A very common entry level police interview question, potentially worded a thousand different ways, but ultimately the question is, would you give your mother a speeding ticket.
We’ll look at my oral board interview answer response to this question and when the question is wrapped up, I’ll share a few closing thoughts.
Panel: Mr. Ehlers, you’re running radar and you pull a car over for going 15 miles over the posted speed limit. When you walk up to the car it happens to be your mother. It turns out she borrowed a car from the neighbor and was on her way to the grocery store. Tell us how you’d handle this situation.
Candidate: Very briefly, I might kindly admonish her for speeding, I may even tease her a bit. My contact with her would be very brief at the scene of this stop. I might even go so far as to ask her to promise she would not speed through my district again, and in short order I’d let her go on her way with a verbal warning. I certainly would not give my mother a ticket. I would end my contact very quickly and go about my business.
Panel Challenge: Let’s say you’d given the person before her a ticket for 15 miles per hour over the limit. You just gave someone else a ticket, how can you justify not giving her a citation for speeding?
Candidate: I do understand that the insinuation is that I must be fair and even handed in my enforcement of the law, and I will be. I will also acknowledge that I carry the responsibility of officer discretion and I will use that even handedly as well. With that said, knowing that I can give most any motorist a verbal warning, I would opt to extend that discretion to my mother. As much as I would like to give you the perfect answer to this question, if there is one, it’s my desire and obligation to give you an honest answer. I’d be lying if I told you that I would give her a ticket for speeding. I’d extend that courtesy to anyone that changed my diapers for the first two years of my life. I’m simply being honest with you.
Chief Ehlers: Now, be careful with humor in your oral interview, but if you’ve developed a good rapport with the panel, and they’ve smiled a few times, this is the perfect opportunity to inject a bit of humor into your interview. If, on the other hand, your panel is made up of stuffed shirts that haven’t smiled at all, dispense with any notion of making the diaper comment. The important note that you hit in this answer, is the fact that you told them it was your desire and OBLIGATION to be honest with them. The panel knows that only one in a million cops would truly give their own mother a speeding ticket, and quite frankly, they’re just looking for honesty.
When you were challenged, you made an almost inarguable statement, and that had to do with officer discretion, and you simply used that discretion on this traffic stop. Again, you justified your response in a very simply manner, one that they can relate to. They’re just looking to see if you’re going to be honest and let’s face it, there are only two types of candidates that would say they’d give their mom a ticket. The super trooper, save the world kind of applicant, or the dishonest applicant, neither of which they want to hire for their agency. Oh, then there’s the applicant that just hates his or her mother, they don’t want to hire them either.
I’ll first note the fact that some candidates, when they enter the interview room, forget two things. They often forget that officer discretion is a tool that can be used to reasonably answer a number of scenario based, or even personal questions.
In the case of this answer, it is reasonable to believe that most officers wouldn’t give their mother a ticket. The second interview attribute that many candidates don’t bring into their interview, is honesty.
The majority of oral board panel members will suspect that you’re lying, if you tell them you would give your mother a citation for speeding, even if you really would.
This question is designed to size up your ability to be forthright and candid with the panel. You’ll note, I even added a bit of humor in my answer, with the diaper comment. Appropriate humor, strategically placed in an interview is a magnificent tool that you can use to win the affection of the panel members.
Passing an oral board isn’t as much of a science, as it is an art. Earn Your Badge isn’t about just passing your oral board, it’s about getting hired.
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There’s a tactic used by some oral board interview panels, and that approach is to provide a high stress question or series of questions designed with one purpose, to stress you out as much as possible.
This type of question almost always involved several interruptions and challenges. You’ll find, in the answer to a question of this nature, that your focus is provide a reasonable answer, and to just roll with the challenges as smoothly and articulately as you can.
Panel: Mr. Ehlers, you’re on patrol in your police car and the dispatcher notifies you of this. “We have an officer down with shots fired. They give you the address as well. What would you do?
Candidate: I would of course drop whatever I was doing and respond immediately red light and siren to the location given. I would continue to collect information from the dispatcher as I was in route and of course I would start planning my approach or how I was going to handle that call on the way there.
Panel: You’re on a bridge and all form of communications are down, your radio isn’t working.
Candidate: I would get out immediately and change the tire as fast as I possibly could in order to get to the call.
Panel: The bridge is a steel grate bridge and you have the wheel off, all log nuts fell through the bridge. Now what?
