Police Judgement Quiz

19 Questions | By Policeprepaus | Updated: Mar 21, 2022 | Attempts: 2858

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Sound judgement is an inherent quality of a good police officer. The following scenarios will give you a quick sample of the types of problems you can expect and provide guidance into basic police judgement and reasoning. Enter your name and click START to begin! (The information contained in this quiz is for information and preparation only. All questions and information are the advice and opinion of the author and do not reflect the policy or procedures of any particular police service. The information provided is based on the authors own experience. You should always seek further advice before acting on something that the author published or recommended. The reader should always act in accordance with their own formal police training

Questions and Answers

1.

You and your partner attend a call to a residential duplex where one neighbour reports a strong smell of gas coming from under the front door of the other duplex. On arrival at the unit you can smell the gas and assess it is coming from inside the other duplex. Your headquarters have already called the fire department to attend and they are about twenty minutes away. No-one is answering the door or phone at the address and the door is locked. You should:
- A.
  
  Force entry and quickly check if anyone is inside.
- B.
  
  Wait at the door to make sure the fire department know which unit to attend.
- C.
  
  Advise the caller (in the other unit) to come with you and wait a safe distance upwind of the address.
- D.
  
  Leave a note that you attended the address and leave the matter for the fire department to sort out.
2.

You are in an authorised vehicle pursuit of a stolen motor vehicle. The occupants of the car are believed to be involved in a string of burglaries stealing large quantities of jewellery and cash from residential houses in the area. You are the only car involved in the pursuit and are comfortably keeping up with the stolen motor vehicle. Traffic is light, however as you turn into a side street you notice an oncoming car swerve off the road and collide with a parked car. The crash does not appear serious. You should:
- A.
  
  Abandon the pursuit and stop to check on the welfare of the occupants of the crashed civilian car.
- B.
  
  Continue the pursuit. You didn’t directly cause the crash so its not your concern.
- C.
  
  Report the crash over the radio and ask for another police car to attend the crash so you can maintain observation on the stolen motor vehicle.
- D.
  
  Stop briefly and look out the window if anyone is hurt and if they seem ok then continue the pursuit.
3.

You and your partner are driving under emergency conditions to assist two officers who requested urgent backup at a violent domestic incident. You don’t know exactly what is going on but it sounded like one of the officers was injured. You are the passenger of your patrol car. It is night time and raining heavily. You are driving through residential streets where the speed limit is 50 kph. You are in the passenger seat and your partner is driving extremely aggressively at speeds in excess of 100 kph in order to get to the scene. You are still about ten minutes away from the scene and there have already been several near misses with other road users. You are concerned at your partner’s driving. You should:
- A.
  
  Keep alert for traffic hazards and advise your partner if you see any potential crashes.
- B.
  
  Tell your partner to slow down and drive to the conditions.
- C.
  
  Say nothing, because backing up your fellow officers is more important than your own safety.
- D.
  
  Turn on some heavy metal music and enjoy the ride.
4.

You are on foot patrol in a busy shopping precinct and are called to a disturbance in a pharmacy. As you arrive at the front door of the pharmacy a man rushes out the door and crashes into your partner, knocking your partner to the floor. The man then continues running away past other pedestrians through the mall. Your partner rolls onto his side revealing a small stab wound under his ribs, crying out, “He stabbed me!” You should:
- A.
  
  Call an ambulance and immediately pursue the man who stabbed your partner.
- B.
  
  Call an ambulance and stay with your partner to provide immediate first aid.
- C.
  
  Use your firearm to shoot the offender.
- D.
  
  Go into the pharmacy to further investigate what the disturbance was all about.
5.

You arrive at the scene where a pedestrian has been seriously injured by a hit and run driver. Witnesses at the scene yell out to you that the driver has only just left a few moments ago. Your partner is attending to the injured person and asks you to call for an ambulance. After calling for an ambulance your NEXT action should be to:
- A.
  
  Take detailed witness statements at the scene of what happened whilst it is still fresh in the minds of people nearby.
- B.
  
  Get back in your car and drive off in the direction where the witnesses are saying the car went.
- C.
  
