Published on March 14, 2023
Monday marked the start of a long career with the Maricopa Police Department for eight individuals. Five of them are to be part of Gilbert Regional Police Academy’s next class, while two others - having former law enforcement experience - are getting up to speed with everything they need to know about Maricopa before hitting the streets with a Field Training Officer. “As the city grows, it is important to “right size” public safety resources,” says Maricopa’s Chief of Police Mark Goodman. “This means having an appropriate number of officers deployed correctly to best address the needs of the community. Using a team approach and working with the city’s executive leadership team allows us to properly identify the future needs of the city, and that includes the police department. We are then able to move forward in a manner that is fiscally responsible.” As Chief Goodman plans for the future, he says the Maricopa Police Department is looking to position itself ahead of a so-called “retirement bubble” that is impacting public safety departments across the country. The retirement bubble is an effect that can occur when more individuals retire from duty than are being hired. For example, when a department hires 25 recruits at one time, they will all become retirement eligible together. That means if they all opt to retire at 20 years of service, a force can lose 25 officers at once. One tactic that the Maricopa Police Department has chosen to employ is bringing on officers throughout the course of the year. While some departments only open applications for specific recruitment periods, MPD has rolling application periods and quarterly testing opportunities. In addition, MPD has a number of partnerships with agencies across the Phoenix Metro Area and a number of those agencies offer police academies throughout the year. “I think it is important for people to understand just how many steps there are in the hiring process,” says Sergeant Cohen, who oversees the recruitment and hiring process for MPD. “It can take almost a whole calendar year for a candidate to test, go through the background and hiring process, complete the police academy and field training in order to be a full-fledged solo capable officer patrolling the streets of Maricopa.” Although tedious at times, the process has not discouraged applicants. “In December we added a testing session because we wanted to move applicants through the process faster as testing originally wasn’t going to happen until February,” Sgt. Cohen says. “We are actually doing that again in April by changing our practice test into an official testing day. It is great to see people want to come work here, and in my opinion it’s a direct reflection of our department and the community we serve.” In addition to preparing for the retirement bubble, the City of Maricopa has seen tremendous population growth over the last five years. Keeping in mind the city’s commitment to maintaining its footing as one of the safest cities in the state of Arizona, the department plans to grow the number of sworn officers overall in the next five years. “Having an appropriate number of officers to help keep Maricopa safe is important,” Chief Goodman says. “It is something we consider regularly, and the police department will undoubtedly grow with the city and its needs. Members of our professional staff also are part of the public safety equation, so we also are looking at ways to have non-sworn personnel perform some police-related functions so that sworn officers can perform their duties more efficiently.” Added officers will, of course, increase the footprint MPD is able to patrol during a given shift. Currently, MPD has four patrol areas, and future planning for the city could see that number expand. “While increasing officers is important, deploying those officers correctly is also important,” Chief Goodman adds. “Analyzing calls for service data and then using that information to effectively place our personnel where they are needed is a powerful tool in our crime-fighting efforts. Our partnership with the community is also an important aspect. Getting the formula right and finding the perfect balance is always challenging. It is difficult work that requires persistence, but in the end, pays dividends for everyone.”