From a press release today, 23 city police officers were promoted, effective December 21st of last year.
Among the officers promoted was Officer Dave Stokes, who was injured when the target of a drug raid returned fire. He was promoted to Officer First Class.
It was unclear from the press release whether these 23 promotions were making way for 23 new officers.
Showing posts with label police. Show all posts
Showing posts with label police. Show all posts
Friday, January 4, 2008
Friday, September 28, 2007
Chief Johnson Continues Emphasis On Community Partnerships
Speaking at a meeting of the Eastport Civic Association, Police Chief Johnson had this to say:
We don't have enough eyes and ears to make you safe.
While this makes a prima facie case to hire more officers, the actual meaning of this quote is certainly more pragmatic. The chief elaborates:
I learned early on, we (police) couldn't make a community safe by ourself (sic) . You will never hear me say no to a community group.
Make no mistake--short of a martial law, there will never be enough police to catch every crime. Communities, and individual families, are invaluable in crime prevention. My problem has been the tendency of the administration to place the entire burden on communities. I have been to city council meetings where several residents testified to crimes happening, and the mayor's response was 'form a neighborhood watch'. So long as there is indeed a partnership, the chief is absolutely correct.
We also learn in this article that 8 new officers were hired from an applicant pool of 95 that passed the entrance exam. I suppose that I should be happy that this information is known, but truth be told, I kind of annoyed that this answer could not be provided by the Public Information Officer or the Police Department Spokesman, both of whom I emailed.
I was not a math major, but let's give it a try:
22 vacancies in the department
+3 officers called to military service
+4 officers on maternity leave
-8 new officers that were hired
=
a staffing problem only equalled by my company.
This doesn't even take into account how many officers will be retiring, or the ratio of non-patrolling supervisors to patrol officers.
I can't help but ask, if 95 people passed the test, and there are at least 22 spots to fill, why did we only hire 8?
We don't have enough eyes and ears to make you safe.
While this makes a prima facie case to hire more officers, the actual meaning of this quote is certainly more pragmatic. The chief elaborates:
I learned early on, we (police) couldn't make a community safe by ourself (sic) . You will never hear me say no to a community group.
Make no mistake--short of a martial law, there will never be enough police to catch every crime. Communities, and individual families, are invaluable in crime prevention. My problem has been the tendency of the administration to place the entire burden on communities. I have been to city council meetings where several residents testified to crimes happening, and the mayor's response was 'form a neighborhood watch'. So long as there is indeed a partnership, the chief is absolutely correct.
We also learn in this article that 8 new officers were hired from an applicant pool of 95 that passed the entrance exam. I suppose that I should be happy that this information is known, but truth be told, I kind of annoyed that this answer could not be provided by the Public Information Officer or the Police Department Spokesman, both of whom I emailed.
I was not a math major, but let's give it a try:
22 vacancies in the department
+3 officers called to military service
+4 officers on maternity leave
-8 new officers that were hired
=
a staffing problem only equalled by my company.
This doesn't even take into account how many officers will be retiring, or the ratio of non-patrolling supervisors to patrol officers.
I can't help but ask, if 95 people passed the test, and there are at least 22 spots to fill, why did we only hire 8?
Saturday, September 22, 2007
No News On Police Officer Hiring
Pervading through all the discussions of crime in the recent months has been one particular theme: hire more police officers. Specifically, hire 23 more officers to fill the vacancies in the police department that are already funded.
The mayor's response to this cry has been mixed, at best.
Her original position was that we did not have a crime problem--that violent crime has been decreasing. But the actual crime data made this position an inconvenient one to defend.
The next incarnation of her policy statement assured us that Annapolis offered competitive salary and benefits; therefore, we are doing everything we can and we just have to live with the shortage. The war in Iraq had caused a nationwide shortage in officers, she said. But then we learned that the salary figures she used were not accurate, and in fact that the city had not offered an entrance exam in more than a year, so no new officers could be hired regardless of salary offered.
The city finally administered the entrance exam, and AP asks, where are we now? Have we hired any new officers? Are we planning to?
An email to Public Information Officer Ray Weaver, asking him the above questions, is un-returned as of this writing. I just sent the same email to Hal Dalton, the police department spokesman.
Many times in politics, a certain cause gains steam, chugs along for a while, then putters out. I shall strive to ensure that this issue does not share a similar fate. Just because we don't hear about a problem doesn't mean that it's solved, and we should demand answers.
The mayor's response to this cry has been mixed, at best.
Her original position was that we did not have a crime problem--that violent crime has been decreasing. But the actual crime data made this position an inconvenient one to defend.
The next incarnation of her policy statement assured us that Annapolis offered competitive salary and benefits; therefore, we are doing everything we can and we just have to live with the shortage. The war in Iraq had caused a nationwide shortage in officers, she said. But then we learned that the salary figures she used were not accurate, and in fact that the city had not offered an entrance exam in more than a year, so no new officers could be hired regardless of salary offered.
