An inquiry and administrative reassignments have been spurred by reports that more than 30 Detroit police officers have been serving the public without valid law enforcement licenses. Following a study by the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES), it was determined that the officers, who were employed or rehired between November 2019 and August 2024, did not comply with licensure standards. According to MCOLES, a separated officer’s license goes inactive and the recruiting agency must formally request that the license be reactivated. The Detroit Police Department seems to have circumvented this stage, according to CBS News Detroit.
This situation has raised questions about the legitimacy of past enforcement actions taken by these officers and may have an impact on past criminal cases they may have been involved in. As ClickOnDetroit explains, the 32 affected officers are currently assigned to administrative duties while differences are resolved, and the human resources department has been tasked with updating the officers’ files to ensure compliance. “While this matter is under investigation, this appears to be the result of a failure to submit required paperwork to the State of Michigan,” the Detroit Police Department said in response to the problem, stressing that there is no reason to doubt the caliber of work these officers are doing.
Detroit police also told the Detroit Free Press that they were not previously aware of the license lapse and that they are working closely with the commission to audit all employees and guarantee future licensing compliance. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has also been informed of the incident, but her office is not commenting until further information is available. This is a similar posture to other relevant institutions who are awaiting the outcome of the ongoing investigation and any follow-up steps to address the issue.
Concerns regarding the Detroit Police Department have been highlighted by the licensing problem. The discovery that officers operated for a considerable amount of time without the required authorizations complicates the ongoing discussion about law enforcement’s credibility and procedural integrity, even though the MCOLES has promised to cooperate with the department in order to address licensing discrepancies and carry out an audit. The Detroit Police Department’s Media Relations department informed ClickOnDetroit that “internal auditing and correspondence with MCOLES has revealed that the licensure status of approximately 30 officers is reflected as either ‘lapsed’ or ‘inactive,'” promising a thorough review to avoid similar oversights in the future.
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