Candidate: I would go to another tire and take lug nuts off of that tire and use those lug nuts to finish the tire. I know it’s not the most optimal situation but you can operate a vehicle with three lug nuts and that’s how I would tackle that issue.
Panel: The lug wrench that comes with the tool kit of the squad is of poor quality and all the other bolted on so tight you’re unable to get them off.
Candidate: I’m going to recap, I can’t call dispatch because my radio isn’t working, the lug nuts have fallen through the bridge and I can’t get the other lug nuts off. I would try my cell phone to call the dispatcher to let them know …
Panel: As I said you’re on a bridge in an area with no communications are working kind of a black zone, maybe there’s too much metal on the bridge, uncommunicatable.
Candidate: Okay. I’ve got a life and death situation with an officer down, shots fired, an officer needs assistance call. I don’t see that I have any other option. I would just simply have to drive on three tires and try to get to the call that way. I think that’s the best answer I can give you. I’ve done my best to get to that call and again if I had to drive with a flat tire, I would do it.
Chief Russ: Now the one thing you didn’t say and you might be thinking this, I commandeer a vehicle. I’d stop a passer-by and take their car. I’d be very, very careful with ever, ever getting in a situation were you’re commandeering someone’s vehicle. It happens in the movies but I don’t know of any departments off the top off my head that have a vehicle commandeering policy.
You didn’t give that answer, and that’s a good thing. My guess is, you can see what was happening. The oral board panel member was giving you the scenario and was interrupting you. In this type of hyper stress questioning, they’re not necessarily looking for absolutely perfect answer, but rather, what they’re looking for is, can this candidate think quickly on their feet or, are they going to go into melt down.
Those are the two key factors in this type of questioning tactic. Personally I don’t use this type of tactic on an oral board, but many agencies do, and I know of one instance where a young man was getting fired at like this with these kind of super-fire questions. Again the oral board panel simply wants to see if you can think quickly, make reasonable decisions under high stress and that you don’t melt down.
Now, this candidate that I spoke of literally got up from his seat and told the panel, “I don’t want to work for a department like yours”, and he walked out. Now, you’re not going to do that, but you need to be prepared for the firing line and the manner in which you answered this question was perfect. Again, just remember to recap, be reasonable, try to answer quickly, don’t meltdown, give them good answers, and eventually they will move on, once they’re satisfied that you’re a good problem solver under what was meant to be, a very stressful situation.
Serving on countless oral board panels over the years, I’ve heard just about every answer a person can possibly offer to this type of question, from, I’d look the other way, to, I’d arrest my partner. Let’s watch the video and I’ll offer some closing thoughts.
Panel: Mr. Ehlers, let’s say you’re on foot patrol and you’re pulling doors. You happen to find a convenience store with the doors unlocked and you and your partner walk in and assessed the situation and find that everything’s okay and on your way out, you notice your partner grabbed a candy bar on the way out. What would you do?
Candidate: I would certainly challenge my partner. I would ask him if he paid for it or left money on the counter even though that’s unconventional, I would like to believe that my partner was honest enough to leave more than enough to cover the candy bar with tax. I’m guessing he didn’t leave money for it and of course, in that situation, I would have to bring that to the attention of one of my supervisors, sir, as soon as was practically possible.
Panel: Okay, let’s change this up a little bit. Let’s say, your partner is a veteran and he’s got one year left to retirement. You’re telling me you would ruin his entire career for an 99 cent candy bar? You would really do that?
Candidate: Yes, sir. I would take the approach that I indicated. I don’t mean to be argumentative but I guess this is hard, but I look at it like this. I didn’t ruin his career if it does get ruined, he did. I mean, we’re expected to be the cream of the crop and to uphold the laws and not violate them. I think the way I would look at this is that I didn’t ruin his career. He chose to take an item of value that he had no intention of paying for. This type of person, whether new on the job, or a seasoned veteran is obviously not interested in putting the best interest of the department in front. I believe this is a decision that’s better dealt with by a supervisor than a frontline officer so I’m certainly going to stick with my guns and say that I would talk to a supervisor. I believe in my heart of hearts that this is the right way to handle that situation, sir.
Chief Russ: So, you’ve answered the question, and received a challenge. You answered it and you justified your answer, showing the panel that there was no question in your mind, as to what the correct approach is. Don’t be afraid to stick to your guns. Right, wrong, or indifferent, the Oral Board is probably going to challenge your answer, particularly when it comes to this type of scenario question. Hold your ground, give them a good answer, but don’t become argumentative with them. In fact, you even told the panel member, that you meant not to be argumentative but that you had to stick to your guns because you were quite sure this was a situation better handled by a supervisor– not a frontline officer. You must be willing to submit to the authority of supervisors, and you’re answer here qualified that belief.
