CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — Police officers have a rough job, and according to one study, that’s especially true in West Virginia.
To determine the best states for a law-enforcement career, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across three key dimensions: Opportunity & Competition, Law Enforcement Training Requirements and Job Hazards & Protections.
After collecting data, WalletHub placed West Virginia at 49, just ahead of Alaska and Arkansas, with “Opportunity & Competition” being the state’s worst category.
Other notable findings include ranking West Virginia at 47 in “State & Local Police-Protection Expenses per Capita” and dead last in “Median Income Growth for Law-Enforcement Officers (2022 vs. 2021).”
Source: WalletHub
Best States to Be a Cop
| Overall Rank | State | Total Score | Opportunity & Competition | Law Enforcement Training Requirements | Job Hazards & Protections |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 62.30 | 3 | 2 | 16 |
| 2 | District of Columbia | 61.13 | 1 | 3 | 47 |
| 3 | Connecticut | 58.48 | 37 | 1 | 6 |
| 49 | West Virginia | 29.51 | 48 | 45 | 37 |
| 50 | Alaska | 29.36 | 33 | 50 | 49 |
| 51 | Arkansas | 27.65 | 50 | 36 | 50 |
To achieve its findings, WalletHub divided its 30 weighted indicators across the three dimensions.
“Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for police officers,” WalletHub said.
Then the weighted average of each state across all metrics was used to calculate their overall scores and rankings.
Opportunity & Competition – Total Points: 33.33
- Law-Enforcement Officers per Capita: Double Weight (~7.41 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. - Average Starting Salary of Police Officers: Double Weight (~7.41 Points)
- Median Income for Law-Enforcement Officers: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. This metric was adjusted for the cost of living. - Median Income Growth for Law-Enforcement Officers: Double Weight (~7.41 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. This metric measures the growth of income over time (2022 vs. 2021). - Salary Growth Potential of Law-Enforcement Officers: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators. This metric highlights the income growth (Percentile 90 / Percentile 10) that a police officer could obtain during his or her career. - Projected Law-Enforcement Officers per Capita by 2030: Full Weight (~3.70 Points)
Note: “Law-enforcement officers” includes police and sheriff’s patrol officers, detectives and criminal investigators.
Law Enforcement Training Requirements – Total Points: 33.33
- Police Officer Hours Training Required: Double Weight (~8.89 Points)
Note: This composite metric considers the number of hours of basic and field training required for police officers. - States Allowing Police Work Before Basic Training: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers whether a state allows or forbids police to work before training. - Police Officer Continued Professional Education Hours Required: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: Continued professional education hours include things such as avoiding deadly chokeholds, developing new strategies, and learning about mental health concerns. This repeated annual training may influence officer quality more than a longer initial course sequence. - Police Officer Education Requirements: Half Weight (~2.22 Points)
Note: This metric measures whether a state requires police officers to obtain an associate or bachelor’s degree. - States with Laws Requiring Officers to Be Trained to Respond to Mental Health, Substance Use and Behavioral Disorder Issues: Full Weight (~4.44 Points)
Note: This binary metric takes into consideration whether a state has or doesn’t have some form of law requiring officers to be trained to respond to mental health, substance use and behavioral disorder issues. - Requirement of De-escalation Training: Double Weight (~8.89 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of “De-escalation training” in a state. De-escalation training teaches officers to slow down, create space, and use communication techniques to defuse a potentially dangerous situation. De-escalation training provides officers with strategies to calmly deal with people who are experiencing mental and emotional crises.
Job Hazards & Protections – Total Points: 33.33
- Police-Misconduct Confidentiality Law: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
Note: This metric measures whether police officers’ disciplinary records are confidential, have limited public availability or are completely public. - Police Body-Worn Camera Legislation: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
- Investigation/Prosecution on Use of Force by Police Officers: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
Note: This binary metric measures whether a state has or has not passed laws relating to the investigation or prosecution of use of force. Statutes addressing investigations and prosecution generally fall into two categories, 1) empowering an entity to conduct investigations and prosecute or 2) outlining procedurally how an investigation must be conducted. - Police Officer Decertification Requirements: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
Note: This binary metric measures whether statutory law enforcement decertification requirements are in place in the state. Certificates are issued by the state government as a requirement to legally work as a police officer in that state. Police officers who are decertified are no longer legally allowed to work in the jurisdiction that certified them unless their certification is reinstated. - Share of Law Enforcement Departments Carrying Naloxone: Half Weight (~0.76 Points)
- Degree of Lethal Force Allowed for Police Use: Half Weight (~0.76 Points)
- Presence of “Red Flag” Laws: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
Note: This binary metric considers the presence or absence of “Red flag laws” in a state. “Red flag laws” allow the seizure of guns before people can commit acts of violence. - Presence of “Blue Alerts”: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
Notes: This metric considers the presence or absence of “Blue Alerts” in a state. The Blue Alert provides the means to speed the apprehension of violent criminals who kill or seriously injure local, state, or federal law enforcement officers. - Police Deaths per 1,000 Officers: Double Weight (~3.03 Points)
- Persons Killed by Police per Capita: Double Weight (~3.03 Points)
- Share of Law Enforcement Officers Assaulted: Double Weight (~3.03 Points)
- Pursuit-Related Fatalities per 100,000 Residents: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
Note: This metric includes occupants of the police vehicle, occupants of the chased vehicle, occupants of other vehicles and nonoccupants. - Violent-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
- Property-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.52 Points)
- Road Safety: Half Weight (~0.76 Points)
Note: This metric measures the number of fatal accidents per 100 million vehicle miles driven. - Share of Homicide Cases Solved: Triple Weight (~4.55 Points)
- 9-1-1 Calls Delivered to Local & Regional Answering Points per Capita: Double Weight (~3.03 Points)
Note: This metric is based on the 2020 National 911 Progress Report and measures the number of 9-1-1 calls delivered from the national 911 control office to primary PSAPs (Public Safety Answering Points), regardless of whether they were answered or dispatch occurred, aggregated at the state level. - State & Local Police-Protection Expenses per Capita: Half Weight (~0.76 Points)
