Forty-two states rank higher than Oklahoma when it comes to choosing a career as a police officer.

With more than 900,000 law enforcement officers in the nation, WalletHub.com released its “2019’s Best and Worst State to Be a Police Officer.”

In the “opportunity and competition” ranking, Oklahoma is No. 48. In “job hazards and protections” ranking, Oklahoma is No. 44. Oklahoma is No. 12 in the “quality of life” category.

National Police Week started May 12.

In the past 10 years, more than 1,500 police officers, including 158 in 2018 alone, died in the line of duty. Tens of thousands more were assaulted and injured.

The WalletHub report states, “Because of such risks, law-enforcement agencies must offer enough incentives to attract and retain officers. So what qualities define a good place to live and work for police? To start, there’s a $63,380 mean annual wage that exceeds the $51,960 for all occupations. On top of that, there’s typically a generous benefits package that can include retirement-contribution matches, tuition assistance, ample leave time, a take-home vehicle, and access to health and fitness facilities. Officers also may begin drawing full retirement benefits as early as age 40, depending on when they entered the force.

“Beyond financial perks, officers are more likely to be attracted to police departments that steer clear of scandal and corruption and that are transparent with their communities.”

WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 27 key factors of police-friendliness, ranging from median income for law-enforcement officers to police deaths per 1,000 officers to state and local police-protection expenses per capita.

One of the biggest problem in police work is lying.

“A major issue facing law enforcement today has actually been a problem all along, but has only recently become recognized – the prevalence of false confessions,” said Allan Hirsch, chair of Justice and Law studies at Williams College. “Notorious crimes have always prompted glory seekers, often suffering from some psychological malady, to come forward and take credit. When the Lindbergh baby was kidnapped, for example, more than 200 people volunteered that they were the culprit.

“The larger problem is false confessions procured by law enforcement during interrogations. The problem lies in how officers are trained to interrogate. In a nutshell, the most widely taught and utilized interrogation method is too effective: It breaks down the guilty, but also too many innocent. Hundreds of proven false confessions have been identified, and experts in this field are nearly unanimous that these cases amount to the mere tip of an iceberg.

“Many states and municipalities now require or at least encourage the video-recording of interrogations. This positive step curbs interrogative abuses and puts judges and juries in a better position to evaluate confessions. But that isn’t enough. Law enforcement leaders should acknowledge that the so-called Reid Method of interrogation contributes to false confessions and thus ought to be replaced by less risky methods of interrogation.”

There are other problems.

“Police officers face many issues today; in many cases the issues are highly context dependent,” said Dennis Mares, associate professor at Southern Illinois University. “Some agencies, particularly in cash-strapped municipalities, struggle with maintaining basic police operations. Other agencies face demographic changes in the people they police; an aging population, greater racial and ethnic diversity.

“In general policing has become more complex as society grows more complex. Whereas crime certainly remains at relatively low levels, it remains persistently high in some communities; by contrast new crimes are emerging (cyber crime) and often local police are ill-equipped and trained to contend with them.

“In many cases the problems stem from the localized manner in which we do policing in the United States. In many other countries police agencies are centrally organized, in the United States, most agencies are locally organized and funded. This means that pay, training and oversight varies a lot.

“While I understand that people like the idea of ‘local control’, it does not provide the most efficient policing force as those communities that needs policing resources the most (i.e. impoverished communities with high crime rates) have the least financial capacity to provide these services. By contrast, well-funded communities are often overstaffed, which can lead to over-enforcement of rules.”

Best vs. Worst

The District of Columbia has the most police and sheriff’s patrol officers per 100,000 residents, 810.54, which is 6.1 times more than in Oregon, the fewest at 133.91. 

Illinois has the highest median annual wage for police and sheriff’s patrol officers, $76,264, which is 1.9 times higher than in Mississippi, the lowest at $40,719. 

Rhode Island has the fewest individuals killed by police per 1,000,000 residents, 5.68, which is 10.6 times fewer than in New Mexico, the most at 59.96. 

Maine has the fewest violent crimes per 1,000 residents, 1.21, which is 8.3 times fewer than in the District of Columbia at 10.05. 

The District of Columbia has the highest state and local police-protection expenses per capita, $882.44, which is 5.5 times higher than in Kentucky, the lowest at $160.82.