VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office is working towards its goal employing more female deputies.
They're part of a nationwide initiative called the 30x30. According to the website, the effort supports and advances women in policing.
VBSO says, “Our commitment is to have 30% of our deputies and 30% of our recruits be female by 2030.”
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According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, women represent less than 14% of sworn officers and 20% of recruits in state and local law enforcement agencies.
In Hampton Roads, we know of several agencies who have taken the pledge. In addition to VBSO, the Virginia Beach Police Department and the Williamsburg Police Department are also working on this initiative.
Lt. Alecia Driscoll, who has been with VBSO for more than 17 years, says it’s not about changing standards.
“The 30x30 initiative is, yes, to hire more women, but without changing the standards. So, it’s more of identifying the barriers of why women don’t enter the profession and seeing if those can be resolved so that more women can work in the field of law enforcement," she said.
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Driscoll gave an example of making sure that women can do an alternative job during a pregnancy and not suffer career loss when they return to full-duty.
VBSO reports that right now, about 28% of their deputies are women, meaning they only need six more to reach the goal. As for recruits, they would need four more if the rest of the numbers remain the same.
Lt. Driscoll says anyone who may be interested in a career in law enforcement should contact their local agency and ask for an appointment with the human resources department, as well as a tour.
