Job Preview

Please read this before completing your application.

The City of Marshall strives to hire the best people to join our Police Department. Our goal is to fill each position with a person who is well qualified, has an interest in the job, and who will be committed to law enforcement. To do this, we feel it is important to give each applicant a realistic description of the job and its tasks so that each candidate can determine their interest level and willingness to succeed.

Skills

As a Police Officer with the City of Marshall, you will be required to perform a large variety of tasks that encompass many diverse aspects including learned skills and "people" skills. We have provided you with a realistic preview of the types of tasks, which will be required; this list is non-exclusive and does not describe every task required of a Police Officer. We urge you to look past the exciting and glamorous aspects and consider the job of a Police Officer as a whole.

Department Overview

Commitment

Police Officers must evaluate situations, determine whether a crime has taken place, and make an independent decision as to what action is appropriate. In doing so, the Officer must simultaneously consider numerous factors, recognize patterns, and develop theories based on available information and evidence.

Daily Roll Call Meetings

Police Officers must attend daily roll call meetings. In these meetings, vital information is given about suspects, planned or suspicious activities, and crimes in their area. This information must be organized for use during their shift. Police Officers must pay attention to detail, noticing minute elements or components of a particular person or crime scene. Officers must also be able to visualize and recall an event after the fact in order to construct documentation of the event, possibly for future court testimony.

Officers also recognize and gather evidence at the scene of a crime, and they are responsible for the safe storage and transportation of this evidence.

Complex & Detailed Material

Police Officers are required to learn and memorize large quantities of complex and detailed material, including:

Health and Safety Codes
Laws of Arrest
Laws of Evidence
Legal Terms
Marshall Police Department Rules and Regulations
Penal Codes
Search and Seizure Law, etc.

Officers must quickly learn the Marshall Police Department’s call codes and language to access the various types of information needed. Officers must be able to accurately initiate and respond to clear, precise communications over the radio. Police Officers must develop problem-solving and reasoning skills in order to initiate innovative solutions to difficult and unique problems that are faced while on duty.

Mediation / Leadership

Police Officers frequently resolve citizen conflicts such as business, neighbor, family, and traffic-related disputes which are often loud, emotionally charged, combative, and/or time-consuming. Interpersonal skills are used to calm distraught persons, verbally subdue angry or combative persons, coax uncooperative persons into cooperation, and pursued persons to provide information.

Crowd Control Activity / Intervention

Crowd control activity/intervention is necessary at scenes where tension is high (such as picket lines and other demonstrations). Officers observe crowd behavior and communicate with group leaders in order to keep peace and order among those gathered. Police Officers frequently exhibit leadership skills by taking control of situations, inspiring confidence, delegating tasks, and providing a positive example for others.

Communication

Many different forms, logs, and reports and must be completed legibly and clearly. Therefore, it is necessary that you have a good working knowledge of English grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary, and spelling, and have the ability to be concise, descriptive, and thorough in all written documents.

Effective communication and interpersonal interaction are frequent and crucial to initiate contact with members of the community to better understand the needs and problems of a particular area. Excellent listening skills must also be employed in person and on the telephone in order to listen closely to what is being said and retain that information, identify needs and emotions being expressed, and demonstrate interest and involvement. Police Officers also must interview and obtain information from victims and witnesses of crimes in a manner appropriate to the situation and culture of the people involved.

Interaction with the Public

The ability to interact well with the public is essential in numerous day-to-day situations including answering phone calls from the public; taking reports; explaining the law and Marshall Police Department policies; listening and responding to complaints about police service, and handling complaints from citizens who walk into the station. Police Officers must testify accurately and credibly in court regarding arrests, reports were taken, evidence recovered, and victims’ statements.

Police Officers deal with all segments of society. Some members of the general public may have hostile feelings toward Police Officers and may express their hostility to the Officer in words and actions. A Police Officer must always behave professionally in the face of provocation.

Physical

A number of physically demanding activities are regularly required. These include, but are not limited to:

Detaining and/or arresting combative subjects
Driving a patrol vehicle for long periods of time
Maintaining crowd control
Performing CPR and first aid procedures
Performing rescues by dragging and/or carrying victims
Physically searching subjects
Physically subduing
Pursuits by foot and/or vehicle
Serving arrest or search warrants

Conditions

Police Officers work in all parts of the City, under all types of conditions, with all types of people. Officers may be required to search and/or touch suspects who are dirty, neglected, injured, and/or bleeding. It will be necessary to enter buildings or establishments, which are unsanitary or structurally unsound. After establishing probable cause, subjects must be detained and/or taken into custody. This involves using Department-approved techniques and equipment such as:

Batons
Control holds
Guns
Handcuffs to physically subdue suspects using the minimum force necessary and at the same time treating them with as much dignity as possible
Verbalization

Officers are required to prove their firearms proficiency by regularly meeting qualification standards.

Personal Considerations

All Officers must maintain professional, cooperative working relationships with co-workers and persons from other agencies. Police Officers work under a great deal of pressure, yet must maintain a clear head and a positive attitude and work ethic. Police officers in the City of Marshall deal with a wide variety of people and must be open-minded, fair, unbiased, and sensitive to people of diverse backgrounds, cultures, and lifestyles.

Working Conditions

Police Officers work 12-hour shifts, including weekends and holidays, that rotate every 28-days. Schedules are subject to change, and overtime is required at times. Work schedules are determined by the needs of the department and are sometimes determined by circumstances and unforeseen events. All Officers must be adaptable and willing to adjust to frequent compulsory changes in work shifts, work locations, and other factors. Officers are required to maintain residency within a 30 minute response time to the Marshall Police Department.

All officers must maintain telephone service at their private residence and that phone number must be provided to the department. Police officers are symbols of stability and trust and must always behave ethically and resolve moral conflicts appropriately, both on and off the job.

Benefits

Educational Incentive Pay
Longevity Pay
Medical
Paid Vacation
Retirement Benefits
Sick Leave