The city finally administered the entrance exam, and AP asks, where are we now? Have we hired any new officers? Are we planning to?
An email to Public Information Officer Ray Weaver, asking him the above questions, is un-returned as of this writing. I just sent the same email to Hal Dalton, the police department spokesman.
Many times in politics, a certain cause gains steam, chugs along for a while, then putters out. I shall strive to ensure that this issue does not share a similar fate. Just because we don't hear about a problem doesn't mean that it's solved, and we should demand answers.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Rumors About Problems With Police, or Police Impersonators
This is by far the most hearsay-based post that I have ever made, but the implications are grave so I will oblige.
I have been reliably informed that persons flashing badges have been stirring up trouble at some of the local bars on more than one occasion in the recent weeks, including getting really drunk and trying to start fights. A friend of mine was forced to leave out the back door of a bar to avoid some people trying to start an altercation with him.
We would all like to believe that these people are not sworn officers, and right now there is no evidence that any officers were involved.
I think this is a good opportunity to point out the importance of our police officers. We hold them at a higher standard than we hold ourselves. We allow them to restrict our liberties if given probable cause, we rely on them for our safety, and if there is an emergency situation, we send them in to possibly die so that we can live. I for one appreciate the job they do.
I don't know if there are officers doing this, but if they are, I hope they are stopped (especially if they are drinking while they have their guns, which is not allowed). Conversely, impersonating an officer is a very serious crime, and if people are doing that, I hope they are caught, thrown in jail, and made to face a dangerous situation like a real officer.
I have been reliably informed that persons flashing badges have been stirring up trouble at some of the local bars on more than one occasion in the recent weeks, including getting really drunk and trying to start fights. A friend of mine was forced to leave out the back door of a bar to avoid some people trying to start an altercation with him.
We would all like to believe that these people are not sworn officers, and right now there is no evidence that any officers were involved.
I think this is a good opportunity to point out the importance of our police officers. We hold them at a higher standard than we hold ourselves. We allow them to restrict our liberties if given probable cause, we rely on them for our safety, and if there is an emergency situation, we send them in to possibly die so that we can live. I for one appreciate the job they do.
I don't know if there are officers doing this, but if they are, I hope they are stopped (especially if they are drinking while they have their guns, which is not allowed). Conversely, impersonating an officer is a very serious crime, and if people are doing that, I hope they are caught, thrown in jail, and made to face a dangerous situation like a real officer.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Police Questions Answered
This fella wrote to The Capital with a lot of questions, and I'm fixin' to give some answers.
There has been much to say about the county police taking second jobs in bars to supplement their income. At the same time, 22 openings for Annapolis police officers have been left unfilled.
This blog's official number of unfilled positions is 23, but your number is within the margin of error. (+ or - 5%, for those of you scoring at home.) Please continue.
Perhaps this is too simplistic....
probably not: most of politics is unnecessarily complicated.
....but why not offer overtime to the (county) officers?
Because the mayor does not cooperate with the county executive.
At least they'd be working in the area most congruent with their skills, would help reduce the lack of police presence in Eastport, and would earn evidently much-needed additional income.
Brilliant. This is an absolutely magical suggestion. Bonus points for using the mathematical term 'congruent' and the rarely used contraction 'they'd' in the same sentence. Bonus points for me for using the word 'contraction'.
While we're at it, how about reducing or eliminating property taxes for police officers who move into high-crime areas?
This also sounds divine.
What happened to the oft-rumored police station in Eastport?
Don't worry my friend...this is in next year's budget: $3,600,000.
Reducing response time couldn't hurt crime statistics.
BRAD BIEBERICH, Annapolis
Well, response time is its own statistic, but we'll ignore your mistake because the rest of your letter was so excellent.
Brad, good work....I won't try to pronounce your last name, but if I see you at a bar, I will buy you a drink.
There has been much to say about the county police taking second jobs in bars to supplement their income. At the same time, 22 openings for Annapolis police officers have been left unfilled.
This blog's official number of unfilled positions is 23, but your number is within the margin of error. (+ or - 5%, for those of you scoring at home.) Please continue.
Perhaps this is too simplistic....
probably not: most of politics is unnecessarily complicated.
....but why not offer overtime to the (county) officers?
Because the mayor does not cooperate with the county executive.
At least they'd be working in the area most congruent with their skills, would help reduce the lack of police presence in Eastport, and would earn evidently much-needed additional income.
Brilliant. This is an absolutely magical suggestion. Bonus points for using the mathematical term 'congruent' and the rarely used contraction 'they'd' in the same sentence. Bonus points for me for using the word 'contraction'.
While we're at it, how about reducing or eliminating property taxes for police officers who move into high-crime areas?
This also sounds divine.
What happened to the oft-rumored police station in Eastport?
Don't worry my friend...this is in next year's budget: $3,600,000.
Reducing response time couldn't hurt crime statistics.
