BATON ROUGE - The Baton Rouge Police Department is looking to boost their ranks by adding some experienced officers to the force.

Right now the department says it is about 50 officers short. By recruiting officers with experience, the department hopes that number will shrink a little bit faster.

BRPD told WBRZ that there are 14 officers with previous experience in the hiring pool. The officers are already POST certified, which means they won't need to complete the 22-week basic training academy. Instead, they can opt for a transitional academy or a shorter six to eight-week academy depending on experience.

Sergeant Rendy Richard with the recruiting department says the trend of lower numbers is an issue in departments across the nation. BRPD also says, that staying competitive with incentives for officers with prior experience is important, and the pay scale is dependent upon that experience before coming to Baton Rouge.