  Gain a description of the hit and run car from a witness and send the report over the radio.
- D.
  
  Cordon off the street and prepare the area as a protected crime scene.
6.

You have arrested a woman and a teenage girl for shoplifting. They stole a number of items each. You take the details of the teenager and issue her with a written caution as it is her first offence. The teenager is then released. The woman, however, has outstanding police enquiries and is required to accompany you to the police station. Once at the station, the woman asks you to give her the phone number of the teenage girl so she can ring her to arrange to meet once she is released. You should:
- A.
  
  Give the phone number to the woman to dial on the station phone.
- B.
  
  Refuse the request because it is nothing to do with the police matter at hand.
- C.
  
  Ring the girl yourself and arrange the meeting on behalf of the woman.
- D.
  
  Dial the number yourself and then give the phone to the woman to speak.
7.

Excessive Force refers to:
- A.
  
  Use of force when none is required.
- B.
  
  Use of a higher level of force than is necessary or justified.
- C.
  
  Continuing to use force for a period of time longer than necessary.
- D.
  
  All of the above.
8.

You attend a call out to a disturbance in a residential house. There is an aggressive argument occurring between a man and a woman at the address. The man opens the door and immediately becomes aggressive to you and your partner. The man is about the same size as you. The man lunges at you and starts to push you away from the door. You grab the man by the arm and force him down onto the ground. The man lands on his chest and is struggling to get back up. He is lying on one arm and you are having difficulty trying to get the arm free in order to apply handcuffs. You should:
- A.
  
  Continue attempting to get his other arm free in order to apply handcuffs.
- B.
  
  Use your baton to strike the man in order to stop him struggling.
- C.
  
  Let the man up so you can get to his arm and handcuff him.
- D.
  
  Hold him down longer until he tires out and stops resisting.
9.

You attend the scene of a robbery at a local hairdresser. The offenders have left the scene and you stay to complete the necessary investigations. Later that day, the owner of the hairdresser comes in to the police station to thank you for the way that you handled the investigation and insists that you take a $50 gift voucher that you or a member of your family could use at your convenience. It is against your department’s policy to accept gifts. She is very insistent. You should:
- A.
  
  Get angry at her for putting you in an awkward position and tell her that she is making a mistake offering gifts to police.
- B.
  
  Check that no-one is looking and quickly accept the gift voucher.
- C.
  
  Accept the gift voucher and hand it to your supervisor at your earliest opportunity.
- D.
  
  Tell her that you can’t accept the gift here but you will visit the hairdresser after work and she can give it to you then.
10.

You are on a traffic patrol with your partner. You have stopped a hire car near the airport with two foreign businessmen in the back seat. The two foreigners are not wearing seat belts. The driver apologises and explains the men have only just arrived in the country. You should:
- A.
  
  Issue a traffic infringement to each of the men because not knowing the laws is no excuse for failing to comply with traffic regulations.
- B.
  
  Give the men a warning and explain to them that they are breaching the traffic regulations of this city and that they must wear seat belts at all times.
- C.
  
  Ask them if it is the law to wear seat belts in their home country and if it is then issue them an infringement because they should have known better.
11.

You are on a traffic patrol and have stopped a vehicle for the purpose of a random breath test. It appears that the driver of the vehicle is intoxicated from the effects of alcohol. You arrest the driver and direct him to the back of your police car in order to take him to the police station for a formal breath test. The man asks you, “Can I bring my water bottle to drink on the way?” You should:
- A.
  
  Refuse the request.
- B.
  
  Grant the request because it is only water.
- C.
  
  Tell the man he can bring it, but tell him not to drink from it until after the formal breath test at the station.
- D.
  
  Tell the man he can’t bring it with him, but he can drink it all here on the street before you go to the police station.
12.

You are patrolling past a large office complex when the building fire alarm starts ringing loudly. Your FIRST action should be to:
- A.
  
  Immediately go inside to see if there really is a fire and help anyone inside evacuate.
- B.
  
  Continue your patrol as it is not a police matter.
- C.
  
