Are there really HOH and Deaf Police Officers

For a second there, I though the post said, "Are there really HOT and Deaf Police Officers. I was curious. lol
 
Deaf Police Officer

papogator24 said:
Hi everyone, I'm new here. Medically, I am deaf, however, I speak and hear very well. I am in the process of the police officer position with Miami-Dade, Broward Sheriff's Office, and Gainesville Police Department. I will update you as I go along the process. I have heard that there are several deaf police officers but have no idea where.
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That is great..I am working at Center for Independent Living in Miami, FL helping those who are in need of jobs and have a disability...I have one young man who is deaf and is really really interested in working/volunteering with the police department...Can you let me know how it goes and maybe lead me to who can assist me.

Thanks ADriana
 
Best of luck !

Hi Papogator24 ;
Yes, there are three of us around the country and one has since left the department.
The process will be tough and at times discouraging unless things have changed in the past few years. I encourage you to be persistent and keeping trying no matter how many obstacles or rejections you might face.
My secret was to continue with my education and to continue getting degrees and certifications throughout my career to make them want and need me .
I am now considering retirement..it'd be great if I could pass the baton unto you.. smile.
Stay in touch with me ..I'll help you in any way I can....
I have loved every minute of my longtime law enforcement career. Since 1976.
Stick with it and show everyone how accomplished you can be and what you can do ! Perhaps having obstacles makes us better people....cause we work harder and wantit more than those who have things too easy,
Smile.
With love to all my deafies !
Susie
 
I am sorry Crafty :
I didn't realize it was your post I was replying to....
Yes, there are two of us now. I believe it is still very difficult for a deaf person to get into law enforcement. I was hoping all those years ago I could have opened the doors for others. But, I have not seen that happen since most of the time ..people deny that I even exist. Especially deafies, so many of us doubt our own capabilities... YES, it can be done. You just have to dedicate your life to sticking with the process, however long it will take. It took me three years worth of heart break and rejections....I just kept getting more determined ( with a smile ) and more education. I volunteered to read lips and do things other officers couldn't do.
It was always a struggle and the secret is ...it is still a struggle. Everytime someone new comes along you have to prove to them you are capable and an accomplished officer.
It has been worth it to me . My career has been filled with grateful faces, those victims and people in need of help that were glad I was there for them.
Best of luck and let me know what I can do to assist you.
One most important thing, while we struggle to attain our goals, objectives and challenges ..we must make certain when we get there we can DO the job. We need to constantly develop our compensation skills and be in top form when our chance finally arrives....
I will be shooting for my doctorate after we get situated from our HUrricane Katrina woes. Most of us remain homeless and are living in temporary housing.
Thanks for your concern for your clients !
Susie
 
That's interesting.
In the book I am writting their is a Deafblind cop (CI user with minor sight impairments) Unfortunately she only works interpreting and helping to train the police dogs. It was a disapointment for her as she really wanted to be on the beat. She ends up getting shot at anyway.
 
I know one person works with booking prisnors and stayed at jail every other 2 weeks but it's interesting to know anyone can do anything if they put their mind to it ;)
 
zookeeper4321 said:
I mentioned in another thread that my ex-husband has a Deaf man in his company as a corrections officer. I also found out he is a Caption and a member of the S.O.R.T. team which is their version of SWAT. I think that is really cool!
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Thats amazing, i have never heard any of such news before :aw:
 
