Police officers are tasked with   37    order and keeping their communities safe. In TVs and in movies, thatusually involves chasing down the bad guys or busting a crime ring. In reality, the term police officer covers a widevariety of roles, including behind the scenes work like handwriting analysis and officer training. Attending a recruitmentevent in your local area can   38   more about all the potential paths. 

     Police officers can work for the city, county, state, or federal government. Their jurisdiction and the size of thepolice department   39   play a major role in shaping their day to day duties. A police officer in a large urban centerlike New York or Los Angeles will usually have a very   40   , such as narcotics, media relations, the K-9 unit (ahomophone upon the word canine, police dog), or SWAT (Special Weapons And Tactics) team. In contrast, in smallerdepartments, particularly in rural areas, police officers will be expected to cover a wider variety of roles. 

     Most officers start off as patrol officers. Typical day to day duties include assisting in emergency scenes,responding to burglaries, and monitoring the roadways and stopping cars that are driving erratically or speeding. For every incident   41   , a police officer is required to file a report. Doing paperwork is certainly not a glamorous part of the job, but it’s a necessary and frequent task.