I never really thought about this much. But…
An old-timer recently said this to me. He was serious. Like it was a fact.
Also, this is the exact type of semantic bullshit that anyone who has ever done this job loves to argue about.
My retired friend said,
“There is a difference between: ex-cop, former cop, and retired cop.
Ex-cop = fired or resigned on bad terms.
Former cop = moved on to different/better work on their terms.
Retired cop = finished career, honorable discharge, pension.”
Ex-Cop
There are some cops who commit crimes or grossly violate department policy and should be fired. Thankfully that is extremely rare. And, more often than not when an officer is fired or resigns in lieu of termination - it is because they made a human mistake deep within a rapidly evolving, violent, and confusing situation. Often the true failure lies with the agency who did not prepare the officer via training or policy for the situation.
I honestly believe that if you follow around and record every cop for every second of their career - every single person will do something that someone else has been fired for.
Just because someone was fired or resigned in lieu of termination - does not make them a bad person or even guilty of the accusations. The politicians who run (some) police departments would gladly terminate an officer for a minor policy violation in exchange for a single positive news story about “police reform”.
Former Cop
Peter Moskos (follow him!) was a Harvard-trained sociologist who left the classroom and joined the Baltimore Police Department. Moskos worked the streets for over a year and subsequently detailed his experience in one of the best first-person police books (Cop in the Hood). Moskos left the department and secured a job as a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
There is no shame in leaving the job for a better or different opportunity. Often this is the happiest group - as they proved that they could do the job yet left the security of a pension for something more.
Retired Cop
Every state has a different “retirement” system.
But, if an officer works a certain number of years - they can stop working, “retire” and draw a pension for the remainder of their life.
When I started in 2005 my State’s pension system was simple. If a police officer works 20 years they get 70% of their salary - with a yearly COLA (cost of living adjustment).
Some states make obtaining a police pension a weird math problem. Requiring officers to add the number of years worked + their age in order to qualify.
Final Thoughts
I posted this on X and people were tagging me in articles and linking dictionary definitions to confirm or dispute my post.
So, obviously, none of this is official. My post was meant to be light-hearted.
No matter how you left the job - here is what matters:
“To be 70 years old, with your mental and physical health in tact, on a mountain or a beach somewhere with the person/people of your choosing. Financially secure and feeling like you accomplished something worth passing on.” 1
Paraphrased from a speech that a leader in my agency would give.
Ex-Cop with a PhD has been my tagline for years. Now it's Former Cop with a PhD. Just in case.... lol
I believe that LEOs that served 2 plus years and left under honorable circumstances should be just as respected as one that chose to do 20+ years. Isn’t this what is done in the Armed Forces? Thanks for the article.