Pennsylvania Code › Title 37 - LAW › Part IV - Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training Commission › Subpart A - Municipal Police Officers' Education and Training Program › Chapter 203 - ADMINISTRATION OF THE PROGRAM › Subchapter B - POLICE OFFICER CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS › Section 203.11 - Qualifications

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
(a) Except as
					 provided in subsection (b), persons who are to be employed as police officers
					 by police departments within this Commonwealth from December 21, 1996, shall:
(1) Be 18 years of age or older.
(2) Possess a high school diploma or GED
					 Equivalency.
(3) Be citizens of the
					 United States.
(4) Be free from
					 convictions of disqualifying criminal offenses.
(5) Be able to read at no less than the ninth
					 grade level, as established through the administration of the Nelson-Denny
					 Reading Test.
(6) Be personally
					 examined by a physician, physician's assistant, or certified nurse practitioner
					 who is licensed in this Commonwealth. The examination must include the
					 following:
(i) Applicants shall be free from
					 the addictive or excessive use of either alcohol or drugs which shall be
					 determined using current laboratory testing procedures.
(ii) Applicants shall be free from the use of
					 illegal controlled substances which shall be determined using current
					 laboratory testing procedures.
(iii) Applicants physical condition shall be
					 such that applicants could reasonably be expected to withstand significant
					 cardiovascular stress.
(iv)
					 Applicants shall be free from any debilitating conditions such as tremor,
					 incoordination, convulsion, fainting episodes or other neurological conditions
					 which may affect the applicants' ability to perform as police
					 officers.
(v) Applicants shall have
					 visual acuity of at least 20/70, uncorrected in the stronger eye, correctable
					 to at least 20/20; and at least 20/200, uncorrected in the weaker eye,
					 correctable to at least 20/40. In addition, the applicant shall have normal
					 depth and color perception and be free of any other significant visual
					 abnormality.
(
Editor's Note
: Subparagraph (v) is
						suspended pending resolution of a lawsuit filed against the Pennsylvania State
						Police (
Wilson v. Pennsylvania State Police, et al
. No.
						94-6547 U. S. District Court-Eastern District of Pennsylvania. See 28 Pa.B.
						2924 (June 27, 1998).)
(vi)
					 Applicants shall have audio acuity sufficient to distinguish a normal whisper
					 at a distance of 15 feet. The test shall be independently conducted for each
					 ear while the tested ear is facing away from the speaker and the other ear is
					 firmly covered with the palm of the hand. The applicant may not use a hearing
					 aid or other aid to perform the test. If the applicant fails this test, the
					 applicant shall be required to take and pass a decibel audio test.
(vii) Applicants may not be missing any
					 extremities, including digits, which would prevent performance of required
					 police duties or meeting minimum training requirements.
(viii) Applicants shall be free from any
					 other significant physical limitations or disabilities which would, in the
					 physician's opinion, impair the applicant's ability to perform the duties of a
					 police officer or complete the required minimum training
					 requirements.
(7) Be
					 personally examined by a Pennsylvania licensed psychologist and found to be
					 psychologically capable to exercise appropriate judgment or restraint in
					 performing the duties of a police officer. The examination shall include the
					 following elements:
(i)
Interview and
					 history
. The psychologist shall personally interview the applicant.
					 The interview shall include a summary of the applicant's personal, educational,
					 employment and criminal history.
(ii)
Required psychological
					 test
. Applicants shall be administered a current standard form of the
					 Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI).
(iii)
Other testing methods
. If the licensed psychologist is unable to certify the applicant's
					 psychological capability to exercise appropriate judgment and restraint to
					 perform the duties of a police officer including the handling of a lethal
					 weapon, the psychologist shall employ whatever other appropriate techniques to
					 form a professional opinion of the applicant's ability. The use of these
					 additional techniques requires a full and complete written explanation to the
					 Commission on a form submitted by the psychologist to the Commission indicating
					 what additional testing has been performed and the results of the
					 tests.
(8) Be evaluated
					 to determine physical fitness using the standards developed by the Cooper
					 Institute for Aerobics Research in Dallas, Texas. Each applicant shall score no
					 lower than the 30th percentile of the Cooper standards, which coincides with
					 the 30th percentile of the general population, in each of the required
					 evaluations to be eligible for employment. A person will not be enrolled in a
					 recruit training program at a police academy certified by the Commission unless
					 the person has obtained a score in the 30th percentile or higher for the
					 person's age and gender as specified in the Cooper standards for each of the
					 required evaluations. The required evaluations are as follows:
(i) 1.5 mile run.
(ii) 300 meter run.
(iii) One repetition bench press.
(iv) One minute sit ups.
(9) Certify whether they have taken a
					 physical examination or psychological evaluation conducted in conjunction with
					 an application for police employment within the previous year and the outcome
					 of the examination or evaluation.
(10) Be subject to a thorough background
					 investigation conducted by the applicant's employing police department. The
					 investigation shall include the following:
(i)
					 A criminal history check including the submission of fingerprints to the
					 Central Repository for the Commonwealth and to the Federal Bureau of
					 Investigation.
(ii) A check of the
					 applicant's credit history.
(iii)
					 Personal interviews conducted with at least 3 people that have personal
					 knowledge of the applicant but are not related to the applicant.
(iv) Interviews of the applicant's employers,
					 if any, for the past 5 years to determine the applicant's work
					 history.
(v) A check of the
					 applicant's driving record verifying that the applicant has a valid driver's
					 license.
(11)
					 Successfully complete a basic police training course given at a
					 Commission-certified school or obtain a waiver of training as enumerated in
					 §
												203.12 (relating to waiver of
					 training).
(i) Successful completion of a
					 basic police training course shall be determined by the training school, based
					 upon Commission standards.
(ii) To
					 qualify for this certification, an applicant shall:
(A) Achieve a minimum qualifying firearms
					 score of 75%.
(B) Receive
					 certification for First Aid and CPR from the American Red Cross, the Department
					 of Health, the American Heart Association or other agencies approved by the
					 Department of Health.
(C) Comply
					 with Commission and school rules and regulations.
(D) Pass the same certification exam
					 administered to those seeking waiver of training as set forth in §
					 203.12(4).
(I) Applicants who are not employed
					 as a police officer by a police department within this Commonwealth or do not
					 have a conditional offer of that employment shall pay an examination fee equal
					 to the actual cost of administering the test.
(II) Applicants who are employed as a police
					 officer by a police department within this Commonwealth or have a conditional
					 offer of that employment do not pay an examination fee.
(E) Attend 100% of all classes.
(I) Excused absences shall be mutually agreed
					 upon by the police officer's department head and school director. School
					 directors shall determine excused absences for applicants not employed as
					 police officers.
(II) Excused
					 absentees shall include personal illness or injury, illness in the immediate
					 family requiring the applicant's attention or death in the immediate
					 family.
(F) Complete the
					 basic training course approved by the Commission with a minimum grade as
					 established by the Commission. The Commission will publish a notice in the
Pennsylvania Bulletin
and in the Commission newsletter
					 whenever the minimum grade on each tested area of examination changes.
(I) Applicants not achieving the minimum
					 grade in any tested area shall repeat the failed training in that area before
					 being eligible to take the examination in that tested area at a
					 Commission-certified school. If the applicant fails to achieve the minimum
					 grade on the applicant's second attempt, the applicant shall be required to
					 successfully retake and pass the entire basic police training course to qualify
					 for certification.
(II) Applicants
					 not achieving the minimum grade in two separate tested areas during one basic
					 police training course shall be required to retake and pass the entire basic
					 police training course in order to qualify for certification.