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  1. #11
    Junior Member LEO Affairs Rookie
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    Good Morale

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    The OCSO and numerous municipalities participated in Operation Overwatch a few months ago. This joint operation was extremely successful and all involved agencies worked together flawlessly arresting multiple suspects on drug, gun, and numerous other charges all over the county.

    The majority of local LEO's from the different agencies get along just fine, and often back each other on calls for service and traffic stops. They spend time with each other off duty, and several of our kids play together. While some of the leaders don't see eye-to-eye, it doesn't trickle down into the rank and file very much. While there will always be folks that just don't get along with others, they're the minority.

    As far as morale, I think it's better now than it has been in several years. Sure, you'll always have folks that like to complain and won't ever be happy no matter what's going on. It's impossible to please everyone, and the small majority of people that make the most noise are usually the ones with disciplinary issues, or slackers that fuss because their supervisors make them work. They're all responsible for their unhappiness, and it's those organizational terrorists that cause 95% of your morale issues.

    We certainly agree that Operation Overwatch, conducted in August of 2015, was an undeniable success. Any time law enforcement can work on a joint operation to arrest criminals is a success in my book, but we have to look at the true impact. Since one of the goals of law enforcement is to reduce crime on a sustained level. Short term operations, such as this one, have a positive impact on crime reduction, but according to the US Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Service, this reduction “tends to disappear (or decay) rather quickly, and occasionally even before the crackdown ends” (Scott, 2004). These types of operations cannot stand alone and expect to make a real impact on crime. The current administration is doing what they know how to do to control crime but it is failing. All we need to do is listen to Sheriff Ashley who stated, “Violent crime is up 111%.” to see that Okaloosa County is in desperate need of a new plan to address crime. The current administration has no plan beyond throwing buckets of money at the problem, I believe there will need to be budget monies appropriated with a sensible plan of use, which the citizens can understand. We need to begin changing how we police our community, the world has changed and we too must change with better cutting edge training and restructuring our organization to meet today and tomorrow's needs, The old line "That's how we always have done it" is so far out of touch it has begun to cost us lives; we must correct our course before we lose anymore.

    We also agree that “The majority of local LEO's from the different agencies get along just fine”. I may have been unclear in my previous post on this page titled “Interagency Cooperation” that stated, “Fortunately, for the line officers the difference in uniform color or badge shape means very little when it comes to in the field cooperation, as officers depend on each other for safety and backup.” Please understand that I am not slighting anyone, but I believe the relationships between County and City personnel can be far better, benefiting from an improved and solid relationship between the County and Municipal Administrations and I don't believe anyone is against that goal.

    Unfortunately, we finally come to an issue we do disagree on and that is agency morale. If your morale is good, I am happy for you, and hope you will stay with the agency, as officers with good morale create a better work product and far better service to the community. Unfortunately I believe you are out of touch with your subordinates or peers. I have worked for five different Sheriff’s, and I have seen high morale during my tenure. Please know that the morale issue is not just a campaign topic for me. I feel certain we know each other and if that is the case you certainly know that many of your co-workers continue to confide in me, I also assure you that the morale issues within the Sheriff's Office I speak of is far beyond the spouting of sub-par disgruntled employees. I have spoken to many fine deputies, who have related their dissatisfaction with the current relationship between the administration and the line employees. They have expressed their feelings, the most predominate of which is a sense of being disposable workers, instead of invested partners within the "corporate style" organization the sheriff has developed. I could provide more to my knowledge on this topic but I fear it would compromise the identity of current employees and that I will not allow to occur so this will have to suffice.

    Good morale results from:

    1. A command staff that is not isolated from its line officers and provides clear communication. The current administration has isolated itself from the line officers under the guise of "Chain of Command", as well as, building a "literal" wall in the Administrative Office that isolates Command from the very personnel who are critical to the mission. I have observed and subscribe to a far better way to conduct business and it involves a Sheriff who literally chases you down in the hall just to speak with you about how you are doing before you go out the door, or a Sheriff who is in the stack to make entry on a homicide suspect, when his help was required both of which occurred in Northwest Florida. For a Sheriff, the deputies are your most important asset because they represent you to the community. A Sheriff must take care of his or her deputies and this requires interaction and open communication, not walls.

