Virginia Beach to set aside police jobs for Army veterans

Posted to: Crime Virginia Beach
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By Kathy Adams
The Virginian-Pilot
© March 5, 2009

VIRGINIA BEACH

The Police Department will set aside jobs for veterans under an agreement to be signed with the Army tomorrow, the police department announced today.

Tthe department will join the Army’s Partnership for Youth Success Program, which helps match Army recruits with future hiring needs at companies and public agencies, according to the police. In this case, the department will agree to hire Military Police veterans who meet certain requirements, said Officer Jimmy Barnes, a police spokesman, in an e-mail.

The department will be the first agency in South Hampton Roads to join the program, he said. The Richmond Police Department and Newport News Sheriff’s Office also participate.

“The program will increase our pool of military candidates tremendously,” Barnes said. “Our most successful candidates have some military or college background.”

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"The Army’s first study of

Submitted by HarveyMilk on Fri, 03/06/2009 at 10:13 am.

"The Army’s first study of the mental health of troops who fought in Iraq found that about one in eight reported symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. The survey also showed that less than half of those with problems sought help, mostly out of fear of being stigmatized or hurting their careers." -AP

PTSD symptoms may include difficulty falling or staying asleep that may be due to recurrent nightmares during which the traumatic event is relived, hyper-vigilance, and exaggerated startle response. Some individuals report irritability or outbursts or anger or difficulty concentrating or completing tasks.

Unless they are very CAREFULLY screened, some of these vets (not all) are not folks you want to give a gun and badge to. Recent events in Chesapeake and Portsmouth come to my mind.

Useless announcement

Submitted by Criticalthought on Thu, 03/05/2009 at 4:39 pm.

So what does any of this mean? Were veterans not already being hired? The statement implies they were. Wouldn't their military experience normally give them a leg up in being hired? Who is not being hired instead? Does this mean that better educated applicants are being passed over in favor of military? Or the best question of all, doesn't the Pilot put any effort at all into what it publishes?

language and logic

Submitted by OnceALocal on Thu, 03/05/2009 at 3:36 pm.

So, other qualified candidates will be excluded for completely arbitrary reasons? I thought this was a Navy town.

Hopefully these Army candidates will have the good sense to stand up to racist attitudes and language that has infected the VBPD for decades.

Bad news

Submitted by yaboi on Thu, 03/05/2009 at 2:51 pm.

The military always sticks with their own, I saw and know countless military people who got off of tickets and other stuff because they told the officer they are or former military (not to say all). Now, less police jobs for regular citizens, and just more of a over cocky, gun happy, military cops who think they are above the law. God I want to get away from this military town.

I have a problem with this.

Submitted by donvabeach on Thu, 03/05/2009 at 2:44 pm.

It's most important that our best and brightest join the Virginia Beach Police Department. Only the highest qualified, by virtue of testing, both academic and psychological, as well as physical, should be allowed to become Virginia Beach Police Officers. If they allow lesser-qualified men to join the Department, simply because they had Army training, they are doing a disservice both to the better-qualified applicants, as well as to the citizens of Virginia Beach. We should always expect that our Police are the most highly qualified, and we should be willing to pay for them.
I was a proud tanker in our U.S. Army, and I knew a lot of great guys. I also knew some people who, while they might have been brave, and gung-ho, were dumber than dirt. I knew others who were really messed up mentally, because of the fighting.
I don't think it's a great idea to let someone leap-frog a more qualified person, just because of military service. Just can't agree...sorry.