There are hundreds of forms that this question may come in, but remember, when someone takes property that does not belong to them, it’s theft and a supervisor must deal with it.
The answer began with giving your partner the benefit of the doubt. Hopefully he or she paid for it, but you didn’t dance around the bush on this one. You indicated almost immediately that you’d bring this matter to the attention of a supervisor.
Many candidates fear, not taking immediate law enforcement action and so, they indicate they’d arrest their partner. Once this officer is outed, by you, for stealing, the wheels of justice begin turning and they may in fact be charged with theft and will likely lose their career, a fate much greater than what a citizen would face for the same act, and rightfully so.
There is no room for a thief in the law enforcement profession, and the oral board panel knows this, they simply want to be certain, that you know it as well.
Answer: The law enforcement profession is without question, one of the most dynamic professions in our society. The decisions that officers are called upon to make are too abundant to number and the circumstances that we’re placed in are different, unusual and sometimes even bizarre. There are certainly occasions that the “black and white” rule applies.
One example would be the drunk driver that crashes his car into a light pole in a department store parking lot. He’s intoxicated, he’s had an accident and he’s going to jail. That’s pretty black and white, and most agencies have policy on the arrest of DUI suspects.
Conversely, an officer is called to a home by a mother who found a small amount of marijuana in her seventeen year old daughter’s dresser drawer. Mom wants the officer to counsel and give guidance to her child. The law allows the officer to arrest people in possession of illegal drugs, but that may not be the right approach, and so officer discretion comes in to play, and that certainly isn’t black and white.
I’m not going to charge in the home, handcuff the young girl and take her to jail, this is the black and white approach. Instead, this is my opportunity to connect with this young person, confiscate and inventory the marijuana, and to do my best to educate her on the ills of her behavior, letting her know what the consequences are of continue use of that substance.
Our job requires solid critical thinking skills and that’s one of the many reasons I’ve chosen this profession. Not everyone can effectively serve as a law enforcement officer. I believe I have those critical thinking skills and one of my attractions to this profession is the fact that we don’t have that “here’s how you do everything” textbook.
A good officer can manage this profession, an excellent officer not only manages, but excels in their environment. So, that’s my long answer to say that where there will be times that a situation may have a black and white element, overall, this is not a black and white profession.
Explanation: In essence, the oral panel wants to hear you say that there is some black and white, cut and dried elements of police work, but in totality, it’s NOT a B&W profession, but you can’t stop there. It’s very important that you tell them why it’s not, and the fact that there is no handbook on how to do everything, which really is the telltale indicator that LE is not B&W.
You gave them a brief example of how a situation might be perceived as B&W, the drunk driver having an accident, and the much more powerful example of why this profession isn’t black and white, the mother of the 17 girl that wanted a police officer to talk to her child about marijuana.
The candidate that indicates the opposite, (that LE is a black and white profession) is the candidate that is looked upon by the panel as being naïve, potentially hard-core and rather simple minded. They don’t want a black and white, letter of the law type of candidate, they want you to be reasonably flexible and to articulate your ability to think, critically. Work on this answer so it flows and sounds natural when you answer it, and by all means I encourage you to use different examples if you so choose.
Best wishes for an outstanding oral board interview! If you’d like to see more than 100 videos just like this one, and a whole lot more, visit Earn Your Badge.
In a previously posted oral board question video titled “Pull Over Your Mother”, I was asked by the police oral board panel what I would do in a scenario if I had pulled over my mother for speeding.
I indicated that I certainly would not give her a citation, but tease her a little and send her on her way.
Many of the viewers on YouTube and at Earn Your Badge have asked me what I would do if the situation changed. What if I had pulled over my mother for drunk driving?
In this Police Oral Board question I give you my answer and what the interview panel is looking for in an answer to this question.
Police Oral Board Scenario Question – Partner Steals Candy Bar, What do you do?
