La Crosse police seeing nearly triple the applicants

Chance to earn over $50,000 after first year.

The La Crosse Police Dept. just closed its latest application period Friday with nearly triple the applicants.

Captain Jason Melby said the department received 84 applications, up from the usual 30.

The job ad reads, “Competitive pay with the opportunity to make over $50k after the first year.”

Melby said they’ve focused recruiting efforts in the criminal justice dept. at local colleges. He added that the lack of applicants recently is hard to explain.

“Perception of law enforcement?” Melby wondered. “Who knows? Maybe some of that plays into it. 

“Decent paying job with good jobs and we have a beautiful community here.”

La Crosse isn’t an outlier. Departments across the nation have been dealing with a lack of qualified applicants to fill positions.