Police staffing

Spare us any more agony...Call 1-800-HIRE-CHIEF.

Read the article Enough Police For City? on page 1B in Sunday's St Pete Times.

The article coulda been titled:
St Pete Police Chief A Statistics Genius
Worst Combatant Enemy of SPPD: Chief Harmon
When Comparing, Never Use Two Items, Chief Sez
St Pete Crime Rate Indicative Of A "Dynamic" Ci

This chief is incredible. Such wisdom! Chief Harmon says SPPD has enough police officers to properly patrol the city.

But consider these facts:
St Pete has more residents and fewer cops than 20 years ago
SPPD has more specialized units now than 2 decades ago
SPPD has more sworn members attached to specialized units
SPPD has a lower percentage of patrol ofcs than ever

Yet Chief Harmon is satisfied with the number of officers patroling the streets. Despite his pledge to both unions when taking the chief's job that he would lobby for more officers, he has done the oppositie. He has advocated to the City Council and Mayor and community groups and is quoted in today's newspaper claiming that there are enough police to handle the job.

Read the article yourself, but here are the highlights:

"All of our performance indicators are going in the right direction", Harmon said.

"I think we're providing a very good service," Harmon said.

Harmon said the department is "aggressively recruiting officers to get up to full staff."

Harmon said he doesn't like to compare St Petersburg with other cities. He said the city has grown...more dynamic during his tenure.

"Our best comparison is to ourselves", he said.

Maybe as much as we need more copys, we can do without a few already here. Can we help out by cutting the one at the top with the fat salary?

Lets ponder this:

When a police chief or head of any organization is asked if they need more people what is the response?

YES!! We could always use more people.

However, our revered leader says, Nah, we have plenty of people, almost too many.

Ok. I can not type any more as I am completely sick and tired of the same old stuff.

You guys complain day after day about staffing , the administration, and anything else...if you hate working there so much then leave like I did and go to another agency. I have made up my pay difference and never have to worry about whether a back up will be there for me. I was there 4 years when I left and I have been elsewhere for 3. If things are so bad then pack up and leave for another agency. good luck!!!!!! :lol:

For some of us, we cannot afford to leave right now because with 4, 5, or 6 years it is just enough that we are doing the TIME to become VESTED!

Mayor Baker should direct this moron to STFU. My gosh, everything he says shows his ignorance. The downtown area has increased its population as well as tax base, yet we DONT WANT TO GIVE THEM MORE OFFICERS??

Who hired this man?

[Picasso]

Someone else refused to open their eyes to what was going on around them... Nero for example...

"Those who fail to learn from history ~ are doomed to repeat it"

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f375/picassooo1/nero.jpg

Hail Chumley !!

Run, don't walk. Do not pass go. (Or is it Go, as in Goliath?)? Get out of an agency that does not care if you get hurt or humiliated by their sorry policies and procedures.

Get outta SPPD with your dignity. Get outta SPPD before someone really gets hurt. Work for an agency or company that actually CARES about doing what's right, you and your family. It will all fall into place.

When you're in the wrong place, nothing right happens.

[Lawman]

Those who have been around a while remember this quote:

"We have 90 officers working during evening shift."

D. Stephens

"You can't compare us to other cities, we have a different set of values here." http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g168/Dixie34/3ddf6fc9.jpg

Of course you cannot compare us to other agencies. NO one is as phuct up as we are. If we were a sompany in the business world, we would have been bankrupt and sued for millions years ago. FOr those of you who can.....get out! For those of you in the academy........Apply elsewhere

Did someone say VALUES? Yeah, that Baker boy is one mighty example of a Christian. He loves his police alright. Typical Baptist. (Love the cross in the photo, Picasso.)

Chief Harmon just follows in mighty ex-chief Davis' footsteps. He couldn't lead if he were at the head of the pack. He couldn't find a trailer park if he were a tornado.

No, we don't need more police. We need more Uhuru's serving on community groups. More city-sponsored parks named after Tyron.

[Fred]

Leave Horace out of this.

Baker good guy, just handed bad cards.

Harmon good guy, too. What he say? No, I no want to be cheef? He twy hard.

Fred NotWong

[Picasso]

I can't accept the credit.
"Baker Says" posted the Pic.
Not me....
I guess the art lessons ~ are starting to work....

SweetBay's church of "Perpetual Vegetation"
or is it "Our Lady of Meat" in the background....

KUDOS~!

[CHUCKY CHEEEZE]

I'm so damned suprised Hiz Honor isn't Scientologist!

[Gladiator]

In addition to his stupid comments about comparing ouselves to ourselves, The Chief also seems pretty content with our 497 or so officers. Almost makes it sound like that is the number of officers available when you call 911....WRONG!

There are 198 officers assigned to patrol as 911 responders. 198 before counting vacations, injuries, schools, etc. 198 to cover 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days of the year. 198 officers handling the calls for service for a city with over 250,000 people. That's unbelievable and the catalyst for disaster.

Oh wait just a minute...they just received three more resignations, one officer retirement and a major leaving next week (not that he's a loss). Four more from patrol....that ratio just keeps dropping. Maybe for the next arcticle you could just compare Districts and we would be equally staffed among ourselves.

WHO LEFT NOW, AND WHERE ARE THEY GOING SO i CAN APPLY THERE.

[CHUCKY CHEEEZE]

In addition to his stupid comments about comparing ouselves to ourselves, The Chief also seems pretty content with our 497 or so officers. Almost makes it sound like that is the number of officers available when you call 911....WRONG!

There are 198 officers assigned to patrol as 911 responders. 198 before counting vacations, injuries, schools, etc. 198 to cover 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days of the year. 198 officers handling the calls for service for a city with over 250,000 people. That's unbelievable and the catalyst for disaster.

Oh wait just a minute...they just received three more resignations, one officer retirement and a major leaving next week (not that he's a loss). Four more from patrol....that ratio just keeps dropping. Maybe for the next arcticle you could just compare Districts and we would be equally staffed among ourselves.


They could just take the three cops that are left, make them SRO's... then there will be a nice even nobody!

Dispatch could take the phones off the hook and say "fugggit".

piper and peyton

[CHUCKY CHEEEZE]

Is Peyton the one going to Manatee S.O.?

By my count, including retirements, we lost five sworn this week