The Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) is facing mounting staffing pressures as employee departures continue to outpace hiring, dozens of positions remain vacant and nearly 100 employees approach retirement eligibility.
Presenting VIPD’s fiscal year 2027 budget Tuesday, Police Commissioner Mario Brooks said the department recorded 33 employee separations during the current fiscal year, including 21 sworn officers and 12 civilian employees. That figure exceeded the 25 employees hired by the department during FY 2026.
VIPD currently has 59 vacant positions, but only 15 are in various stages of being filled. Eight of those positions have been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget for funding.
Brooks attributed the recruitment and retention challenges to several factors, including relatively low starting salaries, competition from other employers and changing attitudes toward careers in law enforcement.
Opportunities on the U.S. mainland have added to the challenge, while a decline in interest in policing has narrowed the pool of potential recruits.
VIPD’s recruitment pipeline is also being slowed by lengthy background investigations and psychological evaluations.
The department’s human resources division processed 107 applicants for the territorywide 2026 Police Recruit Classes. Brooks presented that number as an encouraging indication of interest, but Sen. Novelle Francis, chairman of the Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance and a former police commissioner, questioned how many applicants ultimately moved forward.
Brooks said many prospective recruits are eliminated or lost during the screening process.
Applicants must undergo criminal-history reviews and psychological assessments before they can enter the academy. Some candidates withdraw during the process, while others remain interested but are still waiting for required evaluations.
On St. Croix, nine applicants are awaiting background checks and another 18 are waiting for psychological evaluations. On St. Thomas, seven applicants remain in the background-check process and five are awaiting psychological assessments.
Territorywide, 38 applicants either failed one of the screening requirements or did not provide the necessary documentation.
Francis urged the department and administration to move more quickly.
Seven recruits are currently enrolled in the police academy on St. Croix. Those still awaiting background checks or psychological evaluations cannot yet enter the academy.
Sen. Kurt Vialet warned that delays could ultimately drive otherwise qualified candidates away.
Lawmakers also learned that a new psychologist contract for applicant evaluations has been delayed by the Government of the Virgin Islands’ procurement process.
Vialet urged Brooks to seek immediate intervention.
Francis suggested that VIPD consider hiring a full-time psychologist who could conduct evaluations for prospective officers while also providing mental-health services to personnel already serving on the front lines.
Brooks said the department’s previous psychologist had been terminated.
All of those responsibilities come as VIPD confronts rising concerns over violent crime and the challenge of maintaining adequate police coverage with a workforce that continues to shrink.