Situational interview questions
To understand how you would react in difficult situations, the board may propose hypothetical scenarios for you to respond to. These are some situational questions they may ask:
Skills and abilities questions
Questions about your skills and abilities can help the board understand your commitment to performing well as a police officer. These are some skill or ability questions the board may ask:
General interview questions
These are some general questions the board may ask you to understand who you are and what your goals are for your career:
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In a traditional promotional interview, you can usually get away with telling the interviewer what he or she wants to hear. Even if you are asked situational questions that start out, “How would you handle XYZ situation?” you have minimal accountability because the interviewer can’t really predict if you would react the way you said you would if that particular situation ever arose. In a behavioral interview, however, it’s much more difficult to give responses that are untrue to your character. When you start to tell a behavioral story, the behavioral interviewer typically will pick it apart to try to get at the specific behavior(s). The interviewer will probe further for more depth or detail such as, “What were you thinking at that point?” or, “Tell me more about your meeting with that person,” or “Lead me through your decision process.” If you’ve told a story that’s anything but totally honest, your response will not hold up through the barrage of probing questions.
Make sure that you follow all parts of the STAR method. Be as specific as possible at all times, without rambling or including too much information. Oftentimes interviewees have to be prompted to include their results, so try to include that without being asked. Also, eliminate any examples that do not paint you in a positive light. However, keep in mind that some examples that have a negative result (such as “lost the game”) can highlight your strengths in the face of adversity.
When your interview is behavioral-based, you should expect a structured interview with set questions, as opposed to a conversational style of interviewing. The interviewer is probably evaluating you against a profile of desired behaviors considered necessary for success. You will receive follow-up questions that probe for more details and attempt to evaluate the consistency of your answers. Some of the questions may have multiple parts, and the interviewer will generally take notes during your answers.
Behavioral interviewing is a relatively new, but widely used mode of job interviewing. The behavioral interview technique is used by employers to evaluate a candidate’s experiences and behaviors in order to determine their potential for success. This approach is based on the belief that past performance is the best predictor of future behavior. In fact, behavioral interviewing is said to be 55 percent predictive of future on-the-job behavior, while traditional interviewing is only 10 percent predictive. The interviewer identifies desired skills and behaviors and then structures open-ended questions and statements to elicit detailed responses. A rating system is developed and selected criteria are evaluated during the interview.
Top 20 Police officer Interview Questions
Here in this article, we will be listing frequently asked Police Interview Questions and Answers with the belief that they will be helpful for you to gain higher marks. Also, to let you know that this article has been written under the guidance of industry professionals and covered all the current competencies.
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In this Police Interview Question, the interviewer wants to judge the thought and the motive behind choosing your career as a police officer. You can begin talking about your passion, your commitment which you have towards serving the nation. You were able to see the intensity of the work and integrity required in the police department of our country. I always wish to help those people who are not capable of supporting themselves. Also, I don’t have the nature of seeing cruel people taking benefits from people with innocence. These are the main reasons for choosing this rewarding career as helping others give me peace. Is this helpful? Yes No
Helping the community and handling the crime are the two primary responsibilities of a police officer. In order to help the community, the officers need to protect the citizen’s property and lives at any cost. Also, the serving part of the police officers also fluctuates with the number of residents in the community. Named as peace officers, do a lot to help the community such as patrol the streets on control traffic, foot or in squad cars, or work as detectives investigating crimes. They might also be appointed to work in the crime laboratory or the records department.
Note: While answering this Police interview questions, you have to be confident and sensible. Try not to tell too much, just cover the thing with a positive attitude and keep your answer short and crisp; this will help you in leaving a good impression on the interviewer. Is this helpful? Yes No
The primary responsibility of a policeman is providing safety to the residents of the place by enforcing the law as well as maintenance of the structure of the public safety. Also, tracking down the criminals, patrolling in the streets, directing the traffic and dealing with offenders is the other set of responsibilities of a peace officer. Out of all of them, at the top of it is working for local or state police departments and then covering all the duties which come under their job. The police officers are trained for all the job roles they need to cover while serving the nation.
There is no meaning of wasting a minute when you have witnessed or fallen victim a crime. You need to report the crime as soon as possible. There are some limitations as well in crime reporting. These are known as the statute of limitations; these are put for the proper governance of the time which goes in reporting a crime before it is “forgiven” in the eyes of the law.
The fear of being retaliated is common, but if you have fallen victim or have witnessed a crime, then you should report it without any fear. Is this helpful? Yes No
Being polite and calm are the essential skills which are required — other abilities which one should have been a police officer while witnessing a hostage situation.
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I would not tolerate any sort of corruption. If anyone would offer me any money or other related stuff, I will take strict actions against the person. It is because corruption is appreciated not from one side, but from both.