Dear Dreama:
When some one tells you they are a police officer, the one sure way to find out if they are a fully trained certified officer is to question them.
The most important question would be ,'are you POST certified?'
Police Officer Standard Training
This is a state certification an officer has to attain in order to carry a weapon and represent the law. It is an intense training program . I have been through three POST programs in my State each one with a different organization. I used a hearing dog, FM wireloop loop equipment and I always 'covered'my back.... my back is my vulnerability. I can't avoid what I don't hear. The dog has proven to be the best way to compensate for this. I never miss calls on the radio with the FM and now, the radio room officers either forward the messages from their computers, text or email me the details and info. I actually get more info than the hearing officers because I get the whole 911 conversation sent immediately to my cell.
Once again, I'll tell everyone ..law enforcement , ain't easy, but it can be done if you are willing to sacrifice many years of your life to dedicate and becoming somewhat obsessive to accomplishing what no one thinks you can.
OH YEAH, a lot of people didn't think I could do this. I also, had people that knew me very well and knew, I generally find a way to 'do' whatever I put my mind to doing. DEgrees, licenses and certifications open doors and help you be ready for when the doors do open to be knowledgible enough and capable enough to do the task right.
I HAD to do this, i HAD to want it more than anything else and I HAD to do it better than anyone else. Otherwise, they would have never let me into this field. Would I do it again after all of these years ??? Not sure. Was the sacrifice worth all those people I encounter everyday for all these years..Yeah, definitely worth it ! But, as I look back on my career... I wonder if I had chosen something easier, would be life have been easier, better...less stressful. ? I doubt it.
Can I encourage all of my deafies friends to go into law enforcement ?
The answer remains ,'yes and no'.
The stipulation is .... only if you are willing to sacrifice years to getting in there, working yourselves to pieces and to understand, the struggle never ends. You can never take a deep breath and feel like you have job security or feel like you have proved yourself.
I had hoped that my struggles would have opened the door for the next generation and for others. This hasn't happened because, no matter where I go people still don't believe I exist. My message is of hope , dreams coming true and the joy of accomplishment when NOBODY has faith in our abilities or believe we have the strength to be persistent, determined and able to be the best.
If you give 300%..you are still at least 250% better than the regular folks that do not need to work as hard to suceed.
So far, our worst enemy is ourselves. When I read through the blogs, I read and see a constant premeating defeatist attitude. The battle has been lost by our peers and friends before we even set out to attain our goals ..
Yes, it is terribly hard..but , possible.
To everyone asking , 'how can a deaf person ....?'
The answer is always , if they want to do 'whatever' bad enough...they'll find a way.
It's still difficult...I'm tired and ready to retire and move into other challenges, a career in journalism.
I want a newer challenge..the power of words intrigues me and creating photographs able to change peoples' minds. I want the ability to make the world a better place. Effecting change in another capacity... yeah !

To a curious hearing person not knowing any of us, I would have to tell them, there are so many more of us functioning sucessfully and walking invisibily within the mainstream than you can imagine. We can ! Therefore YOU can...
LOVE , Susie

Working as a news correspondent (part time) I've covered everything from events to government,trying to build a portfolio for when I'm ready to change carrers. My favorites are features.
I have written some articles about persons with disabilities. Here's a few of my articles:

http://www.hammondstar.com/articles/2007/11/12/top_stories/9607.txt

http://www.hammondstar.com/articles/2007/11/12/top_stories/9607.txt

http://hammondstar.com/articles/2007/08/10/top_stories/education/9661.txt
 
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dep Suzie,
Thanks very much for the information and the 3 articles that you wrote. I found them intesting. Especially about the deafblind carpenter. Did you mean to post that one twice? As the first and the 2nd article are exactly the same.
If you have any more articles I would be interested to read them too.

I am writing a novel called 'a deafblind girl' which includes plenty of deaf, blind and deafblind characters.
Including Liza Bronze who is a deafblind cop (although not completely deafblind) She has CI and also a lot of useful vision. She helps them train their police dogs and does signed interpreting. But it is very hard for her because her boss is very unsympathetic. She has to leave the police force after her vision deteriates further after developing glaucoma.
 
