City ready to hire 30 laid-off Cleveland cops

CINCINNATI (AP) -- City officials are close to hiring about 30 of the 262 Cleveland police officers who were laid off last month.
Cincinnati recruiters are finalizing job offers, and those who accept will likely start 10 weeks of training March 22. Recruits with no police experience get 12 weeks' training.
City officials are pleased with the group's diversity: Half are black, five are Hispanic and one is Vietnamese, said Ted Schoch, the department's training director.
"They're our youngest, most aggressive police officers," said John Kincaid, vice president of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association in Cleveland. "They're all between 24 and 35, they've been on [at least] two years. If you've worked two years in Cleveland, you can work anywhere."
Despite their experience, they would be on probation for a year. The pay is nearly $41,000 annually.
"We're kind of excited," Schoch said. "They seem like a good bunch of people."
Sixteen of the 30 have said they would take the jobs.
Kincaid said Atlanta is expected to offer jobs to another 30 of the former Cleveland officers.