  Call the Fire Emergency Services and wait outside for them to arrive.
- D.
  
  Immediately block traffic access to the building in case there is a fire.
13.

You attend the scene of a domestic disturbance in a residential area. Standing at the front door, you can hear a man and woman screaming aggressively at each other. You can hear things being thrown around inside. You can hear glass breaking. You then hear the woman cry out, “No! Please don’t hurt me again!” There is no response when knocking at the door or calling out your presence. You should:
- A.
  
  Keep knocking on the door trying to get their attention.
- B.
  
  Call your supervisor to get permission to force entry.
- C.
  
  Force entry and stop the argument.
- D.
  
  Come back later when they have calmed down.
14.

You are on the street where a man and woman are arguing loudly and pushing each other around. You and your partner are trying to talk to each person to find out what has happened. The best positioning for this discussion is:
- A.
  
  Both officers together in the centre with the man on one side and the woman on the other.
- B.
  
  Both officers next to each other on one side and the man and woman next to each other facing the officers.
- C.
  
  The two people in the centre and one officer either side, facing in. One officer talking to the man and the other officer talking to the woman.
15.

You attend a residential block of units following a call from neighbours reporting a loud argument in a unit. You are aware that both the man and woman who live at this unit have been violent to each other on previous occasions. You knock on the door and the woman answers the door and invites you in. You follow her into the small unit. The man is standing on the other side of the one room apartment. The man starts shouting at you that nothing is wrong and asks you to leave. You notice there is a kitchen knife resting on the bench between you and the man. You are standing next to the bench and your partner is talking to the man. You should:
- A.
  
  Put the knife into a drawer.
- B.
  
  Ask the woman to put the knife away in a drawer.
- C.
  
  Leave the knife where it is, because picking it up could aggravate the situation.
- D.
  
  Ask the man and woman to come and talk to you outside the unit.
16.

You attend a traffic accident at a four way traffic intersection. The final position of a blue and green car are depicted below. The diagram shows the damage points on the blue and green car. The arrows indicate the normal flow of traffic (driving on left hand side of road). North is toward the top of the map. The most likely cause of the crash was:
- A.
  
  The green car approached from the south and the blue car crashed into the back of the green car.
- B.
  
  The green car entered the intersection from the east and the blue car entered the intersection from the south and crashed into the side of the green car.
- C.
  
  The green car entered the intersection from the west and the blue car entered the intersection from the south and crashed into the side of the green car.
- D.
  
  The green car entered the intersection from the east and the the blue entered from the north, crashing into the side of the green car.
17.

You have stopped a driver for speeding on a suburban street in a built up area. The driver identifies herself to you as a police officer and shows you her police badge. She tells you she is on her way home from work. You should:
- A.
  
  Let her go home.
- B.
  
  Issue her an infringement or a caution (whichever is relevant to the offence) as you would have done for any other road user.
- C.
  
  Refrain from giving her a ticket, but find out what station she works at and inform her supervisor.
- D.
  
  Think to yourself that you should have stayed home today.
18.

Select the BEST answer to the following statement: The conduct of regular police patrols in the neighbourhood will deter:
- A.
  
  Murder, graffiti and armed robbery.
- B.
  
  Graffiti, prostitution and burglary.
- C.
  
  Murder, car theft and disorderly behaviour.
- D.
  
  Employee Fraud, disorderly behaviour and burglary.
19.

You attend a traffic accident at a four way traffic intersection. The final position of a blue and green car are depicted below. The diagram shows the damage points on the blue and green car. The arrows indicate the normal flow of traffic (driving on left hand side of road). North is toward the top of the map. The most likely cause of the crash was:
- A.
  
  The green car approached from the north and the blue car approached from the east. The two cars collided in the centre of the intersection.
- B.
  
  The green car entered the intersection from the west and the blue car entered the intersection from the south. The green car hit the side of the blue car.
- C.
  
  The blue car approached the intersection from the south and turned right towards the east. The green car approached from the north and crashed into the side of the blue car.
- D.
  
  The blue car approached the intersection from the south and turned right towards the east. The green car approached from the west and hit the side of the blue car.