Buffalo Rising has posted on the increase (walking/biking) police presence in some Buffalo areas.
"There is no comparison when it comes to having a police officer in the community rather than driving through the community."
I've posted on it here before. With the uptick in comments about the Genessee St. area I thought I would throw it out here again. Nothing would have a greater impact in this area then officers taking a portion of their shift to walk a few blocks. Cars are great for being reactionary to an event but nothing will beat walking to really notice what is going on and getting ahead of events. 3mph is much better for taking in details than 30mph. It is also a much better way to interact with the law abiding demographic than set-ups at the Fashion Outlets in the Falls.
47 comments:
Cleaned up - off topic. Comment on the NFTA cop at the news sites.
It's not just Genessee St. which is a problem; South St., Walnut St., Ashley Pl., Washurn St., parts of Pine St. and Cottage St., etc, that whole area is problematic. I've driven by during broad daylight and seen drug deals going down right in the streets!
north end, west end, central lockport
basically any old neighborhood that has a high percentage of rental property
Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck have recently rented in older neighborhoods.
By Genessee we usually mean the general area not just the street.
After WWII the fed subsidized the move out of cities through mortgage loans, highways etc. New was better and the loans were not available to older homes. The mas exodus created a vacuum filled in with subdivided rentals etc. Lockport is not alone as it is seen in every city.
We are country based on moving away from our problems and not fixing them. It's made everything all the more difficult to turn around.
there isn't a problem anywhere that can't be "fixed"
sorry, i must have missed where rush limbaugh and glenn beck have rented property in the areas of lockport that i mentioned
i stand corrected, the areas must be the most crime free districts
lot's of Oxi available...so it must be true!
Why are there so many druggies in Lockport? It seems like a veritable "Mecca" for scum.
Why are there so many in impoverished sections of any metropolitan areas? Why do the users in more affluent areas go under the radar?
first of all I'm not a cop but I have plenty of cops in my extended family. Daylight drug deals are common in Lockport, and maybe there's a big bust in the works that they don't want to screw up by busting the small dirt-bags. But I can't think of any reason why law enforcement would allow "curb-side" drug deals to happen in broad daylight.
The answer to impoverished areas is easy..which came first... the cheap, uncontrolled housing, or the dealers? Cheap housing with landlords that live in Arizon, or California, or England, who don't real care what's going on in their buildings, is at the core of most of the City's problem.
Having cops on foot might send the criminals running when they see them, but they have the game figured out. There was a house on Genesee that had survaliance cameras..
You want to get rid of the drug dealing and the crime?...get rid of the appartment that are for rent for $375.00 a month.
Last week they found a murderer from Atlanta hangn' out in good ole' lockport.
How does the Police Chief and the Mayor feel about a new slogan..." Lockport..A good place to Hide"
Not a cop either - but LOTS of experience with them and in the family - including the Drug Task Force.
According to DTF, et al - the scumbags come primarily from The Falls where NFPD and other agencies has been hitting them hard for several years.
Also note that there have been a ton busted out of Amherst in the last year or so. The most recent contributor was the arrest and inevitable conviction of Dr. Druggie in The Falls who was writing scripts at the rate of about 100-150 per DAY for Oxy, etc. When they took the old guy out, there was a large, loud crowd outside the "office" screaming bloody murder. Where were they gonna get their fix? Answer? Lockport. I WILL NOT mention names but there are several physicians in the Town, in particular, who seem to be filling in that which the old guy had been writing.
Also recall the robberies and burglaries of pharmacies out this way and East of here. The idiots didn't even look on the shelves - they went straight to the safe in one place. They got nothing and the Oxy was on an open shelf that they passed in and out of the store. These people are not rocket scientists - but they are very dangerous if they don't get their fix. Most kids get it out of their, and their friends' parents' medicine cabinets. LOCK UP THE DRUGS. DON'T FLUSH THEM DOWN THE TOILET - keep 'em in a safe place. The Sheriff's Department has a turn in every few months and they dispose of them properly.
"You want to get rid of the drug dealing and the crime?...get rid of the appartment that are for rent for $375.00 a month."-G.I. Joe
Oh, I didn't realize that only poor people deal in and buy drugs? Thanks for the tip, genius.
"The most recent contributor was the arrest and inevitable conviction of Dr. Druggie in The Falls who was writing scripts at the rate of about 100-150 per DAY for Oxy, etc. When they took the old guy out, there was a large, loud crowd outside the "office" screaming bloody murder. Where were they gonna get their fix? Answer? Lockport. I WILL NOT mention names but there are several physicians in the Town, in particular, who seem to be filling in that which the old guy had been writing."-Patti
Patti, did it ever occur to you that doctors are a target of the DEA, and the lesser local police forces, for the automatic forfeiture of assets which come with drug arrests? This is big business for local governments short on tax revenue, and they pursue this "business" with puritanical zeal. They also zealously seek to prevent people in pain from receiving proper treatment. Then these people go to the streets for the drugs they need, but which their doctors art too afraid to prescribe. I sometimes think America has not gotten far from its Puritan past. The witches and warlocks burned, pressed, and hanged are now doctors and their patients.
