CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. – Chesterfield and Henrico County police departments are among five Virginia law enforcement agencies that has been named best for veterans for 2017.
The Military Times Best for Vets: Law Enforcement 2017 rankings are a national list that names the top 20 agencies in the country for military veterans and reservists.
This year’s list included Chesterfield County Police, Henrico County Police Division, Goochland Sheriff’s Office, Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office, and Newport News Sheriff’s Office.
The rankings evaluate many factors that make an agency a good fit for military veterans and reservists including, amount of military veterans on staff, percentage of recruiting budget for veterans, and veteran hiring preference.
“We remain proud of our commitment to veterans, and we are honored to have once again been included in this prestigious national listing,” said Col. Thierry Dupuis, chief of the Chesterfield County Police Department. “We will continue to strive to innovate and excel in our hiring and employment practices, especially as they pertain to our dedicated current and former members of the military.”
According to the Military Times survey, the Chesterfield County Police force has 81 service members and veterans out of 485 total officers. That includes seven recent officer hires who also have a military background.
Henrico County Police Division actually scored in the top-six agencies based on Military Time’s scoring formula.
Henrico’s police force includes 149 service members and veterans out of 647 total officers, according to the survey.
Henrico Sgt. Edward Ross told Military Times the department’s military and veteran recruits are typically “ahead of the curve” and immediately take on leadership roles.
“They take what they’ve learned [in the military] and do it on a local level,” Ross said. “Their deployment is whatever shift they’re working each day, and they’re home each night.”
The list was constructed from the law enforcement agencies that submitted a roughly-100-question survey about their military recruiting efforts, service member-related policies and rules for reservists and department culture.
For more on the Best for Vets: Law Enforcement 2017 rankings, click here.
