This Great American Warrior article is brought to you by our partner, philanthropist, and LEO supporter Trudy Jacobson.
TUSCON, AZ - Sometimes people enter law enforcement out of chance. Perhaps a friend convinced them to apply and the next thing they know they’re wearing a badge and gun patrolling the neighborhood.
Others learn of the tempting police retirement package and spend their careers daydreaming about one day retiring and riding off to the sunset (usually Florida).
But every once in a while, you’ll run into someone who simply has a passion for the profession dating back to childhood. Their level of commitment to law enforcement is unmatched and they're a rare breed.
That’s Captain Lauren Pettey.
“Being young I wanted to be super active. I never thought I would be in an office just doing paperwork and on a computer,” Cpt. Pettey told LET.
Pettey joined the Tuscon police department shortly after school. Since then, she has risen up the ranks and continually sought opportunity after opportunity to be a better police officer. And she never let any opportunity slip by her that offered a role in specialized units.
“I currently oversee a bunch of really cool units. So one of the units that I oversee is the air support unit. The helicopters back here that we have, we have several pilots, and also drone operators within our division. So that’s pretty cool bringing the drones back in,” Cpt. Pettey said.
She continued, “I also oversee our hostage negotiations. I’m the commander over that team. I have the motorcycle cops, the DUI squad traffic investigators who go out on fatal collisions in the city of Tuscon. We also have our rapid response team which is search and rescue. And then our mobile Field Force team which is the riot squad.”
Women in Law Enforcement
For decades, law enforcement has been viewed as a “man’s job.” That has changed over the years. Cpt. Pettey admits her job is not always easy, but she still encourages other women to pursue a career in law enforcement.
“We started going to different events and telling younger females and people that have been around for a while in professions, ‘Hey, look, you can do this. It doesn’t matter what size you are, it doesn’t matter how old you are. But if this is something you want to do, we’re here for you, we’re going to support you,’” Cpt. Pettey said.
She has been with the department for well over a decade and has seen many female civilians become officers. She has also seen many of them start to forge a path similar to the one she created for herself.
“We work alongside a lot of women doing specialized assignments from SWAT, to K9, to traffic, to patrol officers. There are so many different things you can do and it doesn’t matter just because you’re a different gender. You have the same opportunity as the guys do,” she said.
Cpt. Pettey’s advice goes beyond the law enforcement community, she wants to empower women in general.
“I would say you can do whatever you want to do. If you want to do any profession, I don’t care what it is, just know that if you work hard and you dedicate your time to it, you are going to have women support you,” she said.
Check out the full video interview with Lauren Pettey HERE.
A Message from Trudy Jacobson
“Lauren Pettey has set the bar for women in law enforcement very high and I am proud to feature her.”
– Trudy Jacobson
To learn more about Trudy Jacobson and her support of female first responders, veterans, and entrepreneurs, go to www.TrudyJacobson.com
Subscribe to Trudy Jacobson’s YouTube channel to watch the other Great American Warrior interviews at https://www.youtube.com/@trudyjacobsonta
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Writer Eddie Molina is a veteran and has over 25 years of combined LEO/military service. He owns and operates the LEO apparel and accessory company www.BuyHeroStuff.com
TUSCON, AZ - Sometimes people enter law enforcement out of chance. Perhaps a friend convinced them to apply and the next thing they know they’re wearing a badge and gun patrolling the neighborhood.
Others learn of the tempting police retirement package and spend their careers daydreaming about one day retiring and riding off to the sunset (usually Florida).
But every once in a while, you’ll run into someone who simply has a passion for the profession dating back to childhood. Their level of commitment to law enforcement is unmatched and they're a rare breed.
That’s Captain Lauren Pettey.
“Being young I wanted to be super active. I never thought I would be in an office just doing paperwork and on a computer,” Cpt. Pettey told LET.
Pettey joined the Tuscon police department shortly after school. Since then, she has risen up the ranks and continually sought opportunity after opportunity to be a better police officer. And she never let any opportunity slip by her that offered a role in specialized units.
“I currently oversee a bunch of really cool units. So one of the units that I oversee is the air support unit. The helicopters back here that we have, we have several pilots, and also drone operators within our division. So that’s pretty cool bringing the drones back in,” Cpt. Pettey said.
She continued, “I also oversee our hostage negotiations. I’m the commander over that team. I have the motorcycle cops, the DUI squad traffic investigators who go out on fatal collisions in the city of Tuscon. We also have our rapid response team which is search and rescue. And then our mobile Field Force team which is the riot squad.”
Women in Law Enforcement
For decades, law enforcement has been viewed as a “man’s job.” That has changed over the years. Cpt. Pettey admits her job is not always easy, but she still encourages other women to pursue a career in law enforcement.
“We started going to different events and telling younger females and people that have been around for a while in professions, ‘Hey, look, you can do this. It doesn’t matter what size you are, it doesn’t matter how old you are. But if this is something you want to do, we’re here for you, we’re going to support you,’” Cpt. Pettey said.
She has been with the department for well over a decade and has seen many female civilians become officers. She has also seen many of them start to forge a path similar to the one she created for herself.
“We work alongside a lot of women doing specialized assignments from SWAT, to K9, to traffic, to patrol officers. There are so many different things you can do and it doesn’t matter just because you’re a different gender. You have the same opportunity as the guys do,” she said.
Cpt. Pettey’s advice goes beyond the law enforcement community, she wants to empower women in general.
“I would say you can do whatever you want to do. If you want to do any profession, I don’t care what it is, just know that if you work hard and you dedicate your time to it, you are going to have women support you,” she said.
Check out the full video interview with Lauren Pettey HERE.
A Message from Trudy Jacobson
“Lauren Pettey has set the bar for women in law enforcement very high and I am proud to feature her.”
– Trudy Jacobson
To learn more about Trudy Jacobson and her support of female first responders, veterans, and entrepreneurs, go to www.TrudyJacobson.com
Subscribe to Trudy Jacobson’s YouTube channel to watch the other Great American Warrior interviews at https://www.youtube.com/@trudyjacobsonta
-------------------
Writer Eddie Molina is a veteran and has over 25 years of combined LEO/military service. He owns and operates the LEO apparel and accessory company www.BuyHeroStuff.com
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The opinions reflected in this article are not necessarily the opinions of LET
Comments
2025-01-27T21:46-0500 | Comment by: Daniel
I always dreamed of being a cop since I was 7 or 8 years old. 40+ plus years I retired, with all kinds of medical problems.
2025-01-28T17:56-0500 | Comment by: Marshall
30 years and retired. Capt Pettey may be a great cop, but in my experience the vast majority of female officers are nothing more than affirmative action tokens.
2025-01-28T18:57-0500 | Comment by: James
You're ALL pretty useless .... I NEVER saw a pig I couldn't do without .......