NCJ Number
214451
Journal
International Journal of Police Science and Management Volume: 8 Issue: 1 Dated: Spring 2006 Pages: 9-32
Date Published
2006
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Drawing on longitudinal research over a 19-year period, this study examined the necessity of police age restriction policies based on variations of health performance among a large group of police officers in the New York Police Department (NYPD).
Abstract
Results revealed that although older officers were more likely to have disability applications, the difference was statistically insignificant and might not offer enough evidence to lower the maximum appointment age or the mandatory retirement age for police officers. The findings suggest that older officers serving on police forces may lead to higher rates of cardiac incidents associated with increasing age, potentially leading to greater losses of valuable police resources. While these findings suggest the value of age restrictive police policies, it cannot answer the question of whether the monetary savings of the policies and the risk to public safety outweigh the risk of violating individual rights. Participants of the study were 3,012 members of the NYPD who entered the New York City Police Academy in 1985 and were followed for a period of 19 years, through December 31, 2003. Police officers in the study group ranged in age from 20 to 37 years at the time they entered the Academy. The 19-year study period was divided into three time intervals, with health performance tested at the end of each time interval. Applications for disability pensions submitted by the police officers was the unit of analysis for the health performance of officers. Logistic regression equation models were constructed to determine the probability that a police officer would submit or be recommended for a disability retirement application. Future research investigating police age restriction policies should focus on particular agencies and should be based on all available measures of police performance. Tables, references