NCJ Number
128629
Date Published
1990
Length
118 pages
Annotation
Because an additional 14,000 police officers will be required in California by the year 2000, it may be necessary to broaden the base of potential recruits to include such groups as blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and gays.
Abstract
The proposed plan to expand the recruitment base is intended to enable law enforcement agencies to incorporate police academy graduates who are suspected or openly gay within the ranks of sworn officers. The benefits of such a plan would accrue to police departments with different types of recruiting problems, since not all gays are concentrated in large cities. Greater benefits would result for the smaller city or less populated county, since gays often find it difficult to find employment in these areas. Small police departments often suffer from the competition of larger and more affluent departments, both in terms of recruitment and attrition of officers who seek greater financial benefits. Gays, who often seek a rural atmosphere and who do not have a family to support, would provide a measure of employee stability for small police departments. The proposed plan for gays requires strong leadership from the top echelons, involves nondiscrimination policies and sensitivity training, and avoids the effects of quotas often in force under Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action programs. Strategic and transition management plans for implementing the proposed approach are included. Appendixes present supplemental information on the futures study. 19 references, 9 figures, and 8 charts