Police Oral Board Scenario Questions: How to Answer "What Would You Do?"

How panels score "what would you do" questions

Scenario questions test judgment, not tactics or memorized procedure. The Rhode Island State Police candidate guide says you won't be assessed on knowledge of department procedures, and Austin Fire's 2024 study guide frames scenarios as "What would you do and why?"

We score scenario answers mainly on three of the six dimensions of our practice scale: Judgment & problem solving, Integrity & accountability, and Interpersonal & community skills. The scale runs 0 to 4, where 2 meets the bar; it's our practice scale, not any agency's score.

The 10 scenarios below are our examples in the style of published boards and coach lists, and three are our own variants of common themes. Throughout, follow the law, your agency's policy and your training, and de-escalate where it's safe. Nothing here is legal advice.

UT System Police's board guide rewards candidates who "know when a situation requires additional help" and weigh alternatives when time allows. A strong reasoning path works through five steps, out loud, in order:

• Safety: life safety first, including yours, the public's and anyone in custody.
• Law and policy: follow the law, your agency's policy and your training.
• De-escalation: talk first and use only the force that's allowed, where it's safe to do so.
• Chain of command: call backup or a supervisor, and report misconduct to a supervisor promptly.
• Follow-up: aid, documentation and explaining next steps to the people involved.

For the other question types on a police board, see 50 police interview questions.

Scenarios involving another officer

1. During a search, you see your partner pocket cash. What do you do? This is our variant of a common theme. The panel scores Integrity & accountability first, then Judgment & problem solving.

Strong reasoning path: keep the scene safe, then treat it as theft and a policy violation, not a favor to weigh. Report it promptly and in good faith to a supervisor, and document what you saw. Washington law (RCW 10.93.190), for example, requires officers to report wrongdoing by another officer to a supervisor.

Example to adapt: "I'd finish securing the scene, then go to my sergeant before the shift ended and tell her exactly what I saw. I'd write it up accurately and cooperate with whatever came next. I wouldn't give him a chance to put the money back, because covering for him would make me part of it."

Common mistake: "I'd talk to him first and give him a chance." Coaches report that ethics issues like theft go straight to a supervisor, while working things out privately is for personality conflicts.

2. A senior officer strikes a handcuffed suspect who isn't resisting. What do you do? This is our variant. The panel scores Integrity & accountability and Judgment & problem solving.

Strong reasoning path: intervene, get the suspect medical aid, report to a supervisor and document. The IACP National Consensus Policy on Use of Force says officers have a duty to intervene to stop excessive force "when it is safe and reasonable to do so," and the US Department of Justice's policy also calls for requesting or rendering medical aid.

Example to adapt: "I'd step in right away and tell him to stop, as long as it was safe and reasonable to do so. I'd make sure the suspect was checked by medical. Then I'd report it to my supervisor immediately and write an accurate report, even though he's senior to me."

Common mistake: waiting until after the shift, or saying it depends on who the officer is. Rank doesn't change the duty.

3. A driver you stop for swerving shows you an off-duty officer's badge. What now? This is our variant. The panel scores Integrity & accountability and Judgment & problem solving.

Strong reasoning path: make the stop safe, then handle it exactly as you would for any driver, under the law and your agency's policy. Stay calm and respectful, bring in a supervisor and document everything. A 2014 KIRO 7 news report described a Bellevue (WA) officer who was fired for not arresting a fellow officer for DUI.

Example to adapt: "I'd thank him for telling me, then treat it like any other stop. If I saw signs of impairment, I'd investigate the way my training and our policy require, and I'd call my supervisor because it involves another officer. A badge doesn't buy a pass; if it did, nobody would trust the next stop I made."

Common mistake: offering a ride home as a "professional courtesy." It tells the panel you'd bend the law for colleagues.

Ethics scenarios: gifts, orders and family

4. A store owner who's under investigation offers you a discount card. What do you do? The panel scores Integrity & accountability.

Strong reasoning path: decline, follow your agency's policy on gifts and gratuities, tell a supervisor about the offer and document it. Because he's under investigation, reporting the offer matters even more.

Example to adapt: "I'd decline politely. Since he's under investigation, I'd report the offer to my supervisor that day and write it up, so there's a record before anyone could question it. If I took it, every decision I made about his case would be in doubt."

Common mistake: "It's only a discount, so I'd take it." Accepting a gift from someone who wants something from the department sits at the bottom of our practice scale.

5. A supervisor tells you to do something you know is against policy. What do you do? The panel scores Integrity & accountability and Judgment & problem solving.

Strong reasoning path: confirm you understood the order, raise the concern respectfully and privately, and decline anything unlawful or against policy. If the order stands, take it up the chain of command and document it.