Sure. Lou Ferrigno is a reserved Deputy Sherrif since February 2006.
He's one ?Hulk? of a sheriff's deputy - Celebrities- msnbc.com

lmwk10302140752.widec.jpg
 
depsusie said:
Dear Dreama:
When some one tells you they are a police officer, the one sure way to find out if they are a fully trained certified officer is to question them.
The most important question would be ,'are you POST certified?'
Police Officer Standard Training
This is a state certification an officer has to attain in order to carry a weapon and represent the law. It is an intense training program . I have been through three POST programs in my State each one with a different organization. I used a hearing dog, FM wireloop loop equipment and I always 'covered'my back.... my back is my vulnerability. I can't avoid what I don't hear. The dog has proven to be the best way to compensate for this. I never miss calls on the radio with the FM and now, the radio room officers either forward the messages from their computers, text or email me the details and info. I actually get more info than the hearing officers because I get the whole 911 conversation sent immediately to my cell.
Once again, I'll tell everyone ..law enforcement , ain't easy, but it can be done if you are willing to sacrifice many years of your life to dedicate and becoming somewhat obsessive to accomplishing what no one thinks you can.
OH YEAH, a lot of people didn't think I could do this. I also, had people that knew me very well and knew, I generally find a way to 'do' whatever I put my mind to doing. DEgrees, licenses and certifications open doors and help you be ready for when the doors do open to be knowledgible enough and capable enough to do the task right.
I HAD to do this, i HAD to want it more than anything else and I HAD to do it better than anyone else. Otherwise, they would have never let me into this field. Would I do it again after all of these years ??? Not sure. Was the sacrifice worth all those people I encounter everyday for all these years..Yeah, definitely worth it ! But, as I look back on my career... I wonder if I had chosen something easier, would be life have been easier, better...less stressful. ? I doubt it.
Can I encourage all of my deafies friends to go into law enforcement ?
The answer remains ,'yes and no'.
The stipulation is .... only if you are willing to sacrifice years to getting in there, working yourselves to pieces and to understand, the struggle never ends. You can never take a deep breath and feel like you have job security or feel like you have proved yourself.
I had hoped that my struggles would have opened the door for the next generation and for others. This hasn't happened because, no matter where I go people still don't believe I exist. My message is of hope , dreams coming true and the joy of accomplishment when NOBODY has faith in our abilities or believe we have the strength to be persistent, determined and able to be the best.
If you give 300%..you are still at least 250% better than the regular folks that do not need to work as hard to suceed.
So far, our worst enemy is ourselves. When I read through the blogs, I read and see a constant premeating defeatist attitude. The battle has been lost by our peers and friends before we even set out to attain our goals ..
Yes, it is terribly hard..but , possible.
To everyone asking , 'how can a deaf person ....?'
The answer is always , if they want to do 'whatever' bad enough...they'll find a way.
It's still difficult...I'm tired and ready to retire and move into other challenges, a career in journalism.
I want a newer challenge..the power of words intrigues me and creating photographs able to change peoples' minds. I want the ability to make the world a better place. Effecting change in another capacity... yeah !

To a curious hearing person not knowing any of us, I would have to tell them, there are so many more of us functioning sucessfully and walking invisibily within the mainstream than you can imagine. We can ! Therefore YOU can...
LOVE , Susie

Working as a news correspondent (part time) I've covered everything from events to government,trying to build a portfolio for when I'm ready to change carrers. My favorites are features.
I have written some articles about persons with disabilities. Here's a few of my articles:

Hammond Daily Star Online - Top Stories

Hammond Daily Star Online - Top Stories

Hammond Daily Star Online - Education
Click to expand...


Same with me as a certified wildland forest fire fighter who have fought numerous wildfires with a 20-person fire fighting crew on the front line and even in the interiors of a wildfire. I'm the only one around all those years and I have since "retired" from it two years ago I continue to involve myself in wildfire such as doing BAER assignments (Burned Area Emergency Response) work (http://www.nps.gov/fire/fire/fir_baer.cfm ) which still faces the same dangers as fire fighters. It was tough work and yes, it can be doable but there are some inherent dangers for oneself and especially to the team for a person with hearing loss.
 
