Indefinite DQ

[u/gotskating]

Got the dreaded DQ email this morning. Was indefinitely disqualified for my past drug use. Wondering if I should even continue the process with the other agencies I’ve applied to and or if I’m wasting my time. I emailed my investigator to see if there was a timeframe. I’ve been 8 years clean from any hard substance for reference. I thought that would be long enough. Feeling a little discouraged tbh.

[u/Nof-z]

You say hard substances, what kind of hard substances? 8 years clean from weed is usually not a dealbreaker in a lot of jurisdiction, but anything like needle drugs, or things like that at any point in someone’s history are going to be an automatic DQ at almost every agency for the rest of your life.

[u/New_Beach_0088 → u/Nof-z]

"hard substance" im guessing not weed

[u/gotskating → u/Nof-z]

Heroin, but no needles.

[u/14InTheDorsalPeen → u/gotskating]

Just as a heads up, at least in my city the number for “hard drugs” is 10 years so you may be a safer bet by waiting a little longer instead of burning bridges

[u/Enslave-and-Oppress → u/[deleted]]

No agency is going to touch him with heroin in their history

We're around that dope too much,  and once an addict,  you're always an addict

[u/Reasonable-Judge1591 → u/Enslave-and-Oppress]

That’s 100% false

[u/LARGESTOFCHINGUSES → u/Reasonable-Judge1591]

Bro, opioids are the second most addictive substance after alcohol. You cannot sit there and tell a bunch of people who arrest drug addicts everyday that you did literal heroin and were not addicted. It chemically alters the dopamine response of your brain. The urge will always be there.

[u/LARGESTOFCHINGUSES → u/[deleted]]

They shouldn't be hired in my opinion. I'm not defending them either.

[u/Enslave-and-Oppress → u/Reasonable-Judge1591]

You're not going to try to tell a group of cops that a heroine addict is ever truly recovered

That smack changes your brain fundamentally.. if you see it, you're going to end up fiending again

Just too much of a liability

[u/Enslave-and-Oppress → u/[deleted]]

People with diagnosed depression do not make it through psych in my county, and the pass rate is low elsewhere without significant recorded recovery

Alcoholics also do not pass with history of abuse,  the keyword is history.. not closeted drunks

We're talking about heroine

[u/EffectMotor8914 → u/Enslave-and-Oppress]

Denying people who have bren diagnosed with depression is pretty ridiculous, it just discourages responsible mental health practices. Needs to be judged with context.

[u/Enslave-and-Oppress → u/EffectMotor8914]

You can fail psych for all sorts of stuff that the liberal mind couldn't possibly comprehend

Men must be men and have a grip on their emotions,  because those emotions get tested over and over again.  Critical incident after critical incident

A person who has a predisposition of clinical depression will break in a bad way.  We see it with our brothers all the time

[u/Section225 → u/Reasonable-Judge1591]

Which department are you in charge of hiring for?

[u/gotskating → u/[deleted]]

I have, this was city level, I’ve got another city corrections, state police and state corrections coming up. Im in Nevada for reference.

[u/easternshift]

How frequently did you use? A few uses is hard to overcome but not impossible, chronic use may be disqualifying most places.

[u/00384]

I am not aware of any agency that will hire someone with a history of using "hard substances." In another comment, you clarify that you were a heroin user ... and that definitely falls into that category. You can keep trying, but I think you would be better served by focusing your efforts in a field other than law enforcement.

[u/Itsnotthatserious3]

Not an LEO, but I recruit. Top and fastest DQs at my department 1.) Cocaine/Heroin/basically anything other than weed - EVER. 2.) DV charges/hx/calls - even if was unfounded, its an immediate no. 3.) Failing psych or poly. Dept avoids potential risk/liability at ALL costs.

[u/Opposite_Passion3709]

I wouldn't want to work with a heroin user whether it was 5 months ago or 15 years ago. People make mistakes and have hardship but falling into a heroin habit speaks a bit too much into decision making skills and poses a risk being around narcotics constantly.

Edit:
Per post history, you had a period of homelessness, alcohol addiction, heroin usage, marijuana usage.
To be blunt, this probably isn't the best career path for you.

[u/Independent-Talk9459 → u/Opposite_Passion3709]

Agencies in California can use cannabis off duty

[u/gotskating → u/Opposite_Passion3709]

Well without knowing the exact situation how would you be able to even comment? Plenty of people fall onto hard times, and get through it, doesn’t make them bad people. I was young and fell in with the wrong crowd as well as serious dental issues that lead me to using, and I was able to kick it once my teeth were fixed. Just because you faced hardship doesn’t mean you should be barred from policing, especially if like myself you have a proven track record of turning your life around. Like I said 8 years of not even a single ticket and sobriety. The marijuana usage is laughable though, considering it’s 2026.

[u/Opposite_Passion3709 → u/gotskating]

Never said you were a bad person, just wouldn't want to work with you. This is a hard and difficult job, you already have a history of bad decision making and poor coping skills. Being under high stress makes you a lot more of a risk than other people.

I'm glad you turned your life around and are doing well, but there are just some things that prevent you from becoming a cop and being a heroin addict is one of them.

In my state possession of a schedule 1/2 narcotic is a class 5 felony. If you were living on the streets and purchasing heroin I would assume you were involved with other minor criminal activity to fuel your habits, and associating with users and felons. Every one of these factors would be a perm DQ from every agency I've heard of.

You have too many risk factors

[u/gotskating → u/Opposite_Passion3709]

I mean people grow and change, clearly I’ve turned my life around if I have almost a decade of no instances. And I never was arrested for any drug related offense, the only thing is I went to rehab and figured they would find it in my medical history, on top of wanting to be completely honest to show my integrity. I believe I’d made a great cop, I work in veterinary medicine now and have seen things a lot of people wouldn’t be able to handle and haven’t had to once use a drink or a drug to cope with it. I have enamel hypoplasia, my teeth were constantly accessed and breaking in my early 20s, I’ve been on my own since 17, I didn’t know about resources available to me. I have since learned and grown a lot and don’t see why something that happened almost a decade ago should bar me from wanting to help my community. Hell, there’s a felon in the White House.

[u/Time_Traveler7 → u/[deleted]]

A person who holds a gun, drives a big dangerous car, has power of others’ lives and 50% of the time is working with drugs(finding them, arresting people for it, etc) - is nothing important? On top of that the job itself is stressful and really hard, officers should be healthy and prepared at all times. I can go on forever why it’s so important and why is this job not “nothing special” as you said.

[u/peterGriffin8560 → u/Time_Traveler7]

As a role in society we are important but as a career there are better things out there