The City of Lawrence is offering a $1,500 sign-on bonus for police officers who speak fluent Spanish, the Lawrence Police Department announced Monday.

The city is seeking to fill open police officer positions and is especially encouraging Spanish-speakers to apply, offering a $750 bonus upon hire and a $750 bonus upon successful completion of training.

The LPD has previously cited a lack of Spanish-speaking officers and the language barrier between Spanish-speaking witnesses and English-speaking investigators as a contributing factor to the pace of the still-unsolved Nov. 9 homicide of Mexican immigrant Justina Altamirano Mosso.

LPD spokesman Sgt. Trent McKinley said the decision to hire more Spanish-speaking officers is due to a growing Spanish-speaking population in Lawrence.

“Over the past decade, we have seen an increase in the number of community members who solely speak Spanish,” McKinley said. “Our ability to effectively communicate with that population is important to our organization.

People who do not speak Spanish are also encouraged to apply to become an LPD officer. Starting salaries for LPD officers are $20.76 per hour, and benefits include nine holidays, 12 vacation days and three personal leave days per year.

Applicants, who must be at least 21 years old, cannot have been convicted of a felony in the past 10 years, convicted of or received a diversion for a misdemeanor with a possible jail sentence of six month within the past five years or have ever been convicted of any misdemeanor domestic violence offenses. College degrees are preferred but not required.

For a full list of requirement and disqualifications or to apply, visit www.lawrenceks.org/jobs.