I trained for 4 weeks with the condition that I remain in book in, staying away from control and pod (place where inmates are held, divided by blocks containing from lower Misdemeanors to High Felony Inmates.).

I wasn't retained due to complaints from other officers regarding radio issues. So I was let go.

I was real disappointed and I loved doing my job. Just booking in and out inmates all day long.

I'd do it again in a heart beat if someone out there would let me do it.

Yiz
 
I've been told that we deaf people can't become Police officers. I've wanted to become Detective or a job that deals with crime solving but I've been told that I can't be that because I'm deaf. I honestly think it's ridiculous!
 
Hello-

I am a profound HOH, and I am a fully sworn (Colorado POST) police officer in Colorado. My department is a smaller agency, so having a hearing partner is not an option. I push a patrol car out on the road, and I enjoy it tremendously. Law enforcement has been my dream since I was a kid, and I am thrilled to be doing it. I have been with my agency for two years now. I will admit that I am nervous when the day comes that I want to lateral (move to) a bigger agency. Where there is a will, there is a way!

Elias
 
BugsWest said:
Hello-

I am a profound HOH, and I am a fully sworn (Colorado POST) police officer in Colorado. My department is a smaller agency, so having a hearing partner is not an option. I push a patrol car out on the road, and I enjoy it tremendously. Law enforcement has been my dream since I was a kid, and I am thrilled to be doing it. I have been with my agency for two years now. I will admit that I am nervous when the day comes that I want to lateral (move to) a bigger agency. Where there is a will, there is a way!

Elias
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Which mode of communication do you use?
 
If you are deaf or HOH and you want to be in the law enforcement, go for it. Stop whining that it may not be "allowed." If they say it is not allowed for you to apply, educate them about the law that's been in place since forever. This law says they cannot discriminate because of your hearing loss. They may provide necessary accommodations as needed. :) Go for it!
 
Dreams come true in Alaska
Anthony Wallace ’03 (business administration) has reached another milestone in a growing list of achievements.

“I finally accomplished my dream and finished the police academy,” says Wallace, one of the few deaf police officers in the country. “I graduated as the valedictorian in a class of 22 recruits, which I am really proud of because it was a battle between me and two very good friends of mine. I had a goal to finish top of my class and hard work and discipline paid off for me.”

Wallace, whose father, grandfather and uncle were also police officers, started his career as an RIT Public Safety officer in 2003. He joined the Hoonah (Alaska) Police Department in 2006 but after seven months, he resigned for personal reasons and returned to RIT Public Safety. He went back to Hoonah, an island about 50 miles southwest of Juneau, in March 2008 and completed the 14-week Police Academy program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks earlier this year.

“My primary duty with the Hoonah Police Department is to enforce local, state and federal laws,” Wallace says. Because the city is small – population 880 – police officers wear many hats and Wallace assists the Hoonah Ambulance Corps as a certified EMT and will be going into training to became a certified fire fighter.

“I absolutely love Alaska and I love working for the City of Hoonah as a police officer,” Wallace says. “It has been a dream come true. I have so much to do and so many opportunities waiting for me. Also, being that I am a huge hunter and fisherman, I have a lot of hunting and fishing left to do!”

An All-American wrestler during his student days, Wallace was inducted into the RIT Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008. Wallace says his RIT education and experience at RIT Public Safety have contributed greatly to his success.

He hasn’t experienced difficulties on the job related to being hard-of-hearing, he says, and doesn’t foresee any.

“I have had tremendous support from my fellow police officers and have gained their confidence by proving every day that a person with my hearing deficiency poses no problems on the job. I have always believed that I could do the job of a police officer and here I am.

“I hope that people who are in the same situation as I am see my story and begin to believe that if you put your mind to something, you can achieve it! Anything and everything is possible, it’s just a matter of how bad you want it and how far you are willing to go to prove to people that you are worthy of whatever career you want to pursue!”
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