NOTE: You need to be very creative and thoughtful to get good marks in this Police Interview Questions. Is this helpful? Yes No
Police can use its discretion power in case of small offenses such as public urination and traffic incidents. Here, the officer can arrest as well as fine the offender. He can also leave him by giving only a verbal or written warning. The parameters on which Police discretion depends are as follows
If a suspect behaves disrespectfully, and does not cooperate with the policeman is more likely to get arrested. If an individual shows respect and remorse for the actions performed, then a police officer may give him a chance by only warning him against such activities. It is the most important parameter of the actions to be taken and the use of discretion as per the study conducted in the year 1964.
The more the number of criminal cases against an individual, the more intense the punishment is likely to be even on the first infraction with you. The number of convictions matters the most.
A complaint against an individual gives an idea of the situation. In that case, there might be an influence on the discretion of the police officer. Investigation with the offense has to be carried out with care when there is any complaint lodged against the individual.
It is another factor which might influence the level of the discretion of a police officer. It is evidence as per the study by Bynum and Thompson. The care, interest in cooperation with the captor by the parents can change the whole scenario, and the actions might become informal.
System variables are a part of the list of the influencers of the police officer’s discretion. A policeman becomes more lenient in case of the backlogging of the court and correctional systems. The police department gets into more strict actions when the city needs funds and revenue.
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Here are some of the best practices police officers should follow while interacting with a criminal:
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Being a police officer, you can remain silent. You need to take care of your words at that point of time as your words can be used against you in a court of law. You can say that you can consult with a lawyer who can be available to you while questioning process. You can inform the availability of the lawyer in case of out of the affordability. Is this helpful? Yes No
If you are ever in a situation where you are being forced/coerced by your supervisor to look away from the law/directly break a law, you must be alert about it and try to understand the reason behind it. Do not fret and directly file a complaint with the Department of Justice explaining them clearly as to what happened between the two of you and what does he expect you to do ahead. Is this helpful? Yes No
Challenges faced in a position for a police officer are many:
But, aside from these threats, you should explain to the interviewer how the honor of wearing that uniform supersedes all of those shortcomings and make you proud to be a police officer.
NOTE: This is one of the common interview questions for police officer jobs. From the research, it has been found that this question is being asked to every third person who is giving the interview. Is this helpful? Yes No
In order to pass as a police officer, you must be able to successfully complete the Physical Abilities Test (PAT) which would consist of the following physical activities:
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If you are/have witnessed a crime follow these steps carefully:
I respectfully decline his offer to waive my restaurant charges only because I’m the patrolling officer. I reply back to him “ Thanks for your offer, but as an officer of the law, it is my duty to protect citizens and their rights. I cannot accept this as it is my job to do so, but thanks again.” Is this helpful? Yes No
Police and community relations are vital to effective policing by law enforcement. You must think of these factors while communicating with the public in your area of jurisdiction:
Note: This is a type of most frequently asked Police interview questions. Is this helpful? Yes No
Yes, being an officer of the law, it is your duty that each and every person follows the law. If you have reasonable doubt or have witnessed a law enforcement officer committing a crime, you have the right to arrest him/her.
NOTE: In the interview questions for police, it is recommended to study all the roles and responsibilities of the police officer. Is this helpful? Yes No
No, if the order given to me by a superior anyhow violates or breaks the law, I as a law enforcement officer must not only not follow that order, but, also report this incident to a superior officer or maybe even lodge a complaint as per the seriousness of the said crime. Is this helpful? Yes No
Yes, if my sister is found to have violated the speed limits while driving a vehicle, it is my duty to follow the law correctly and her a speeding ticket. Is this helpful? Yes No
FAQ
What are scenario based interview questions?
What questions are asked during a police interview?
- Tell us a little bit about yourself. In any oral board, this will be one of the first questions that is asked. …
- Why did you choose to become a police officer? …
- Why do you want to work at this agency? …
- What is your greatest weaknesses? …
- Moral questions. …
- The interview is over, is there anything else you’d like to say?
How do you answer scenario based questions in an interview?
- Explain the situation. You’ll first need to explain the similar situation you’re using to answer the question before you get into what you did to solve it. …
- Describe the problem. …
- Outline the action you took to remedy the problem. …
- Talk about the results.
What are the 10 most common interview questions and answers?
- Could you tell me about yourself and describe your background in brief? …
- How did you hear about this position? …
- What type of work environment do you prefer? …
- How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations? …
- Do you prefer working independently or on a team?
