Thursday, March 24, 2011

Say It Ain't So!

Assistant Chief Yarbrough has uniform division taking the lead working Glenwood Days. In years past, Special Operations worked the event, leaving uniform available to do their primary job, answering 911 calls. Because there will be such a demand on the line officers, Yarbrough has pushed down to the precinct commanders to deny leave time in April, just in time for your child's school spring break.

Now we learn "Freaknik" is trying to make a comeback during April.

The scant number of uniform officers will be no match for the thousands of drunken, drug induced youth that will being running rampant through DeKalb.

This is a formula for disaster. If Yarbrough doesn't change his mind, the combination of Glenwood Days and Freaknik will create a very dangerous work environment for us and will put the public in harms way.

44 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stretched thin is the expression that comes to mind....this is a crock and officer safety is being sacrificed.

Anonymous said...

Just a thought, not everyone in a leadership roll or position is a leader. Just a thought!

Anonymous said...

Ok, you lazy officers are just complaining , we are officers let's get this job done. Do you want some cheese with that whine.

Man up bloggers,you do more harm than help.

Anonymous said...

I guess they let you know that you are not one of them. They are not your friend, they run this place now.
I' m sure you are humbled now Tobie.

Anonymous said...

I would respond 3 or 4 deep to each potentially violent call. If that leaves 200 calls pending let the supervisors deal with it. Don't sacrifice your safety for poor management, EVER.

Buck Rogers said...

Hey Blog Master...I'm sure it's gonna be a hellfest out there when all 25 Freakniker's showup....this is such BS coming from this Blog...in the last 10 yrs there hasn't been enough people out there than on any other freakin weekend...stop complaing and trying to build something out of nothing...the last time we had a problem was well over 10yrs ago...it's all hype and I see that U...MR. BLOG MASTER are trying to divide the troops....and like always I'm sure you'll selectively edit my post...you've done it soooo many times....It's about time you're Pimped out

Anonymous said...

Buck Rogers - your no veteran from that post.

Anonymous said...

Buck Rogers,

Maybe you should consider editing your own post. I know it is only a blog but damn, what kind of writing style is that?

I agree with some of you who are saying that Freaknik hasn’t been much in 10 years. But if this is true and nothing is really going on in April then why is no one being allowed to take off?

Anonymous said...

Actually the duties are going to ICP, NET, and TRT, not patrolling Officers. These Units dont mind the task because its no surprise that every year during April this has come to be the norm. If you have been an Officer here for any amount of time you have already learned how to prepare your personal life around the April schedule. So you can handle the 911 calls and we will handle the Freeknic stuff.

Anonymous said...

Aside from all the trials and tribulations, there is a core group that likes what they do, and they strive to do a good job everyday.

You guys don't hear it enough, but thanks. Without you there would be chaos.

Anonymous said...

What DeKalb needs is a real 1990 style freaknik to shock the hell out of the citizens. When they can get home because the freaknickers have parked thier cars in the middle of I-20 so they can walk up the embankment and down Columbia Drive, things will change around here. When it gets so bad that the Police have to just shut down all the interstate ramps so NO NONE can exit, the taxpayers will be pissed and blame the commissioners and things will change.
Of course theyll be on Memorial Drive and "jumping the mediaaan" for fun too. Is there anybody else with DKPD that remembers all of that?

Anonymous said...

I don't know where the blogmaster gets his info, but this is certainly misleading if not just plain wrong.

The entire Special Ops division has changed their April Schedule to accommodate Glenwood Days and Freaknic. Every Special Ops officer normally has at least one day of the week off. In April, the officers will be working both days of the weekend. Just like last year, and the year before, and the year before.

What Special Ops has said is that the whole thing, including supervision, is not going to be dumped in their laps, and I think they are right. Uniform has always done some of the supervision and planning, and I'm not clear why the blogmaster thinks this year should be different.

There are many things in the world to blog about, and many positive events that can be highlighted. Every post does not have be an insulting, misleading whine-fest.

Anonymous said...

Why was a capt from east in Cobb county yesterday while on duty doing a personal chore?

Anonymous said...

Hey Buck Rogers......You need to learn how to spell and have a better understanding of the english language because you are destroying it terribly.

