2026 Experienced Patrol Officer

About the role

The job of Patrol Officer is general duty police work in the protection of life and property and the enforcement of laws and ordinances. The work involves preventive patrol, preliminary investigation, traffic enforcement and regulation, and preservation of social order and public peace by means of patrolling in cars or on foot in a designated area where the officer is accountable. The delivery of service at the Police Officer level applies to the protection of life and property prevention and suppression of crime; apprehension of criminal offenders; regulation and control of traffic; recovery of lost or stolen property; and preservation and maintenance of social order and public peace. The Patrol Officer is required to exercise a great deal of discretion concerning basic police responsibility. The Police Officer runs the risk of upsetting the delicate balance that must be maintained between the rights of individual citizens and the safety and protection of the community. It is the duty of the Patrol Officer to interpret the laws and determine which ones to enforce, and decide upon the manner in which they will be enforced within real or imagined departmental police perimeters. The uniform force is the "backbone" of the Police Department and the focal point for all police activities. All other police services are either supportive of, or supplemental to, the patrol operation.

Responsibilities

• Handling a wide range of calls for service
• Generating self-initiated activity (e.g., traffic/pedestrian stops)
• Providing enforcement activity (arrests/citations etc.)
• Maintaining public order when appropriate
• Report writing
• Evidence collection, preservation, storage
• Court room testimony
• Safely operating a motor vehicle under emergency conditions
• Talking on the radio to the telecommunicator and other responding officers
• Planning the most efficient route of travel
• Assessing possible threats
• Considering the need for additional resources and making appropriate requests in a timely manner
• Developing a response strategy en route while considering officer safety strategies
• Adapting immediately to changing conditions or updated information
• Learning the geography: mastering street names, locations, and address numbering patterns

Qualifications

• Be at least 20 years of age and not more than 34 years of age* at the time of application
• Be at least 21 years of age to accept the appointment
• *Veterans' Exemption 65ILCS 5/10-2.1-6 … with respect to a police department, a veteran shall be allowed to exceed the maximum age provision of this Section by the number of years served on active military duty, but by no more than 10 years of active military duty
• High school diploma or its equivalent
• Citizen of United States
• Ability to possess a firearm