Police Officer (Lateral)

About the Grand Junction Police Department: 
At the Grand Junction Police Department (GJPD), we are committed to enhancing community safety, reducing fear of crime, and elevating the quality of life through partnerships and innovative policing initiatives. Our Police Officers value and embody professionalism, integrity, compassion, and service. The department promotes the personal and professional development of our police force through a wide variety of challenging and rewarding career opportunities. The GJPD provides a full range of high quality policing services found in few departments our size including traffic unit, investigations, K-9, bomb squad, crime lab, university campus policing, SWAT team, drug task force, and other collateral assignments. Police Officers work ten hour shifts in a team concept. To learn more about our department watch the video below.

https://youtu.be/J3M8nbC_OEw

What We Offer:

We know that a healthy and happy workforce is a thriving workforce, which is why we offer a comprehensive benefits package that supports quality work-life balance, including 32 days of paid annual leave to be used for holiday, personal, and/or sick days, health insurance options, employer-matched retirement, a City employee health clinic, a City employee day care center, wellness program, and an Employee Assistance Program. Of equal importance, we offer an opportunity to serve the community you love and live in. Our employees find their work rewarding and fulfilling, knowing that their day job makes a positive impact. 

Lateral Entry Officers: To apply as a lateral officer, applicants must be POST certified in Colorado and possess a (1) year of experience in the law enforcement field.  If applicants are certified in another state (or certain federal law enforcement agencies), they must apply for and obtain a Provisional Certification through Colorado POST prior to a final offer of employment.  Details regarding that process and eligibility can be found here: https://post.colorado.gov/certification/certification-types/provisional-certification.  

Lateral officers starting pay will be $39.69-$54.99 per hour, based on years of service and experience.  Lateral applicants will receive 40 hours of paid time off upon hire.  Lateral applicants may be eligible for a hiring bonus up to $10,000 dependent upon qualifications and experience. This hiring bonus will be awarded upon completion of the Field Training Officer Program with a signed three (3) year commitment to the Grand Junction Police Department. Lateral applicants are eligible for reimbursement of up to $2,500 in qualified relocation expenses.

What You'll Do:

• Patrol assigned areas within City limits
• Respond to radio dispatch calls for service
• Perform preliminary investigations at scenes
• Prepare citations and summonses
• Make arrests and transport individuals
• Appear in court to offer testimony relative to the investigation of incidents
• Prepare a variety of reports and records
• Offer assistance to citizens

Click to view the full Police Officer Job Description.
What We're Looking For:

• Good physical condition
• Minimum of 21 years of age, as of date of hire
• High school diploma or equivalent
• Possession of, or ability to obtain, valid Colorado driver license
• Good moral character (past criminal activity may be disqualifying – see notice below)
• Ability to work a variety of shifts, including weekends and holidays
• Colorado POST Certified or the ability to obtain a Colorado POST Provisional Certification 
• Minimum of 1 year of experience as a Police Officer

Notice to Applicants:

In compliance with the Colorado Job Application Fairness Act, we kindly request that you do not include the dates of your education to include years of attendance or graduation on your application, resume or attachments.

Important Notice:
During the course of the application and hiring process, you will be asked to disclose information about your past activities. The below list of critical admissions, which may be cause for disqualification from employment with the Grand Junction Police Department, is provided to Background Investigators, Computerized Voice Stress Analysis (CVSA) Technicians, and others involved in the recruitment process. It is important that you be completely honest and forthright about this history. While a critical admission may or may not disqualify an applicant from a job, discovery of misleading or deceitful information provided by the applicant is immediate cause for disqualification.

• Any felony investigation or conviction
• Any conviction for a crime of violence, specifically assaults, domestic violence, etc.
• Any conviction for a "hate crime" such as ethnic intimidation
• Perjury conviction
• Any theft conviction regardless of value of item
• Theft from current employer or a previous employer
• Drug use (including marijuana) and/or current alcohol abuse
• An alcohol or drug conviction including but not limited to DUI/DWAI, depending on date
• Hit and run accident conviction
• Being under or having been under driving restraint, cancelation, suspension or revocation of driving privileges in Colorado or any other state

Please note: The listed critical admissions are not the exclusive basis for disqualification. The City reserves the right to disqualify any applicant who may or may not have any one or all of the foregoing admissions. If you have specific questions or circumstances, you may contact the Human Resources office at 970-244-1512 or GJPD Recruiting at 970-549-JOBS.Testing Process:

• Phone Interview
• Ride-a-long (suggested but not required)
• Physical Ability Test
• Oral Board Interview/Written Exercise 
• Suitability/Psychological Evaluation
• Computerized Voice Stress Analysis (CVSA)
• Fingerprints/Background Investigation
• Executive Interview with Command Staff
• Pre-employment drug, medical and psychological evaluation screening

Grand Junction, Colorado is the gateway to the mountains and canyonlands of western Colorado and eastern Utah. Centrally located between Denver, CO (250 miles east) and Salt Lake City, UT (270 miles west), Grand Junction is surrounded by 1.2 million acres of public land. Residents enjoy world-class whitewater rafting on the Colorado and Green Rivers, golfing, fishing, skiing and snowboarding, and exploring mountain bike and hiking trails through the Colorado National Monument and the Grand Mesa National Forest. Grand Junction has a robust downtown and hosts multiple art, music, food, and market events annually. With a population of over 150,000 in Mesa County (65,000 within the City limits) we have many of the big town amenities without the big town stresses such as traffic and trail congestion. With an average of 245 days of sunshine, Grand Junction is the perfect place to work and play. 

Learn more about our area on Visit Grand Junction's website and Instagram!

At the City of Grand Junction, we proudly operate as an Equal Opportunity Employer, purposely building an inclusive workforce representative of various cultures, perspectives, and experiences. We believe in respect for all and do not discriminate based on hair, race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation), national origin, age (40 or older), disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran status or any other status protected by applicable federal, state or local law. 

Salary : $40 - $55