SO's hiring

[jonnyquest]

Hey all, i'm an leo down here in the sunshine state (land of high housing), looking to move up to TN, what good SO's are hiring, maybe in the eastern TN? I've 9+years, however no degree. I'm also looking at Knoxville.

[SgtPoe]

Knoxville city and Knox county both require you to attend their specific police academy. I dont believe they lateral any other academy regardless of time on duty.

[wspd913]

Knox Co. starts you in the jail, and though they claim you have to spend at least a year there before hitting the road, in actuality you stay there for longer. Chances are, you'll be in the jail for several years.

Knox City SUPPOSEDLY has changed to doing laterals, though I haven't heard of a class yet. However the new Chief, again supposedly, is doing them.

To start on the road for a SO, there are not too many that I think will start you right on it (at least, in my immediate area that I know of). Anderson County, Cocke County, Grainger County, to name a few.

[Eddiebauer86]

Are you hell bent on working for a Sheriffs Office? If you work for one in Florida, you will find that TN SO's dont work like they do down in Florida. In Florida, your SO's tend to be larger and work more like a police department, mainly because they have large populated unincorporated areas to patrol, but in TN, SO's work out in the county area and it tends to be very rural. Also, SO's up here tend to be smaller agencies with LOTS of politics.

However, have you looked into Shelby County SO, in Memphis? Ive heard good things about them, but I dont know of anything personally, maybe someone on here does. The Metro Nashville Police department patrols the entire county and is the primary LE Agency for Davidson County. Davidson Co Deputies dont have any arrest powers, they only manage the jails and serve civil papers. Metro PD is probably the best paying agency you'll find in TN (no degree starting salary at around 41k) but they have their own academy and even their lateral officers have to attend and 11 week academy. But they dont have any lateral academies scheduled for the next year....

[jonnyquest]

WOW! I didn't know that much about TN SO's, almost 10 years on patrol i don't think i can hack corrections (not that i don't have the utmost respect for correctional officers).

I'm planning on putting in with Knoxville, they just hire once a year and i don't like waiting that long, i guess i was wanting an agency that hires more frequently so i can hurry up and move up there.

Another member pm'd me about TN State Patrol, i'll give them a shout, my only draw back is the work history. Prior to LE, i was a radio announcer/DJ for 6 years and had to work a ton of part-time jobs to help make ends meet. Especially since i had to relocate due to radio once every couple years. Most of your big radio personalities lived/worked in 20 different markets before signing the "big" contract. That's the route i traveled before realizing i'm LE at heart. You wouldn't believe the amount of times i've been turned down from LE agencies because i'm considered a "job hopper".

[355339]

100% correct.....

[wspd913]

Knox City does not currently have another academy scheduled for this year, however there is talk and planning of one in November (just hasn't been made official yet). So, since the process is a 6 month one, you probably better hurry and apply if you are going to. The next testing is in April to start the process.

[johnnyradar]

I graduated the police academy with a few Knox County Dep. You have to stay a min. of 2 years in the jail before you are even considered for a road position.