Police Officer

Explore a Rewarding Career with the City of Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Spanning just 7 square miles in south Central Pennsylvania, the City of Lancaster is home to nearly 60,000 diverse residents. The City oversees a range of public services including fire and police, health, housing, parks, streets, as well as water and wastewater for upwards of 120,000 customers in the surrounding region. This work is powered by nearly 600 employees who are committed to the core values of quality, teamwork, integrity, and respect.

Primary Functions and Job Details

The work of the sworn police officer involves responsibility for the protection of life and property, prevention of crime, apprehension of criminals and the general enforcement of state and local laws (ordinances). Duties normally consist of routine patrol, preliminary investigation and traffic regulation. Police officers also may be assigned duties as detectives, school resource officers, crime prevention officers, department training officers, task force officers, evidence technicians, field training officers, accident investigators, horse mounted officers, firearms instructors, TEAM officers, hostage negotiators, K-9 officers or special response team officers. Work involves an element of personal danger. The employee must be able to exercise sound independent judgment under stress. Assignments may include work on special tasks, which call upon specialized abilities and knowledge possessed by the officer. Work assignments can be general or specific and instructions are received from a supervisor who reviews work methods and results through reports, personal inspection and discussion. Finally, sworn police officers work under the agency chain of command structure.

Examples Of Essential Duties

Duties and Responsibilities Crime Prevention and Investigation

• Performs preventive patrol in assigned beat;
• Continually observes for criminal activity, safety hazards, traffic violations, persons needing assistance, etc;
• Becomes and remains familiar with patrol beats, geographic locations, known offenders, neighborhood routines, potential problem areas;
• Conducts security inspections and surveys of buildings and businesses and makes recommendations regarding security, etc;
• Makes presentations to groups and individuals on subjects related to the job's tasks and functions;
• Handles complaints made by the public;
• Observes for, detects and investigates violations of laws and ordinances and documents those actions for future use;
• Conducts interviews and interrogations of victims, witnesses, suspects and offenders;
• Conducts searches of person, vehicles, places and things;
• Identifies and arrests offenders, including subduing resistive arrestees;
• Seeks and serves arrest warrants, search warrants and other court documents;
• Assists prosecutors in the preparation of cases for trial;
• Appears and testifies in court, juvenile hearings, at deposition sessions and similar proceedings;
• Enforces traffic and parking laws, including driving under the influence detection and apprehension;
• Controls, regulates and directs vehicular and pedestrian traffic;
• Investigates traffic accidents, including protecting the scene, aiding the injured, controlling traffic, clearing the scene, determining the cause, preparing reports and diagrams;
• Assists disabled motorists;
• Deals with children of all ages in a variety of situations, such as delinquents, minors requiring authoritative intervention, neglected, abused, runaways, lost, found, victims of crimes, public relations and instructional functions and informants.

Miscellaneous Order Maintenance

• Deals with domestic disputes and other interpersonal and business contacts;
• Recognizes and corrects or reports public hazards and inconveniences, as gas leaks, traffic signals out of service, traffic obstructions and other safety hazards;
• Responds to specific requests for ambulance/fire service and assists as needed;
• Administers first aid, including CPR, to sick and injured persons;
• Investigates incidents involving dead persons resulting from criminal, accidental, suicidal and natural causes, including determination of the circumstances and handling/removal of the body and dealing with the family, relatives, friends, witnesses, etc;
• Investigates reports of lost and found property;
• Investigates reports of missing and found persons;
• Investigates animal complaints, including the humane disposition of severely injured animals;
• Directs and/or supervises civilian employees and the public at the scenes of crimes, accidents, disasters, assemblies, etc;
• Generally assists persons in distress.

Organizational Support

• May perform desk duties, including telecommunications (telephone, computer terminal, radio), assisting persons at the counters at the station, processing reports;
• Conducts background investigations for prospective police applicants;
• Attends training as assigned;
• Develops and maintains required skills and licenses/permits/certifications associated with area of special instruction, expertise, etc. (Firearms qualification, evidence technician, juvenile law, criminal investigations);
• Trains new officers, cadets and community service aids in areas of special skills or expertise;
• Prepares clear, accurate and complete reports on any and all activities engaged in;
• Work effectively as a member of a team;
• Inspire trust;
• Guard confidentiality of information.

Typical Qualifications

Education, Training and Experience

• Graduation from High School or completion of a GED is required.

Licenses and Certificates

• Possession of a valid Pennsylvania State Driver's License is required.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

The Lancaster City Police Department has a strong interest in promoting confidence with the general public by having our employees maintain a uniform, professional appearance and image. Uniforms, equipment items and personal appearance are regulated by the Department's Uniform Policy (277.26). All sworn police officers must be able to wear and effectively utilize all Department issued items of uniforms and equipment as specified in the Uniform Policy, regardless of assignment. This includes, but is not limited to: the field uniform (gun belt and included equipment; soft body armor; and specialized equipment such as riot helmet, riot baton and ballistic shield). The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions and tasks of this job. These demands are considered a business necessity and a job requirement.

Motor Skills/Flexibility The police officer position requires the employee to have and maintain the physical and mental ability needed to:

• React and move rapidly from a sedentary to active condition in response to environmental situations or events;
• Assume a variety of bodily position and postures necessary to employ available "cover and concealment" during a deadly force encounter;
• Respond to a physical attack and possess the ability to escape the attacker and/or summon aid;
• Climb by ascending or descending ladders, stairs, scaffolding, ramps, poles and the like, using feet and legs and/or hands and arms;
• Balance by maintaining body equilibrium to prevent falling when walking, standing or crouch on narrow, slippery or erratically moving surfaces;
• Lift by raising objects from a lower to a higher position or moving objects horizontally from position to position;
• Operate a motor vehicle in a safe and prudent manner (possess and maintain a valid Pennsylvania driver's license);
• Operate and qualify with the Department-issued firearms, utilizing both hands, as well as each hand individually;
• Operate office equipment, such as telephones, audio/visual devices, computer and workstation keyboards;
• Operate all equipment necessary for performing routine daily assignments, apprehending and processing criminals and conducting both criminal and traffic-related investigations;
• Operate/utilize all Department interior vehicle equipment such as computer, camera, microphone, radio, lights, siren, speed timing device;
• Administer first aid, to include Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR);
• Perform required duties for extended periods of time while exposed to adverse conditions, to include time worked in excess of the normal daily duty shift and rotating shift work;
• Apprehend suspects to the extent of engaging in foot pursuits while summoning assistance and/or engaging in the necessary use of force;
• Discern colors as they are applied in traffic safety situations (electric signals, signing, hazardous materials placards, vehicle and clothing descriptions, etc.);
• Adequately judge distances and estimate speed;
• See, read and recognize obstacles in a variety of normal and/or emergency environments. Have vision that is correctable to "Department vision" standards;
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