake of Washington, which cut corners on the training of officers in the 1980s to take advantage of federal money for new officers. Those officers in the classes of 1989 and 1990 lead to a series of later arrests and discipline problems among those graduates, here.
This is one of the most important public positions in our society. These officers stand the line of both law enforcement and the protection of civil
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