I though lack of quality applicants was a feature not a bug. Police departments are active discouraging smart conscious people from joining so that they can continue to be a band of thugs. The article you linked says the opposite but here is this from 2000 barring high IQ applicants from police is a thing in some areas. http://abcnews.go.com/US/court-oks-barring-high-iqs-cops/story?id=95836 The other big problem is Weed is so ubiquitous that most people have tried it at least once and that would disqualify you in many departments. So you end up self selecting for people that either are super sheltered or just lie well.Candidates must pass demanding physical and psychological tests, and they must have a drug-free history and pass a rigorous background check. Many departments administer polygraph tests.