    2. Allowing deputies to be entrusted with a task and not being micromanaged to complete it. I believe we have hired people to do a job and once they are trained we should entrust them to carry it out while providing whatever support they need. I will have supervisors who believe, “A leader is not an administrator who loves to run others, but someone who carries water for his people so that they can get on with their jobs.” Robert Townsend.

    3. Investing in personnel, not just as deputy’s but as people who have families and personal lives. We must train all officers, because it produces better quality work in the field and better results for the community we serve. By training I do not mean reading the same "power point presentation" every year and checking off a box. Training must be relevant, stimulating, and inspiring. We must also remember that deputies were fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, husbands, and/or wives before they came to the Sheriff’s Office and maintaining that part of your life is just as important. When you are at work I want you 100% dedicated to the job, but when you are off we need to be reminded that there is more to life than the job and taking care of yourself when you are off makes you even better when you are on.
    I truly do not believe you would disagree with any of my goals and even if there were not a morale issue, these goals could do nothing but improve morale further, they only require a leader with the character and integrity to integrate them into the organization. This issue goes well beyond politics and money it is essential for the professional survival and well-being of the agency. This is not a conflict between you and I, even without knowing who you are, if I assume you are a current member of the agency I feel certain you love where you work and I share that love for the OCSO. I have invested half of my 49 years to the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office and my wife has as well, I only want the best for the agency, our community, and those who visit this place we call "Home".

    I appreciate your participation and respect your thoughts,

    Brian Cokonougher

  2. #12
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    Military Service

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    I have heard of several Members whom also serve in the Reserve/Guard receiving negative feedback from supervision and administration for this kind of service due to time it takes away from work. What is your plan to support reservists ?
    The calling to serve in the armed forces, whether Active/Reserve/or Guard is just as important as the calling the serve as a law enforcement officer. My policy on this is quite simple. I respect and honor the men and women who have chosen to serve their nation. I will expect all leadership to do everything in their power to work with men and women who are reservists or guardsmen and there will never be disciplinary or punitive action taken against an individual because they serve. We all wear the uniform and we will respect those who answer the call.

  3. #13
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    Agency Buy In

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    Brian,

    It is no secret here at the Sheriff's Office morale is quite low and seems to be getting lower. My concern is two fold; for both the officers on the road and the community they serve. We seem to be running the department as a business rather than a law enforcement agency which obviously has an effect on the community. I have always prided myself in trying to maintain a postive attitude when dealing with the public, but we are finding it hard to do so these days. With this in mind, what are your beliefs on the improvement of morale, as it relates to both the deputy and community? I believe if morale could improve you would see better service to Okaloosa County citizens and strengthen the sheriff's office as an organization.

    Thank you for your time and good luck!
    I may have already answered this with my previous post, but I will elaborate since morale seems to be such an important concern.

    Law enforcement agency morale is a powerful force and one that should be addressed by the Sheriff’s Administration. There is certainly no way to please everyone, but that is not a requirement to see an improvement in morale. Most law enforcement officers come into the field wanting to save the world, and after they get some experience they settle for just saving one person at a time. The one thing that can quickly break that desire is organizational stress.

    Most law enforcement officers like structure and clearly defined goals, but often internal and external politics interfere with the direction in which the organization should be heading. This often results in the creation of a new policy or procedure that restricts or redirects Deputy activity from their primary purpose of crime control. This is one of the biggest causes of organizational stress which has a significant impact on the Deputies.

