text: nassau/suffolk police policy? does anyone know if you can still become a police officer in the the suffolk or nassau police department even if you have tried cocaine once? generally there are more cop wannabes than there are positions. any use of illegal substances can be used as a reason to refusing to hire you, no matter how along ago it was.  having said this, some pot in high school is probably not going to be held against you, in that just about everyone tries the stuff.  you will likely be asked these questions while being polygraphed.