Ah the good ole car situation raises it head. Do you really think this is the first time we've had vehicle problems? There are many reasons for the so called shortage and a lot of it has absolutely nothing to do with Chief Bolton although he definitely hasn't helped the situation.
The real problem started back when Chief Moody instituted the 4/3 and the team concept. Having 2 watches on the road without increasing your fleet was a problem. So 4-6 years later we are still having the same problem. The departments only get a certain amount of vehicles per year. Chiefs have requested more but there are always budget concerns. No one ever wants to pay for equipment. In Chief Bolton's first budget he requested numerous items that almost all officers supported. NOT ONE significant item was approved by the BOC. One of those items was requesting funds for the take home car program. You could look at the ICP cars as a jump start to that program. Or you can come on an anonymous blog and whine about a program you probably didn't put in for because it would have disrupted your life. Another idea would be maybe some of our officers could drive with a little more regard for their safety and quit wrecking due to cranial-rectal inversion. You'd be amazed at the amount of money spent on vehicle repairs. I am not a Bolton supporter, far from it, but we need to keep staying with the facts or this just becomes a b*itch page that makes us all look stupid.
Are we really so jealous of ICP officers and their cars that they have become a major issue? I am a dedicated and hard working member of this once proud police department. I'm not in it for the free food, free apartment, part-time job money, or any other side thing it seems so many officers concentrate on. I only ask for the support and leadership we so justly deserve. Lets fight our public battle on that front and maybe, just maybe we'll get the help we need. The good Lord knows we need it.
Friday, August 29, 2008
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6 comments:
Then give your car back!
Wow neckbone I think you made the poster's point.
Yes, I didn't put in for the program. The perk was nice but my schedule doesn't lend itself to ICP's requirements.
I also didn't and still don't believe in the program. It's a great program for reaching out to the community, but it is a luxury program. A program that is more appropriate for a time when we have a surplus of officers and cars.
We're not in a position that gives us the luxury of dedicating much needed resources and officers to an elaborate public relations effort.
More power to the officers with take home cars. Right now is just not the right time.
"Let Them Eat Cake!"
The problem with the current "take home" car policy is that it is being used for "a perk" for Bolton's insiders.
I.C.P. gets singled out because they are the most visible. They are rewarded with a take home car because their hours are shifted randomly, thus a perk. They are not on call and no not respond to emergencies after hours such as C.I.D.
Behind the scenes you have untold amounts of cars being passed out as perks. Bolton's office alone has at least 12 cars assigned to it, including a Range Rover, which no one has scene in a while, and he just got a confiscated Mercedes Benz. Does he really need such lavish vehicles?
Do aides, crime analysis, and civilian employees need take home cars? Why would the person in charge of the department cell phone program need a take home car that was seized by Narcotics? Is this not illegal?
The root of the problem is Bolton and his commands staff's "let them eat cake" attitude.
When an officer simply wants to go to work at the beginning of his shift, but has to wait up to 2 hours before hand, and while waiting, sees all these non-critical people driving take home cars, it becomes very frustrating.
The uniform patrolman is the backbone of the department, yet they are treated as the plague. They literally die in the streets for the protection of our citizens and each other only to be spat upon by the likes of Bolton and his command staff along with people with the attitude like the anonymous poster.
There are some in Bolton's command staff that have sold their soul to the devil and it is sickening. Must they be called out? There are people in key positions that can make a change in this department, yet cower and shiver in the corner at the presence of Bolton's shadow.
To answer one of the questions, no it's not illegal.
To go back to the original comment, even if Moody wouldn't have started the 4/3 and we were still on a 5/2 we would still have a car problem. Reason being we would have a few more officers on the road and still be waiting on cars. Additionally the original 4/3 schedule worked on a 8 team basis in which there were about 10 officers per team with short gap in between shifts which allowed for one team to come in before the other team even came on duty. Thus with the exception of Wednesdays there wasn't such a wait time on cars. And even with Wednesdays it was ususally pre planned, at least at one precinct, that one of the teams were on special and doubled up. This usually helped a little with the car situation. But now, we are so Stat Happy, that they want as many cars on the road to write the most tickets. Also if you check the crime stats from when we were on the 8 teams to the 6 to back to the standard 3 shifts you will notice a huge increase in crimes which includes a dramatic increase in robberies. I believe that this occured because on the 8 teams we had almost 20 cars on the road every day and not just on Wednesdays. Now granted this could not be accomplished with the way we are currently set up because we have too many Lt's and Sgt's in positions that they do not need to be in. As someone said in one of the previous post's, everything falls back on the uniform officer. More uniform officers on the road leads to less crime in the streets which leads to less detective needed because there are less crimes that need to be investigated. It all starts on the road!
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