    The easiest way to reduce organizational stress is the get buy-in from the people you are hoping to influence and the easiest way to do this is to bring them to the table. I believe I can accomplish this by having a Policy Advisory Board that includes line level officers who can provide direct input into the necessity of any policy and assist with drafting such policy. I believe we can set high standards and, then trust line officers to be involved in the decision-making process to create a policy that will result in a clear direction and automatic buy in because it has been vetted by those officers who will be most affected by it. I believe we will get a better working environments and have officers feel less organizational stress when they had input in the decision-making process, and this will improve morale. Certainly we will still have to do things we don’t all agree with or that we do not think is important, but being included in the discussion about these things is what truly matters.

    Upon taking office, ALL policy will be up for revision if the line officer representation has a concern. However, we are equal partners in this so don’t come to me with just a complaint without one or more alternatives. Just as I have done and continue to do, conduct your research, find a better way, and help me build a better Sheriff’s Office focused on Safer Streets and Stronger Communities.

  4. #14
    Junior Member LEO Affairs Recruit QA_Evaluator's Avatar
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    Good to see a new face outside of the inner circle of OCSO. I've heard numerous incidents in which agency personnel were disciplined, or not in some cases, for the same offense. There has also been talk of favoritism within the agency, which shields some members from disciplinary action. Do you have a vision for a balanced and fair discipline system, or is that something you would leave to the first line supervisor, i.e. problem solving at the lowest level? For clarification, I'm not speaking of major offenses such rights violations or excessive use of force, I speak more of personality conflicts and misunderstandings.

  5. #15
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    Discipline

    Quote Originally Posted by QA_Evaluator View Post
    Good to see a new face outside of the inner circle of OCSO. I've heard numerous incidents in which agency personnel were disciplined, or not in some cases, for the same offense. There has also been talk of favoritism within the agency, which shields some members from disciplinary action. Do you have a vision for a balanced and fair discipline system, or is that something you would leave to the first line supervisor, i.e. problem solving at the lowest level? For clarification, I'm not speaking of major offenses such rights violations or excessive use of force, I speak more of personality conflicts and misunderstandings.
    I have always been a proponent of handling minor infractions or conflicts at the lowest level possible. As a supervisor for many years, I found that conflicts at a shift level were often resolved with a face to face conversation and if between two co-workers the front line supervisor may simply acting as a facilitator or mediator to ensure both parties receive equal time and a clear understanding of the issue.



    I believe the same holds true of minor policy or procedure infractions. By minor I mean a situation not significantly affecting service to the community or one’s professional character. Minor issues should be corrected by the immediate supervisor and if policy specifically requires documented. Upon correction of the infraction if possible or after counseling to ensure no further misunderstanding or further violations occur the issue should be closed. If there are no additional violations, the discipline should not be used against the employee any further. A single error during a rating period, if considered minor by a reasonable person, should not affect an employee’s overall rating. If there is a pattern of violations during a rating period then it will be documented on the yearly performance evaluation. I believe as we are all human, mistakes are a part of life and even the finest officers I know make minor policy errors and procedural errors. To quote a wise man I know, “Mistakes are only a mistake if you don't learn from them, if we learn and correct the action then it's training”

    As to your question of different discipline or no discipline for the same offense, I believe that is what the disciplinary policy is to be used for and should be applied in an “across the board” fashion. If your question about this point concerned a minor infraction or shift procedure that isn’t necessarily covered by a department policy, I would say that may just be a part of life. How one particular supervisor handles an issue on his squad may be different from another. We have all worked under leaders who had different styles of leading that carries back to the “human factor” and perhaps one of life’s idiosyncrasies we must deal with as they arise.

    I appreciate your input and hope this has in some measure answered your inquiry.

  6. #16
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    Rumors

    There are a couple rumors going around the agency about what your motivation is for running for Sheriff, so I will just ask, Why are you running for Sheriff?

  7. #17
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    Why

    Quote Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
    There are a couple rumors going around the agency about what your motivation is for running for Sheriff, so I will just ask, Why are you running for Sheriff?

    I appreciate your question because I want to answer whatever the rumors are about me or my campaign. I’m not sure what the exact rumors are to address them individually, but I can certainly respond to the question as to why I am running for Sheriff?