Furthermore, you should keep "your two cents" to yourself only because, if isn't worth saying, then YOU shouldn't say it. You sound like a first class moron.

Anonymous said...

The capt on east seen in Cobb ass should have gotten into a sig 41 with him as vehicle#1. Would have liked to hear his explanation for being in Cobb on duty.

Anonymous said...

On a more intelligent subject, whether or not the Freaknik becomes a reality, it will be just another demo of what comes down the pike. I know that sounds like a boring subject to some of you, but whatever Freaknik creates, is still part of your job.

As a taxpayer of this county, whether I like it or not, I am one of thousands who pay your salary and benefits. You are employed to "protect and serve". If you didn't want to do this, then why did become a cop in Dekalb?

Leave the Blogmaster out of this as he is not to blame.....You, the writer of comments are. So, get on with you life ( as small as it is) and work at it to improve what we all have to look forward to

Anonymous said...

Special Ops...Special Ops... don't forget, TRT is made up of uniform officers who are being taken off normal patrol. They will not be on their team's watch list...their off days have to be changed to accommodate their "special assignment".

Like the NET Team and ICP, I'm sure that TRT won't be answering dispatched calls on those days. Those left on the watch will be short handed.

Anonymous said...

Anon March 25, 2011 8:57 AM,

You realize that captains are straight salary-paid employees, right? And you realize that salary-paid employees are not eligible to paid overtime, right? So, what is left for lieutenants and above is accrued holiday, vacation, and comp. time. And, of course, captains and above have take-home cars. Pretty much, they can be on-duty at anytime of the day and are constantly in an on-call status.

I understand you might consider there might have been something wrong here. Perhaps there might have been. But will any of us ever know without a very close examination of all of this captain's time? More than likely no.

Think about it for a moment. You work in the private sector and have to go for a dental appointment. You decide there is no need to take the whole day off from work (or from school), you simply decide to use a couple of hours or whatever of your time to cover the personal matter. So long as you have the approval of your superior, then you are fine.

For me, without a lot more information, your question remains simply that. A question.

Just being fair,
An MPO

Anonymous said...

Cuz captains are special and can get away with it.

Anonymous said...

Ok, I hate to say this, but I have been listening to the whining for too long.
Listen folks, just because you are cop doesn't mean you are on the front lines in Afghanistan. Most of you face no danger bigger than a quarter pounder with cheese, and you make relatively large amounts of money. Where else can a high school grad make the kind of money and benefits afforded police and fire officers? Jeez.
Get a grip and just do your freaking job like the rest of America...

Anonymous said...

Thank you Anonymous 8:28am. Someone tell me who in regular uniform that is not on TRT Net team is being pulled to work Glenwood Days and your off days are being changed....That's what I thought. Oh, I forgot we have it made because we have a "take home" car. Until you ever go to CID-SOD or anyother special unit stop your damn crying. The door was open when you took this job and its still open. So shut up and hit the road.

stevie said...

i remember "directing traffic" on memorial drive when freaknik was real. dont miss it tho. u guys have fun, its your turn.

Anonymous said...

Censorship is rising

Anonymous said...

You all have this Freaknik thing all messed up.

First off, they are now calling it iFreaknik to distingusih promoters. Secondly, The people that host these parties at Obsessions, Primtime, Masion Elan, and the Atrium on weekly basis are the people hosting Freaknik.

Each week they have a new theme and name for the party. They just want to call all the parties that they normally throw on that weekend Freaknik as well. Nothing special.

The only difference is that instead of marketing to just Atlanta, they are marketing the iFreaknik dates all over the southeast. That includes a tv commercial buy(which i bought), going out of state handing out flyers and hitting college campuses.

The news keep saying something about a permit, but first off they don't need one b/c its not in the city of Atlanta. Secondly, the parties are in the club, and thirdly...as long as they aren't making a prfot, they can advertise a party and any park they so choose to w/o getting a permit. The problem is when everyone shows up starts fighting, dealing drugs, etc. The promoters aren't advertising that, just a cookout in the park.

And I think Glenwood Day is dead. They don't even know what damn they to have the thing and get on one accord with it. Relax guys. and gals.

Anonymous said...

