I am 22 years old graduated college with my criminal justice degree, I want to become a police officer, but the only thing that I am worried is that I was arrested when I was 17 on a property damage warrant. I was questioned and released, they decided not to go through with the charges and nothing became of it, but the fact remains that I was arrested and booked and when the police do the background investigation this will come up. Is this going to keep me from getting hired? or lower my chances of employment a police officer?

It will not stop you from getting hired, in TN they had state troopers that had felony convictions working.

But it will stop you from getting onto some departments, and make it harder into others.

So you may end up in a smaller dept working at lower pay than someone without any record at all.

The college degree with help, 4 years in the military would really help also.

Also where you live makes a difference also. For example here in GA, you can pay your own way though the police academy and almost everyone who graduates are offiered a job in some dept.

But the trick is to be in good physcial condition, and apply at several places each day.