vehicle fleet and stats

Members of TPD Command staff were apparently visiting the District roll calls informing patrol officers that not all of the 1999 fleet would ot be replaced because too many officers were wrecking cars. The intonation was that it was the fault of the troops and that the scheduled vehicle fleet replacement times may be extended for a year - even resulting in eight year cycles.
Does anyone know if there are any facts to support this plea made to the troops? Are all the crashes the fault of the troops? Does management think that by defering purchase costs for one year for a portion of the fleet that there wont be severely offset liability & costs by more vehicle repairs, more downtime, poor morale and less productivity?

Also, apparently, the warrant "freebies" doled out to officers at booking has gotten out of hand. Recently, certain officers assigned to "115" (Transport Wagon) have been putting themselves T-06 at HCSO booking to load up on all the incomplete open warrants. Instead of filling them out on the street, 115 was busy at booking on Orient Rd. for a large period of time. This defeated the entire purpose of having 115 availble for transport on the street. Units had to S-56 the prisoners to booking while the 115 operator racked up stats to look good for the month. Also, certain sergeants and officers are apparently writing their names at the bottom of the CRA's to get credit for half of the arrests in the stat game when they were never near the defendant, much less HCSO booking itself.
Another example of the stat game gone wild. TPD could create its own gameshow for the stat game. Ask me, its not a game -it is criminal.

Just remember - Statistics are like a Signal 36 - put them on a sheet and they will lie and tell you anything you want.

The cars get wrecked. Some our T83, some not, its part of the business. There are 110 new cars sitting at central (CV). There are very few 1998 cars in service, maybe less than 10 departments wide. So what does that leave 1999 and newer models to be replaced. The bottom line is this, 110 people or 11% of the department is getting a new car next month. No matter what spin they put on it, the oldest cars will be replaced first, which is mostly 1999 models. 110 cars have to be distributed. So I would not worry about it.

On another note just be glad you have a 1999, because if you have not experienced checking out a fleet car everyday that ran 24 hours a day, 7-days a week, by multiple officers who ran it into the ground, then you just don't know how good having your own 1999 right now is.

Maybe the problem with the fleet is like everything else around here, they take a clerk from one department and put her in charge of a multi million-dollar fleet program, thus she has never had any background in fleet management. Then to top off her duties she gets put in charge of a multi million-dollar off duty office. I don’t blame her, go for the money and the promotion, but you would think the department would hire someone with a background in the field, especially if they are going to be a manager. It’s almost as good as the record’s clerk who became the technology manger and some other record clerks became the computer administrators and repairers. Management waste so much money because they are so far gone from the trenches, it’s not any funny. But it’s always the officer’s at the bottom whom are wasteful. Go figure.

[quote]No matter what spin they put on it, the oldest cars will be replaced first, which is mostly 1999 models. 110 cars have to be distributed. So I would not worry about it.

/quote]

Yeah, but how people driving 99's will get a 2003 hand me down so that somebodys goldenboy who already has a newer car can get a brand new car. Thats real good for morale.[

You know what............ I am damn happy I have a car. When I got hired. We didn't have take home cars. We had to drive to the 1710 and get whatever piece of crap was handed to us. It was always dirty and out of gas (much less never parked in the spot the tag said).

I was DAMN happy to get my take home car. I dont care if it is a 1996.

If you *****ing you must be a rookie. I can understand you getting an old car. But guess what, how would you like to have no car at all and have to drive you own car back and forth on your dime? Then get a dirty piece of crap to driver EVERY FREEKING DAY jerk!

So why dont you quit you crying about the simple things. If you have a 1999 clean it up, take it to central or where ever and make the fix the problems. It that damn simple.

I am so sick of you rookies crying about things like this. How dare you! Be damn glad you ahve this job much less a take home car and fleet gas card you jerk off!

hold on there. You can't blame folks for gettin pissed if the golden boy gets the new car, that's been happenin since we had take home chariots in my rookie days. New cars have always been important to the troops and we've always *****ed about them, thru the good times and the bad. I agree we should all be thankful for the take home car program, but it should be administered fairly. And as far as that new clerk, she knows more about doing what she doing, then I did about police work when I started here, and they gave me a gun, they only gave her a new office. Relax, she'll do fine.

