Is it okay to have tattoos and be a cop/detective?

I asked a friend of mine that's with the state police here and his response was that it used to be if you had a tattoo that would be visible when in uniform you couldn't join. Now however so many people have them that they had to change the policy or they wouldn't have any new recruits. It might still depend on the size of the tattoo and the location. It's much easier if it's in a place not visible outside of a short sleeved shirt. Wearing long sleeves in the summer is not allowed here as they are reserved for the winter uniforms. The reason they originally banned tattoos was because mostly convicts and thugs had them so believe it or not they scared some people!