BLET Question

[Storm Shadow]

I hoping someone here can clear up some confusion I am having. Do you attend the BLET first as a civilian, putting yourself through in the hopes of being picked up by a department after you complete the BLET, or do you apply for a job and get hired by a department first, and then go through the BLET as a recruit for the department that hired you?

Thanks for your help!

[priormp]

U can pay for it on your own or you can be sponsored by the hiring unit and be put through there academy most of the time if u are sponsored u have to sign a intent letter for a certain amount of time with that unit because they pay for the blet cert if u breach agreement u pay for the class.

[Storm Shadow]

So both ways are possibilities. No wonder I has confused as to which was the right answer. Thanks for your help.

[lmir37]

I'm currently being sponsored to attend BLET in August and had nothing to sign for the department sponsoring me. I went and spoke to the chief and they ran a background check. He spoke to me briefly and gave me the sponsorship letter before I left. The letter just says to the school to waive your tuition. You still have to purchase uniform, books, and equipment needed for the course.

[Landric]

There are, in fact, three different ways to do it:

1) You attend the class on your own dime without having been hired first. You start applying for jobs while in BLET, and hopefully someone hires you by the time you finish the course or soon after.

2) You are sponsored by a department but not hired by that the department. The sponsorship means the tuition for the school is waived, and the department may or not pick up other expenses like books, uniforms, ammunition, etc. (but usually not).

3) You are hired by a department before BLET, they pick up the tab for everything, and you are paid full salary and benefits while in BLET. Obviously this is the best option if you can swing it.

[BLETfun]

I'm currently being sponsored to attend BLET in August and had nothing to sign for the department sponsoring me. I went and spoke to the chief and they ran a background check. He spoke to me briefly and gave me the sponsorship letter before I left. The letter just says to the school to waive your tuition. You still have to purchase uniform, books, and equipment needed for the course.

That is just a signature sponsorship ,if the PD pays for BLET you have a pre determined time you sign to work for that PD. Usually 1 to 2 years.

[BLETfun]

You can have a "signature" sponsorship or a "hired" sponsorship.

Signature sponsorship is just a peice of paper with the schools letterhead that a Chief ,Sheriff ,etc signs of on. All this is stating is that they have ran your back ground and you check out ok and can be certified by NC. The only thing this does is waive tuition fees at your selected school ,you pay for everything else yourself. Upon graduating you are free to go wherever you choose without "owing" yourself to anyone.

A Hired sponsorship is when a PD etc hires you to go to BLET or puts you through their own academy ie Charlotte. While you attend the academy you are getting paid to attend ,this is usually less than if you were certified ,but usually you get "full pay" upon succesfully completing BLET. You in turn usually sign a promisary or intent letter to work at the PD etc for a set amount of time ie 1 year. This is the best sponsorship I think you could have.

Just remember whether you have a signed or hired sponsorship the PD etc can pull it at ANY time ,whether the first day of BLET or the last week.

[Arewethereyet]

Have you found a job yet BLETfun?

[Smurfette_76]

There are, in fact, three different ways to do it:

1) You attend the class on your own dime without having been hired first. You start applying for jobs while in BLET, and hopefully someone hires you by the time you finish the course or soon after.

2) You are sponsored by a department but not hired by that the department. The sponsorship means the tuition for the school is waived, and the department may or not pick up other expenses like books, uniforms, ammunition, etc. (but usually not).

3) You are hired by a department before BLET, they pick up the tab for everything, and you are paid full salary and benefits while in BLET. Obviously this is the best option if you can swing it.

4) If you go with a Sheriff Department, you can technically be hired, sworn in as a deputy and even work the road w/o having attended BLET. The SO then has one year to get you started in BLET.

[BLETfun]

Have you found a job yet BLETfun?

Not yet ,I have apps out there but have no calls yet. I hope to hear from Hickory soon ,their recruiter/BI has been out of the office and will be back Tuesday so I hope he gets to my app soon. From what I gather he has a lot to go through and most of them are non-cerified applicants.

[BLETfun]

4) If you go with a Sheriff Department, you can technically be hired, sworn in as a deputy and even work the road w/o having attended BLET. The SO then has one year to get you started in BLET.

If you are not certified and working the road would the charges you issue stick?

[Smurfette_76]

If you are not certified and working the road would the charges you issue stick?

Yes. You would be a Sheriff's Deputy. They fall under a separate set of training and standards than Officers. Granted, Sheriffs rarely do this anymore, but I know of a couple over in Carteret County that worked on the road for two months before starting BLET. IMHO, it's just going to get someone killed.

[Chit2001]

Sorry, had to pop in here....

Smurfette, come out to the midwest sometime (if you haven't ever been) and I will show you hundreds of agencies across the region who hire, start FTO, and have up to one year to send their officers to an academy. Granted, the bigger towns usually have the recruits with another officer until they're certified.... but they're sworn and have full arrest powers. I was offered a job a few months ago with a rural S.O. and I wouldn't have been sent to the state's academy for 10 months. That means I would've been on the road by myself for most of that time (IMO, not a good idea.....especially when my only back-up would have been the troopers who were usually 20 miles away). A big yikes in that situation.... but that's how MANY of the agencies do it (NE, IA, MN, SD, ND, MT, WY (to my knowledge))

Also, to my knowledge, no "first-year" officers who have worked the streets without being certified have been killed in oh.... over 100 years? I may be wrong, but it's not a statistic that I know of. I'm sure it's different on the east coast, though...

[Smurfette_76]

OH, I realize it's done. I just don't agree with it from an Officer safety point of view. If they don't get hurt, they stand to hurt someone else...not to mention ignorance of state laws. JMHO, but I do realize it's done.

[BLETfun]

Yes. You would be a Sheriff's Deputy. They fall under a separate set of training and standards than Officers. Granted, Sheriffs rarely do this anymore, but I know of a couple over in Carteret County that worked on the road for two months before starting BLET. IMHO, it's just going to get someone killed.

Wow ,now that is dangerous! I understand that BLET is just a stepping point and 90% of your "real" road training is done during the FTO period but sheesh! The firearms training ,drivers training ,heck even patrol techniques all culminate to give you a general workng knowledge of LEO tactics and safety.

All of the SO's around this area that I have spoken to states there is no way in h377 they would put a non cerified person out there and none alone without going through a FTO period. I guess it is just Sheriff's descretion in the county he serves to do this.

I agree that it is highly dangerous ESPECIALLY on Domestics and such and get caught off guard sitting in your patrol car writing a citation etc that's a BAD situation ,wow just too many liabilities there mainly an (undertrained) officers life!