I used to love putting mace in the AC vents, ahh the good old days. How about a little black powder on the steering wheel then wipe the sweat off your face...1710 was a fun place to work. d1 and d2 were always in competition with each other.

I agree the most frustrating thing was the tag not marked properly. Sometimes it would take 20 to find your car behind Sub 4. AND IT WAS DEADLINED!!!

I agree thank god and everybody else for a take home car. I'd drive a diplomat if it was still in service, over my pov!. I too remember the days of old, with hundreds of roaches pouring out of the vents, the flat tires, the carved up steering wheels and the messages left in white out all over the dash. Hide and seek on an august day was always a fun time. Grow up and drive your 1999 and be damn thankful you have it.
As far as the veh. co-ordinator give her a freaking chance, she inherited a disaster with that program, it would take anyone awhile to sort that out. Quit complaining cause you didn't get to take a butt load of classes instead of working the street., its sounds like you have a personal agenda.

Whiners are the downfall of good agencies. Just remember guys and gals......these same folks that are always on here whining and crying are your backup.......if they whine here they will be just the same on the skreet....

What happened to the good old days and the real cops?

The ones that joked with each other, and nobody got offended. The days when you called for a back up, and the whole department would show up. The officers that were not afraid to do real police work and went hands on with the bad guy.

Those days are gone, and the officers have been replaced with a bunch of crybabies.

If you hurt my feelings, I'm going to the P.B.A. or I am going to sue you. Where is my new car, where is my new computer, I didn't eat. I am mad because, I have been here for three years, and I am not a captain yet!

Being on the phone, taking care of personal business, etc, is more important than backing up a fellow officer.

I don't want to rip my uniform or break a nail, 10-15 TASER!

Grow a set of balls, and stop your whining!

AMEN MY BROTHER! You young guys need to earn your place at TPD. When I came on I was the last to go T10, was given a diplomat every night and was given every 22,38, S3 or 2 week S7 because the Sergeant would respect his veteran officers. Today's young officers have it way too good. We remember where we came from kids.

You are not a rookie if...

10. You still say you are taking your car to sub 4.

9. Your closet still has a faded, stained, light blue shirt hanging in it. (rookies ask a veteran, we haven't always had these uniforms.)

8. You had to burn your own gas to drive to work.

7. You had to bang the roof of a diplomat when the rotating light on the light bar got stuck in one position.

6. You refer to when Bennie Holder was here as "the good old days."

5. You remember when we had less forms than we do now in a "paperless agency."

4. You had a Capt. and a Lt., and had no idea who they were, because you never saw them (the good ole days.)

3. You have more time on the street than your Sgt, Lt, and Capt (combined)

2. You actually have attended a squad party.

1. You never had to ASK for a backup.

You forgot one....

pumping propane with a rubber glove!

Maybe we should give the rookies new marked Taurus'.. Those were nice!!!!

Taurus, are you nuts! Those 1990's Chevy Manatees we awsome. With a little luck you might just see through the screen out the back window.

you are right!! The dashboard was the best. No need for a computer or files because all the paperwork you needed for the week could be stored on that dash.

My first car was a St. Regis. They were so friggin big they had their own zip code! The hood had to be 20' long. The "new" cars that then came out was the "Aspen". You had to turn the A/C off when you needed to get on it because it sucked up all the power! Ahhhhhh, the "good ol' days"

You might be a rookie if:

You have no idea who "queenie is"! Gone but never forgotten!

ruff ruff

You might be a rookie if :

You don't what an AR card was (com tech wrote the call on an index card and put it on a conveyor belt to the dispatcher)

You don't know what sending a "bird" meant from records to district one and two, at 1710

You don't know what 1710 is.

You didn't know the jail was at 1710.

You had to turn in a radio card to check in and out a radio every shift

You don't know what a weapons card was

You won't know where to go if someone told you we were going to the "pot" after work

Youv'e never had a TPD drivers license

You don't know what the rotary files in records were.

You didn't know we had color coded reports for different offenses.

Your FTO actually had more time on than you

Misdemeanor affidavits were in a ticket book.

There was no shift bid, you were on a squad until???????

