Police misconduct often traceable to warning signs before hire

Past behavior matters, especially in law enforcement where certain pre-hire misbehavior by law enforcement candidates sharply increases the likelihood of police misconduct once they are hired, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.

The researchers analyzed pre-hire data and disciplinary records for 6,075 officers at more than 150 municipal, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies across the United States, tracking them for up to five years. They identified which background warning signs most accurately predicted later misconduct.

Officers who had a prior record of professional misconduct (written reprimands, suspensions or terminations) were more than six times more likely to be fired at their new jobs than hires with no prior disciplinary record. Frequent job changes, bad credit, domestic violence and temper problems were also strongly linked to higher misconduct risk. 

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