new app.

Hey, I put my application in with DEP park patrol and was wondering if you guys had any tips or advice. Ive been a florida LEO for 3 yrs and still work at an agency. Whats it like down in south florida, and what exactly does you job detail other then that of enforcing state and local laws. Are you restrained to a certain park or all the parks in the county? Are you allowed to perform traffic stops and make citizen contacts and such outside of the parks?

Thanks for any help.

Here are a few tips before applying with any agency.

1. Privately talk to a few of their officers off duty. If you can loosen them up with a couple of drinks first or get them in a relaxed social setting, you're more likely to get honest answers.

2. Check out the hire / fire / turnover rate. If they have a union, talk with the shop steward or the local union rep to find out the number, types, and causes of disciplinary actions. Also find out if those actions are applied to everyone or if the boss exempts his favorite sons from the rules when they screw up.

3. Check out their promotional process. Is it fair and equitable? Does everyone get a fair shot? Or is the command staff stacked with with people who will do anything the boss says regardless of ethical considerations?

4. Did the boss work his way to the top and understand what it’s like to be a real cop? Or did he get their by way of his educational credentials and political connections?

Like any agency, this place has it’s good and bad points. But, based on your questions and what you’re accustomed to doing for the past three years, I don’t think you’ll be happy here. But, I could be wrong. Considering what’s at stake, is it worth the risk to find out? In the words of Dirty Harry, “Do ya feel lucky? Well, do ya?”

I'm a Texas cop thinking about moving to Florida. I understand your agency has 4 law enforcement divisions.
Park Patrol
Park Rangers
Emergency Team (SWAT I THINK?)
Envestigations
Is this correct?
Do they all have such internal probelms? :?:

Sorry about the "E" from the sounds of things they would have fired me for that.

Oh, don’t be silly! They wouldn’t fire you for that! They would start an internal affairs investigation and put you on suspension. They would then place you under surveillance and attach a mobile tracking device to your vehicle so they could find out where you were going and who told you misuse “E”. And, assuming this was your first offense and it was accidental and not malicious, you would probably get off with a two week suspension and have to take 160 hours of remedial training so that you did not misuse “E” again. Unless of course you happen to have a friend in high places here, in which case you would have been immediately promoted to lieutenant for you creative and inovative way of using the letter "E".