There were only 2 freqs district one and two

You don't know what the "ramp" at booking was. (Hint not orient road)

You didn't know there was another jail.

You didn't know you had to get booking photo's "at booking"

You didn't know how the bullet hole got into the ceiling at district one in 1710

You didn't know we were allowed to smoke at roll call

You never sat at one long table at roll call

You never got a real hot sheet from radio (hot from the copier)

You never shot at a fleeing felon

You didn't know there was a time we had no sectors (patch really did mean the city of tampa)

When sub4 said they fixed your patrol car...

Good old 1710. I use to walk there everyday in the snow, barefoot.

You never had a call to the American Lounge.

You never met Gladys.

Well I do know that you are not a rookie if you attended the academy at 1710 :shock: ........and you know who "Charlie Brown" really was :shock: :shock: :shock:

- and the fact that there is NO organized crime in Hillsborough County!

- checking out a shotgun at the property room on a daily basis and putting it in the overhead rack only to have it fall on your head at a later point.

- walking a beat on Main Street WITHOUT a radio or a car.

- hoping that while you were walking said beat that the zone car would come by with a raincoat for you if it started pouring.

- no radio reception south of Gandy.

- the School Squad (no, not school resource, school squad that worked evenings and went to school during the day)

- Carmine's (nuff said)

- Traffic court at 1710

- Traffic court judges that had a higher BAC in court than the defendants.

- Traffic court judges that would levy a fine and then reach in their own pocket and pay it.

[Trash Man]

If I attended the Police Academy ("Recruit Course 1") at the pistol range on West Diana, does it make me a relic? Sure does!!!! Anyone know who the officer was that dropped their weapon in a stall in the men's room in the Detective Division at 1710, it discharged leaving a ricochet indentation on the metal wall?

It will please you to know that anyone assigned SOG knows that the radios (and computers) still don't work SOG in any reliable fashion. At least some things never change.

If I attended the Police Academy ("Recruit Course 1") at the pistol range on West Diana, does it make me a relic? Sure does!!!! Anyone know who the officer was that dropped their weapon in a stall in the men's room in the Detective Division at 1710, it discharged leaving a ricochet indentation on the metal wall?


As a HCSO deputy, I used to fire on that range. The rangemaster was Cliff Bedingfield; his son Norm was a deputy.
I seem to remember that they issued us deputies only thirty rounds per visit and we fired (one hand hold) on a bullseye target at 25 yards only.

We had a deputy in the 70's (later rose to Major) who used that "dropped the pistol in the men's room stall" story to "explain" shooting himself in the tush. Fact is, you can't discharge a Chief's Special (which he carried) by dropping it. He must have fumbled around and pulled the trigger. :P

WE didn't have an academy back in the 60's. We had some classes taught by visiting FBI agents (remember Johnny Magdalia?) who came in and covered various law enforcement subjects in the mornings (after I finished up Midnight to Eight shift) and after a few weeks of this I got a certificate from the Florida Sheriff's Bureau.

No organized crime in Hillsborough County? That was Malcolm Beard's line. Nobody believed it. (His Vice Major was the brother in law of a major OC figure in Orlando.)

What was so good about the "good old days?" Well, it really was a lot of fun. We had a lot more discretion about how we worked. Supervision was minimal. And, we were younger then.............................

:D

Ah, the old academy at 1710......Ron Slinker teaching defensive tactics in the old gym, twice a week for an hour...... John Brannigan doing his "I can hide 101 weapons on me that you'll never find" stand-up routine......and, the old annual Police Appreciation dinners where all our talented folks would get up and perform at the Egypt Temple building and then we'd dance out butts off. We did have FUN and comraderie in those days!

These are some of the best posts i've read on this board in ages, :D I remember marked parking spots, and never finding your car there,, put why is the bullet hole in wall in D1 ?

The roll call room at 1710 used to be the men's locker room and "someone" had a misfire while changing from uniform to civies.

I liked playing basketball at 1710 after our shift!

Loved the weight room upstairs in the old jail at 1710. Very few working lights, no air (except that nasty fan) and rusty equipment... just thinking back brings a tear to my eye! ;)

Anyone remember when they held traffic court at Curtis Hixon for a while. Judge Meenus? (spelling)