I agree - Freaknik needs to come back like it was 12, 13 years ago. Remind these idiots why we didn't want it back to begin with. As a supervisor in Uniform my people will work our precinct, and the precinct calls. If they need help and we have it - great, if not, hey - we're short now. If calls go unanswered for hours then I guess we need more people. Bottom line - take care of ourselves first - worry about everything else as it comes.

Anonymous said...

Why you worried about what a Captain's doing? You think your little snitch-remark gonna change anything?

Anonymous said...

I could care less, let the idiots run free and wild. I dont live in Dekalb I'll just stand by and watch the hethans.
If I want off im gunna call in sick any damn way before they take it anyway.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said..." Actually the duties are going to ICP, NET, and TRT, not patrolling Officers."...

Where do you think the officers who make up TRT come from?

I don't know about your team, but the Lt. for my team had to rearrange our watch list for the month of April to fill the holes left by officers who will be with TRT instead of out on regular patrol.

That......on top of the manpower permanently assigned to ICP & NET. Uniform is cut again.

Anonymous said...

John Wayne once said.."what is courage?"...."Being scared to death to do the job...but still saddling up and moving foward!"

Anonymous said...

It ain't so.

Cow-Tippin Mafiosi said...

AHHH....I'm having flashbacks of Moreland Plaza

Biker said...

Well if you cant get it right I guess wrong is the next best thing. The Majors from Tucker and South decided they wanted it handled at the Unifrom level. But as you can see SOD was pulled into the plan (as we always are) I think they call it Team Work.

East MW said...

To Anon 857 I think the more important question would be what were you doing in Cobb County watching him/her?

Anonymous said...

The crying and complaining that goes on here is a disgrace. There is a nationwide economic crisis that has affected public safety EVERYWHERE. Several things need to be addressed. 1st to the genius who wrote "...because you are cop doesn't mean you are on the front lines in Afghanistan. Most of you face no danger bigger than a quarter pounder with cheese, and you make relatively large amounts of money." I would point you to the funeral today for SPO Christian of ACC PD and the total number of 50 LEO line of duty deaths this year in the U.S. How many people have died in your profession this year just by showing up to work? I invite you to either come get yourself some of the "relatively large amounts of money" all of us in public safety are making, or just politely say thank you and go on you way.

Now, onto the whiners INSIDE the dept. Glenwood Days /Freaknik has been here as long as most of us have, this isn't a surprise. I don't know why people are acting like it is something new. As far as A/C Yarbrough goes, I know for a fact the he never canceled a day of leave nor did he order anyone else to. In fact he said he did not want Glenwood Days / Freakneak to be an excuse to cancel or deny leave. So if your leave was canceled or denied, it was on a pct level. If you heard differently, maybe your chain of command felt it was easier to blame "the chief" than man up and stand behind their own decisions.
The ICP / NET units are not used to respond to calls. It is no loss if they are used for a special detail that doesn't involve writing BS tickets to make the majors look good at compstat.
Manpower for SOD is EXACTLY the same as it was last year for this detail. The only difference is the majors are actually being told to be responsible and take accountability for the precincts they "command" - A new idea, but one whose time has come.
That's right Yarbrough had the audacity to tell the precint brass he expected them to do their jobs -handle their precincts. SOD is still available to respond in a support role when and where they are needed. The are after all, a support division.
And seriously, other than answering calls what is uniform doing during April? With the exception of a few traffic geeks and a few motivated true believers in the job, most officers are using the "ticket slow down" as an excuse to do a little as possible.
I have been here for over 13 years. I have never seen or heard of a situation where an officer needed help and didn't get it regardless of call volume, calls pending or manpower. We have always taken care of each other. The more we whine, cry and talk about how dangerous our jobs are, while in the same breath say we refuse to do them because of our grievances, the more the public will begin to see us as drama queens. So, why don't we put on our big boy pants, stop poisoning the new officers with this malcontent attitude,go out and do the job we wanted,sought out, competed, and endured the academy for? Everyone in the county, if not the metro area knows about the pay issues, the insurance issues, the manpower issues, etc. Now let's show them we are a resource worth investing in and not a bunch of complainers that cannot be made happy.
Sincerely,
Still the real police

Anonymous said...