Example to adapt: "I'd ask the sergeant to clarify, in case I was missing context. If it was still against policy, I'd tell her respectfully that I couldn't do it and why. If she insisted, I'd go to the lieutenant and write down what happened."

Common mistake: "He's the boss, so I'd do it," or refusing loudly in front of the team.

6. On a call, you find a close friend or relative committing a crime. What do you do? The panel scores Integrity & accountability and Interpersonal & community skills.

Strong reasoning path: safety first, then the law and policy apply as they would to anyone. Tell your supervisor about the relationship right away, ask whether another officer should take over, and document everything.

Example to adapt: "If I had to act before backup arrived, I'd treat my cousin like anyone else and follow the law and policy. I'd tell my supervisor about the relationship immediately and ask that another officer handle the case. Then I'd write a complete report. It would hurt, and I'd still do it."

Common mistake: leaning toward letting them go. Coaches report that excusing a relative is a red flag, and so is an answer so rigid it sounds dishonest.

Patrol scenarios: emergencies and competing duties

7. You round a corner and see someone with a bat standing over a person on the ground. What do you do? The panel scores Judgment & problem solving and Interpersonal & community skills.

Strong reasoning path: call it in and request backup and medical, keep a safe distance, and try to talk the person into putting the bat down. Once it's safe, get aid to the injured person and separate everyone before deciding who did what. A Police Executive Research Forum training scenario on a domestic call stresses officer safety, using resources and not assuming who the aggressor is.

Example to adapt: "First I'd call in my location and ask for backup and EMS. From a safe distance, I'd tell the person to put the bat down and keep talking until they did. Then I'd get the injured person care, separate the two and hear each account before deciding anything. I'd write it up and brief my sergeant."

Common mistake: rushing in alone, or deciding who the aggressor is before you know.

8. You and your partner are transporting a dangerous prisoner when you pass a serious crash. What do you do? The panel scores Judgment & problem solving: two duties at once.

Strong reasoning path: call it in immediately and request EMS and another unit. Keep the prisoner secure under your agency's transport policy, give aid only in a way that doesn't leave the prisoner unsecured, and document both events.

Example to adapt: "I'd call it in right away and request EMS and another unit. We wouldn't both leave the car. If someone's life was at risk and policy allowed, one of us would stay with the prisoner while the other gave aid until help arrived, and then we'd finish the transport and document both."

Common mistake: driving past without calling it in, or both officers leaving the prisoner to help.

9. Driving alone, you see a man grab a woman's purse and run. What do you do? The panel scores Judgment & problem solving.

Strong reasoning path: call in your location, the suspect's description and direction, and request backup. Check on the victim. If you pursue, stay within policy, give clear commands, and use only the force the law, your agency's policy and your training allow.

Example to adapt: "I'd radio his description and direction and ask for backup, then make sure the woman was okay. If I could safely catch up, I'd identify myself and tell him to stop, and if he resisted, I'd use only the force the law, policy and my training allow. Then I'd take her statement and write a full report."

Common mistake: "I'd tackle him," with no radio call, no backup and no thought for the victim. UT System Police's board guide puts candidates who "act first and think later" at the bottom of its situational reasoning scale.

For 15 core questions with example answers, see police interview questions and answers.

A scenario about your supervisor

10. Your supervisor gives special assignments to every coworker but you. What do you do? The panel scores Interpersonal & community skills and Composure & presence.

Strong reasoning path: this is a working-relationship issue, not misconduct, so start directly. Ask your supervisor privately what you'd need to show, act on it and check back. Escalate through the department's process only if you believe something improper, like discrimination, is going on.

Example to adapt: "I'd ask my sergeant for a few minutes in private and ask what I'd need to do to be considered. Then I'd work on whatever he said and check back in a month. If I had reason to think it was something improper, I'd use the department's complaint process."

Common mistake: complaining to coworkers or going over the supervisor's head first. Coaches report that getting-along problems should be worked out directly before you escalate.

How to practice police scenario questions

Practice out loud, then have someone change one fact and answer again: the suspect stops resisting, the supervisor insists, backup is ten minutes away. California POST's guidelines describe neutral follow-up questions for clarification, elaboration and verification, while the Rhode Island State Police guide says its assessors usually won't ask you to clarify, so practice both ways.

Not every agency holds an entry-level oral board; posted hiring steps for NYPD, Chicago PD, Houston PD, Seattle PD and the California Highway Patrol list none. Check your department's posted process. Agencies are named here only to identify their public materials, and OralBoardCoach is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.

Practice scenarios like these with follow-ups and get scored: run a free mock oral board.