ALBANY – The professional Policing Act adopted by the state legislature and signed into law last year now requires police officer candidates to undergo psychological evaluation with a licensed psychiatrist or psychologist.
Mount Hope Police Chief Paul Rickard, president of the Orange County Police Chiefs Association, believes that the new law is another good hiring practice for law enforcement.
“It is important that we are able to hire candidates that are highly qualified and have the mental capability to do the job and I think this is another screening tool that will help professionalize policing and I support it and I think it will be good for the law enforcement community and it will be better for the public,” he said.
This new law, which took effect two weeks ago, was precipitated by the protests and police-involved incidents that have occurred nationwide in recent years.
