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So you're beginning your career in law enforcement and you want to position yourself now for the future. You wish to become a chief, sheriff, captain, or detective. But how do you prepare yourself today for that career that is 15 years down the road? Simple; today's planning will set your future's career path.
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Have you ever asked a fellow officer where in the world they learned to do what they just did, and had them say in reply that they had been taught that in the academy? Or in some in-service class? Or had seen it in a training video? Here's one way that that happens.
Read More →There is not a cop alive who doesn't have a trunkful of good police war stories. In fact, I used to think the reason cops were invited to parties was for our great storytelling ability. But knowing when to use that ability is key.
Read More →There is an age old question that surfaces in this column of mine: How long will the FTO be my FTO? The first answer to this is that it depends on which phase of the training process you are in, but that is the incorrect answer. The real answer is, for life.
Read More →Yes, in the FTO program you can get hurt, killed, sued, and all of the nasty things of a cop's life up to and including termination. Do not get faint of heart. Just know that this is still a learning program and you will make mistakes!
Read More →I remember a training officer I had once, back in my cub days, who decided that the best way to break in a new guy was to act all tough and hard, and to intimidate me with his experience and his disdain for me and for what I thought I knew.
Read More →All through the academy, your recruits are told horror stories of their future training officers and the “FTO program.” Police work is like most vocations where there are rites of passage. People beginning this career wonder about the rites of passage and trials of fire that they will face as they join the profession.
Read More →When you look at another officer’s uniform and see an FTO pin, what thoughts come into your mind? Sure you know that FTO is an abbreviation for “field training officer.” But just what does that mean?
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Patrol training is the obligatory stepping stone to street work for many a new cop. It is weeks (or months in remedial cases) of short meals, long nights, and court in the morning. And this time spent with a veteran field training officer (FTO) can result in some of the most curious pairings of individuals since Pat Boone married himself to heavy metal. Still, this mentoring process is critical to the development of new officers.
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