Cheating death and fighting communism: that is how a fellow officer once described our job. It was meant to be funny, but as time went on it seemed all too true.
I spent more than ten years in law enforcement, all of it on the street in uniform patrol. I've been a patrol officer, instructor, sergeant and lieutenant.
Do not report crimes here. Nothing here should be considered legal advice. All opinions are my own.
It is impossible for me to tell you where you might like to work. If you've never lived in a large city, you might love - or hate- it. Same thing about working in a smaller area.
From my personal experience, I would prefer a smaller department of 50-75 officers if I was starting all over. Ideally, it would be suburban to rural. I've worked for a very urban area and for a smaller department in a suburban bordering on rural area. You get a lot more of the exciting calls in a short amount of time in the urban areas, but you can also burn out much quicker.
The upside to a large agency is you get a lot of opportunity to work in specialized units that you don't have in smaller areas/departments. For example, a marine unit, aviation unit, SWAT unit, etc. But smaller areas will sometimes pool resources for multi-jurisdictional units (like SWAT teams formed with officers from several regional departments.)
I'd suggest doing a few ride-alongs with different departments in different areas and get a feel for what things are like.
Dealing with a violent person is a fluid and dynamic sitation. There is no easy, one-size-fits-all answer. Generally speaking, a police officer is authorized to use any force, up to and including deadly force, when he or she believes it is reasonably necessary to stop an armed person who poses an imminent threat to the lives of others. That may include shooting the violent criminal.
Saftey checkpoints are a useful tool for helping to reduce drunk driving, accidents, and removing criminals from the roadways. Driving on public roadways is a licensed privledge, not a right, and therefore is subject to limited intrusion. The specific rules on how they are to be run vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and are controled by law, court opinions and department policies.
When adequately staffed so undue delays are not generated, I have no problem with them.
If no evidence exists, and no witnesses have presented themselves, then what additional actions would you suggest the officers take (within the confines of the law)? Maybe your neighbor did it, maybe she did not. People should never be arrested for "maybe."
IF you neighbor damaged your tires, and IF she admitted to tampering with your mail, it sounds like your best bet is to file a report with the postal police and see if they develop probable cause to arrest her. IF they do, then her probation can be revoked also.
It won't likely keep her in jail for very long, regardless.
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It depends on the size of the department. For any agency of more than about 15-20 officers, the chief is not likely to be involved in any case other than as a spokesperson in a high-profile incident.
For small agencies, a chief may patrol and handle calls like the rest of the officers. There are many departments in the US where there are fewer than five officers. In those areas, the chief handles a lot of the calls and investigations.
Your sister needs a criminal defense attorney. It sounds like she has committed at least two crimes, and once discovered, she will likely be arrested for them. An attorney can help her navigate through the system and get things corrected before they get any worse.
I'm not familiar with Colorado law in that respect. If you call the local Sheriff's Department, they should be able to tell you.
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