Dekalb Police is in such a critical need for officers to work and help with answering calls, reducing crime, and working on investigation cases. The CEO and the BOC have approved any officer that will work overtime will be paid at a triple-overtime rate.
The county is willing to pay this astronomical amount of
money in overtime but will not fix the real problem which is better pay and
better benefits for its officers.
Chief Ramos meant to send Major Williams an email but instead, it went to Det Williams, and when she realized her mistake, she had Major Williams run to the Detective's work station. Major Williams then had the detective sign onto his computer and step away from his computer. Major Williams then opened the email and deleted it.
The email was asking Major Williams to send out Chief Ramos's
resume to some job openings that she wants to apply for. Chief Ramos wants out of Dekalb by October.
Chief Ramos hates being here because she has no control over her Department
without the BOC interfering with her decisions.
Chief Ramos was told she can not go to 12 hours shifts from the CEO, once again she tried to implement something without letting Decatur know what she was doing. so she got angry and is taking more time off and going out of town.
Dekalb will struggle to have an adequate amount of officers on the road to respond to all the calls and provide adequate coverage for the citizens of Dekalb.
this is dangerous for the public and the officers and this is why the crime rate is so high and the lack of traffic enforcement is nonexistent in Dekalb.
Dekalb Police is in CRISIS, due to the shortage of certified officers and the inability to keep good officers Chief Ramos is being forced to make drastic changes in the department.
An email was
sent out on 05-09-2022 to all the uniform division shifts asking them to vote
on changing to a 5/2 work schedule or a 12-hour work schedule. The Chief wants answers
by 1:00 pm on 05-10-2022.
This was
prompted by the lack of response to a shooting where multiple people were
injured and shot, Dekalb did not have enough officers working to handle the
situation properly. This will cause more officers to leave because none of them
want to change from what they currently work.
Instead of
fixing the real problem with the department, which is bad pay and bad benefits,
they choose to punish the officers they still have working for them.
You do not need a marketing firm to get good people just pay them better and offer them better benefits.
So Chief Ramos is meeting with precincts and the different divisions, she is asking what the concerns are and how can she help. It sounds great at first, but It’s basically a waste of time because every question or issue that is brought up she points the finger and blames the CEO, commissioners, and the Director of public safety. Even though she is the police chief she tells you everything is out of her control. So, after 2.5 years of being on the job, she can’t tell the citizens or the officers how she will fix the problems within the department or stop the crime rates from going higher.
So, the question must be asked, what exactly is she being paid to do. She has applied at 3 different agencies since she has been here and made public statements that she has done all she can do for Dekalb county.
Why
is Michael Thurmond keeping her around if she does not want to be here she
has told the citizens and the officers she can't do anything else for the
department.
Dekalb County Police have 410 sworn post-certified officers in the department +/- 10. This is a scary fact and a dangerous fact. It is dangerous for the citizens of Dekalb County and the officers of Dekalb Police. Just three years ago Dekalb Police had over 650 sworn officers in the department, so what has changed and what has happened to create this sudden loss of manpower, and how can this problem be solved.
As a citizen of Dekalb county I would be asking the CEO and
Commissioners what is going on and why do we not have adequate officers to help
with the rising crime in the county.
The Dekalb CEO and the commissioners passed what they are calling a 6% pay raise for first responders and a $3,000.00 retention bonus. They also are telling the public they want to offer a better retirement.
Here is the truth as to what they are doing, the 6% is not
an actual raise or pay increase it is the covid incentive pay they have been receiving
for the past two years that was given by the Federal Government, not Dekalb
county.
They have done nothing as for better retirements or better
benefits packages, Dekalb still pays more for its insurance than any other
agency in the state, and Dekalb county contributes less than any other County or
City in the State.
The $1,000.00 dollar bonus that Governor Kemp gave to all
first responders in the state of Georgia, still has not been given to the Dekalb
County first responders even though Dekalb received the funds months ago.
Dekalb is letting the money gain interest in an account for the benefits of the
commissioners and CEO.
With the county election just around the corner, what is the future of Dekalb County?
This is the opportunity to make your voices and votes count.
Dekalb county CEO and the commissioners have ruined this county in almost every
aspect.
Dekalb County has the highest crime rate and the highest attrition
rate for all employees but especially public safety employees. Our public
Safety Director has a job because he is the CEO college fraternity brother, and
no one knows why Chief Ramos is here. She has been trying to leave since the
day she was sworn in, yet we keep her here letting her kill morale and make the
bad decisions that she does on a daily basis.
It is time for a change
in Dekalb County lets start with all new people, everyone must go from the CEO and
his incompetent commissioners to the leaders of each department in the county. Let's make this election count for the citizens
and the employees of Dekalb.
Dekalb Sheriff's office has approved a 15% to 20% percent pay
raise in October. Sandy Springs has just approved a 20% pay increase for police
officers. Last year Atlanta police received a 30 % pay increase. What will
Dekalb county do to retain officers and to bring the pay and benefits for officers up to the same level as other Metro agencies?
Dekalb is the lowest-paid department with one of the worst
retirement options and the highest cost for health insurance in the metro area.
This statement was received by an anonymous email so I decided to post it.
The big question is what will happen with the Dekalb county police department now?
Chief Ramos is obviously not happy here and it seems very apparent
that the officers who work for her do not want her here and do not respect her.
After it was made public that Chief Ramos had applied for the chief of police
in Austin Texas, she had made the statement that she had done all she can do
for Dekalb county and she wanted to take on a new task in Texas.
After Chief Ramos did not make the final three in the Texas job,
she stated she has withdrawn her name from the position to make it appear it
was her decision.
Ramos does not want to be here in Dekalb county and is not
under any contract so why is the C.E.O. keeping her in place, the morale is the
worst it has been in 30 years and more officers are leaving than we are hiring.
Ramos is just one of many problems with the police department, but it would be
a good start and a good step in the right direction to show the officers you
want to do the right thing and get rid of someone who does not want to be here.