You know, I agreed with everything you said after I read the response you made to the poster who brought up the dangers of police work.
"I would point you to the funeral today for SPO Christian of ACC PD and the total number of 50 LEO line of duty deaths this year in the U.S. How many people have died in your profession this year just by showing up to work? I invite you to either come get yourself some of the "relatively large amounts of money" all of us in public safety are making, or just politely say thank you and go on you way."

I guess the funeral of the fallen officer was to illustrate that there are dangers that are intrinsic to police work? However; the blanket reference to the "50 officers killed in the line of duty this year" is misleading. Not ALL of the officers were killed by violence or gunfire. Some of the officers were killed in vehicular accidents, had heart attacks, died in aircraft accidents, or other "duty related incidents." I don't say this to lessen the importance of each one of these hard working, brave, individuals (god bless them all), but the question, "how many people in your profession have died just from showing up to work?" begs a response. I took a few moments to do a little research (VERY little research) and I learned the following: There are roughly 800,000 police officers nationally. Of the 800,000 officers, 50 were killed, 21 of them were from gunfire. The remaining 29 were as the result of assualts, health related problems, or some type of vehicular accident. If we catagorize them ALL as workplace violence deaths, it would equal only .0000625% of the 800,000 officers. If it were to double it would only equal .000125%. Again, I am in no way minimizing the tragic deaths of any of these officers, but posts such as the one written by "Anonymous" are misleading when you look at the big picture. Too many times the police (and yes, I am one of them) focus on how dangerous the job is and forget that realistically, it's not that bad. At least your trained for it. You want a couple of examples of dangerous, low paying jobs? How about a taxi driver? A convenience store clerk? A truck driver or pizza delivery guy. I guess the response to this would be that they "chose" that profession...well so did you...and I for that matter. To suggest that someone say, "thank you and go on their way" as though you're some kind of neglected, underpaid super-hero driven by the inherent desire to fight evil is arrogant. In looking at the cause of death for some of the officers who died this year I think the original poster has a point...maybe the quarter pounder with cheese IS the enemy. Food...albeit bad...for thought.

Anonymous said...

To "Still the real police"..... Really... I mean really... Get out from under Yarbs desk, wipe you mouth and get him his coffee..... You are not the real police.

Anonymous said...

So messed up. This job is VERY dangerous.

In iraq/afghanistan , many people count the deaths and injuries and never the close calls and potential of danger.

in law enforcement , the potential for danger is so great and is enough to pose a mental risk as well.

i've heard of officers simply croaking and dying after retirement/ moving on to other jobs - because they have expelled all the adrenaline their body can produce! their nerves are shot.

every call is potentially dangerous, and unlike in military warfare - you do not have the luxury of a dedicated killing mindset. You are dealing with dangerous civillians - not terrorists. and if you screw up - you can find yourself on trial for murder.

how many calls have you responded to, to: drunken violent people, people that can ambush you at any moment, a traffic stop that can end in a split second. If someone REALLY wants to kill you, they can. doesnt matter if your sitting in a coffee shop or your car.

The internet and research says that policing is not even one of the top 10 dangerous jobs.

to this i say BULL FRIKIN ISH!

I cant think of 10 more jobs more dangerous and with the potential to turn so deadly.

Anonymous said...

1. The "close calls" aren't counted as dangers? Wouldn't it possibly take a "close call" to be better trained for future incidents? I disagree, at least to some extent it would be considered as a danger.
2. ANY job poses a potential mental health risk you're not happy doing it.
3. I've heard of dentists dropping dead after retirement. Doesn't mean the job killed 'em.
4. EVERYONE deals with civilians, and the police SHOULDN'T have a killing mindset. Name one officer nationwide who has been indicted AND convicted of a JUSTIFIABLE shooting. If you "screw" up as a civilian, you will also likely find yourself on trial for murder. Where does it say ANYWHERE that the police are held to a different standard criminally than a civilian?
5. Agreed. If someone wants to kill you they can. This point is very well illustrated in DeKalb County anywhere between 80 and 100 times per year.
6. The "internet" doesn't say anything. STATISTICS do.
I don't think the point was that police work isn't dangerous, of course it is, but to infer that you should be "thanked" and then dismiss someone is, well, a little supercilious, wouldn't you say? I'm quite sure I could come up with 10 jobs that are equally as dangerous in one way or another (a lion tamer is armed with a whip, a stool, and very little sense. you HAVE to agree that can turn deadly pretty quickly), again, it's all how you look at it. I mean I've never ordered a quarter pounder with cheese and had the drive through person demand a "thank you" from me because they could've been robbed...

