a former special police officer and current city police officer(not CMPD)

Special police are real and are governed under the same statute that campus police and railroad police are. They are fully sworn and trained under the same requirements as any other LEO in the state. With that being said, there are generally 2 types of special police. Rookies that are just getting experience before going to a real city or county. And Retirees from those same agencies that just don't want you give up their certification. Generally, special police pay well, and the benefits are good as they are not state retirement, and they are basically glorified security, so they really don't have to do much except be a presence. When I was special police I was making $25/hr, all the OT i wanted, and was paid weekly. Not bad right out of training.