BRAD BIEBERICH, Annapolis
Well, response time is its own statistic, but we'll ignore your mistake because the rest of your letter was so excellent.
Brad, good work....I won't try to pronounce your last name, but if I see you at a bar, I will buy you a drink.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Email: Police Force
This was actually a comment on my most recent post, but I decided to put it up as its own post because the information is worth sharing. To the author: thank you for your service and for this comment!
I have been reading your blog with interest. I read often and never feel the need to comment. Today you have some misinformation that needs to be corrected. I am a 15 year veteran of the Annapolis Police Department. There are no such orders to remain reactive in our patrols. Annapolis Police embrace community policing and do our best to interact with citizens. You like stats so here is one for you to think about. Our patrol division consists of 63 officers. About 10 of them are supervisors. 53 officers answer all the calls for service in the city!!!!. Well we had about 45,000 calls for service last year. Not much time for proactive policing huh? A good place to start is to fill the 23 vacancies.
It's becoming very hard to defend the position that we do not need to fill the vacancies, as the mayor seems to be doing.
I soon hope to have the data on service calls (not just arrests, as the data detailed in the previous post was), so we can continue the analysis.
I am very happy that citizens, and the police in general, are concerned about this situation.
I have been reading your blog with interest. I read often and never feel the need to comment. Today you have some misinformation that needs to be corrected. I am a 15 year veteran of the Annapolis Police Department. There are no such orders to remain reactive in our patrols. Annapolis Police embrace community policing and do our best to interact with citizens. You like stats so here is one for you to think about. Our patrol division consists of 63 officers. About 10 of them are supervisors. 53 officers answer all the calls for service in the city!!!!. Well we had about 45,000 calls for service last year. Not much time for proactive policing huh? A good place to start is to fill the 23 vacancies.
It's becoming very hard to defend the position that we do not need to fill the vacancies, as the mayor seems to be doing.
I soon hope to have the data on service calls (not just arrests, as the data detailed in the previous post was), so we can continue the analysis.
I am very happy that citizens, and the police in general, are concerned about this situation.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Aldermen Finally Recieve Crime Memo
Now that violent crimes are starting to make their way into the rich, white neighborhoods, city officials appear to be serious about addressing the problem.
Following assaults and robberies in Eastport and downtown, many alderman have publicized their belief that the vacant positions on the police department need to be filled, a fact that is obvious to most of us and disputed by the mayor and the police chief. Some of what they have been saying:
There are stepped-up efforts in downtown and Eastport, but I'm still convinced we need more police officers on the street per shift. We really need to fill out the ranks of the police. DAVE CORDLE, WARD 5
I'm very convinced we need to fill all the vacant positions in the city cops. We need to give them a little more power in recruiting and get affordable housing for police. SAM SHROPSHIRE, WARD 7
She (Classie Hoyle, Ward 7) also wants to focus attention on enforcing the laws against dark-tinted windows on vehicles. "I think that adds to criminal activity within these cars", she said.
Some other quotes were attributed to Alderwoman Hoyle, but I got a kick out of that one.
It's a matter of getting it out in front of people so the bad guys know Annapolis is paying attention and there is a higher likelihood of being caught than in the past. ROSS ARNETT, WARD 8
It's sad that it has taken this long to act! Violent crimes happen every day--I have the police reports to prove it. Why has it taken this long to fill the police vacancies? Because now the crimes are happening in the tourist areas and not just the housing projects?
The city is offering the entrance exam for new officers for the first time in a year. That's a start. Couple that with the authority to proactively prevent crime, and you've got yourself a safer city.
Following assaults and robberies in Eastport and downtown, many alderman have publicized their belief that the vacant positions on the police department need to be filled, a fact that is obvious to most of us and disputed by the mayor and the police chief. Some of what they have been saying:
There are stepped-up efforts in downtown and Eastport, but I'm still convinced we need more police officers on the street per shift. We really need to fill out the ranks of the police. DAVE CORDLE, WARD 5
I'm very convinced we need to fill all the vacant positions in the city cops. We need to give them a little more power in recruiting and get affordable housing for police. SAM SHROPSHIRE, WARD 7
She (Classie Hoyle, Ward 7) also wants to focus attention on enforcing the laws against dark-tinted windows on vehicles. "I think that adds to criminal activity within these cars", she said.
Some other quotes were attributed to Alderwoman Hoyle, but I got a kick out of that one.
It's a matter of getting it out in front of people so the bad guys know Annapolis is paying attention and there is a higher likelihood of being caught than in the past. ROSS ARNETT, WARD 8
It's sad that it has taken this long to act! Violent crimes happen every day--I have the police reports to prove it. Why has it taken this long to fill the police vacancies? Because now the crimes are happening in the tourist areas and not just the housing projects?
The city is offering the entrance exam for new officers for the first time in a year. That's a start. Couple that with the authority to proactively prevent crime, and you've got yourself a safer city.
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