    Of course, I was disappointed and hurt when I was dismissed by the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Office, however I was treated so professionally and fairly by Walton County Sheriff’s Office that those wounds have since healed. I quickly realized there was a greater result for the challenge, as I met and became part of a whole new family. The professionalism and respect, I was given are what I would like to return to the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Office.

    I never actually considered running for Sheriff when I became a Deputy, I just wanted to help my community. Even as I continued through my career earning promotions to Lieutenant before my retirement, politics was not on my list of things to do. I did not decide to run for Sheriff until I knew “Why.” I have learned in law enforcement that many officers and supervisors know “What” we do, and some know “How” we do it, the problem is they never knew or don’t remember “Why” we do what we do.

    There are several “Why’s” I want to address:

    I believe the “Why” of the Sheriff’s Office as a government agency is for the citizens. The Sheriff and his Deputies are given power by the citizens they serve and, therefore, the decisions made on policy and procedure must serve the citizen’s needs.

    I believe the “Why” for a Sheriff, him or herself, is twofold. First, the Sheriff, as an elected official must personally answer to the citizens who put him or her in office. Second, but not any less important, the Sheriff must answer to their deputies and staff. With these two concepts in mind, the Sheriff must balance the needs of both of these groups. I believe this can be an easy balance because if I take care of the deputies and staff, they will take care of the public as my representative on a much broader scale than I could do it alone.

    My personal “Why” is very straightforward. I know the County can be better served, I know the Agency can be better served, and I know the deputies can be better served. I have many friends who work daily at the Sheriff’s Office, and quite a few have encouraged me to step forward and do what I believe is right. I do not enter this undertaking because of hurt feelings or as a disgruntled ex-employee but as a 49-year resident of Okaloosa County, who spent 25 years associated with the OCSO, and believes he can do more. I think I have a plan to meet the needs of our community, cooperate with the other law enforcement agencies of the county, facilitate proper training for employees, and change the way we address criminal activity occurring in our community.

    Since announcing as a candidate, I have been congratulated, thanked, and encouraged by so many within the Sheriff’s Office and the community that I am certain I have made the proper decision. I believe I can make a difference for the better and though not a politician, I will campaign to the best of my ability. In the coming weeks, I will lay out a plan for improvement, a plan of action and a plan to make my goal of Safer Streets, Stronger Community a reality.

    I believe the agency is in dire need of a leader who knows the agency’s biggest and best asset is its people. All agencies need more than just managers at the top of the chain of command. Being a manager is only half of the job, as Sheriff I will manage the office but I will strive to lead its people.
    Last edited by bcokonougher; 03-10-2016 at 01:02 AM.

  8. #18
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    Cutting middle management

    You said "but I am already looking at cutting middle management positions so we can put more officers on the road." Can specify on which positions you would look at cutting?

  9. #19
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    Middle Management

    [QUOTE=Unregistered;2593506]You said "but I am already looking at cutting middle management positions so we can put more officers on the road." Can specify on which positions you would look at cutting?[/QUOTE

    When I said looking at "Middle Management" I should have included "Upper Management" as well for cuts, my concern is eliminating redundancy and instead providing sufficient supervision at the lowest level possible. I believe the heartbeat of law enforcement supervision takes place at the Lieutenant and Sergeant levels and this is where we need to make sure we have sufficient manning. I have no plans to arbitrarily cut positions, I want first and foremost to ensure that we have sufficient manpower and supervision to do the task that the community has entrusted us with. There is only so much money in the budget and fiscal responsibility is a major part of being the sheriff. The sheriff always needs to be looking for ways to better utilize the budget. Even if cuts or realignments are necessary, a good leader always looks at all his possibilities to ensure the minimal impact on the organization and peoples lives. Trust that I am all too familiar with such impact when decisions are made for political reasons without considering the consequence on faithful employees who have devoted themselves to the organization.

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