Anonymous said...

I think a quarter pounder with cheese "maker" might be a more dangerous job in this instance. How many fast food places in this county get 44ed a year? I am not sure, but I am sure the internet can tell us?
yours truly, one armed, eye patch wearing, ex lion tamer.....

Anonymous said...

Anon 2:50

What separates police from these other dangerous professions is a police officer may have to make the decision whether or not to take the life of another human being on a regular basis (shoot or dont shoot). This decision has to be made in a split second.

Also, those officers that died in car accidents, how many of them were driving to go help someone else who were in trouble? Check the internet and see how many other professions wear bullet proof vests to work? One more note; The next time a teenager gets his brains blown away, will you be so kind as to come help the medical examiner put the body inside a body bag, and then go with a detective to notify the teenager's mother of his untimely death!!

Anonymous said...

So you're saying that you have had to make a "split-second, shoot/don't shoot" decision on a REGULAR basis?? I would question that. Even in the event that you HAD to make the decision, have you not received training on doing that? I did. I can count on one hand the number of times I was put into that position in over 2 decades. I don't get it. It's not like you (or any of us) were sleeping peacefully in our beds and the Background/Recruiting Unit came to our houses; kicked the door in, and drafted you into the department. You and I COMPETED for a position with this department and were given the opportunity to work here. What other professions wear bullet proof vests??? How many times have you actually been SHOT in the vest? It's a piece of safety equipment! The same way high rise steel worker wears a harness and hopes he never needs it, you wear a vest, and I hope you never need it.
With regard to the whole "helping the ME put a teenager's body in a bag, been there, done that. Where, specifically is the danger in that (outside of the health risk if you were to do it without proper equipment...also provided to you BTW). How would you like to be a doctor who had to deliver a death message to the next of kin on a regular basis? If the argument is that it's SO stressful, shouldn't THEY be the ones Whining? I'd be willing to bet a paycheck that any one doctor has delivered equal to, or MORE death notifications than you or I put together in his career. You might say, "well that's part of his job!" Well it's part of yours too! Demanding to be "thanked" for doing a job you're PAID to do is appalling (sic?). Argue that your pay is being screwed with ALL day long, but do so for a VALID reason. Not by attempting to convince people that EVERY day you walk out of your door to fight crime and crush evil. In the FEW terrifying times it does happen...embrace it and dont try to leverage it...it's what you trained for and why you got into police work in the first place...

Anonymous said...

I agree with last post. It is not like we are being shot at in the Anbar province of Iraq and waiting for a Uh-60 medevac to come take our wounded out of harms way. Our job does parallel the military in structure and maybe even training, but that's it. I have done both for nearly two decades so I am not blowing smoke here. We all have had tough days on the job, but the difference is that we can leave work and go home, QT or a part time if we want.

Anonymous said...

With regard to checking the internet to see how many officers are killed responding to back-up other officers, I think the better choice would be to see what percentage of those officers were over-driving their capabilities or where excessive speed was a contributing factor in the crash, don't you? Are people expected to believe that the fact that an officer needs back-up was the root cause of the accident?? It's tragic, but true. Sure, there are some occassions where another driver causes the accident, but ALL of them? This kind of situation can happen to ANYONE...what's the point? If you're going to be honest, and I would assume you would be, how many times a week do you hear an officer's blood curdling scream for help come across the radio. I can assure you, I have the same radio channels you have (maybe more) and I haven't heard one in quite some time. Just another desperate reach to make the job look more dangerous than it is in reality. That kind of ego-centric self-importance doesn't endear you or I to anyone and you know it.

Anonymous said...

I'd like to know who will be promoted to replace Maj. Ford?...oh let me guess; of course it will be one of Yarbrough's boys, let's say "Capt Harris"....uuumm

And, how about making Asst Chief Lane or Asst Chief Gassner chief? At least they will be fair and show compassion.

OMG!!!!!what's next?

Like everyone else...Anonyhmous