I read that Charlie Sheen regularly uses cocaine, and that Obama uses crack cocaine.
Wow, I did not know that DEA agents and the other police were medical professionals (sarcasm), able to determine who is a drug addict, drug abuser, etc? They should be practicing medicine! LOL!
"The DEA monitors the prescription writing habits of all doctors, and those prescribing high doses of OxyContin raise a red flag. Investigators go to work. Plea bargains win testimony from former patients. Indictments are filed.
Since 2001, says Dr. Joel Hochman, director of the National Foundation for the Treatment of Pain, the DEA has investigated about 1,800 doctors; 1,200 lost their prescription license. "When doctors are investigated by the DEA, their usual response is to cease treating pain patients," he said.
Each publicized DEA investigation and conviction spreads fear. Other doctors voluntarily get out of, or decide not to go into, the practice of pain management. To catch the few bad doctors, the DEA is driving many more good ones out of business. Some patients who lose their support systems turn to the black market or even suicide for relief.
Dr. Jane Orient of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons says the DEA plays dirty to convict doctors: "Prosecutors manipulate the legal system to frighten doctors who might be willing to testify on behalf of wrongly accused doctors."
In March 2004, DEA administrator Karen Tandy told Congress her drug warriors have "been successful in addressing OxyContin diversion as evidenced by a reduction in the rate of increase of OxyContin prescriptions being written and a leveling-off of OxyContin sales."
For DEA, the fewer pain-relief prescriptions written, the better. This cockeyed measure of success makes no sense because experts estimate the pain experienced by 40 percent of cancer, AIDS and terminally ill patients is not treated adequately."-deasucks.com
I am well aware of the DEA's position vis a vis Physicians including how closely they watch what and how many scripts for the most desirable drugs are written.
In lieu of local GP's writing for powerful pain killers most of my acquaintance are now sending those patients to certified pain management specialists. If a drug addict goes to one of those guys, they are quickly determined to be an addict, prescribed or not, and the doctor works with the patient to help them overcome their addiction. That's if they have a doctor writing prescriptions that are not really needed.
If they are needed to control severe pain - these specialists know every new trick in the book to help the patient deal with the pain as well as deal successfully in life as a whole.
Doctor Anonymous is free to give me a call and I can refer you to two or three excellent pain management docs in Erie County.
If you had the guts to put your name here, I'd give YOU a call - but, then, you probably don't have a phone because the Feds have taken it away from you.
I also note that Food and Drug monitors all USERS of prescription pain medications, as well as other meds that may become addicting and, therefore, harmful to the patient.
Call 'em up and they'll tell you every drug you've taken since the day you were born. (sarcasm) They do keep track of anything that might become addictive.
For Mr. .deasucks.com - anyone who loses a portion of their practice on which they depend will, of course, be unhappy about having to refer out a patient. IMHO, it's better for the doc and the patient - but I will note that I am NOT a Medical Doctor although my closest relative is and must deal with this issue daily.. Check with your own and, if you need it, ask him/her for a referral to a Pain Specialist.
Good night...
Anonimi...running his sarcastic mouth again..
If you wanna give your opinion give it..but you can't resist trashing others in the process can you.
MJ........please erase all but the ANONYMOUS opinions, he has just informed us non of them are valid.
"Why are there so many in impoverished sections of any metropolitan areas? Why do the users in more affluent areas go under the radar?"-MJ
Those are very good questions, and I very much agree with you and the anonymous poster who mentioned Charlie Sheen using cocaine regularly, as well as Obama being a user of crack cocaine.
The DEA and the lesser police really do interfere with doctors and patients trying to deal with pain in America. I have known people in both groups who have been negatively affected. Thanks to the anonymous poster for posting that website run by prominent Doctors in America, deasucks.com
"The DEA's intimidation tactics against doctors causes billions of dollars of additional healthcare expenses for patients, billions of dollars in lost productivity because of untreated pain, and is actively destroying or severely limiting the quality of life for tens of millions of people in America every single day.
The American Pain Foundation estimates that 50 million U.S. citizens suffer from significant pain daily, but only about a quarter of them are getting adequate treatment.
That's because the DEA campaign against prescription drug abuse has stigmatized patients in need of pain medication. DEA intimidation tactics and sting operations against doctors have created a climate of fear, with the predictable result that many doctors now won't prescribe opiates at all or are only willing to prescribe amounts that are totally inadequate. As a result, many more people die from not having the prescription pain medications they need, than die from the drug abuse the government is trying to prevent. Yes, the DEA is actually killing chronic pain patients by intimidating their doctors.
One of the major causes of those deaths is the overuse of OTC NSAIDS like acetaminophen (Tylenol) and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) by people who are desperate for pain relief. The Food and Drug Administration estimates that 200,000 cases of gastric bleeding occur each year, resulting in nearly 20,000 deaths."-deasucks.com
Thanks Roy, and here is a little more information from the medica doctors at deasucks.com
"Americans are a generous and compassionate people. But they have been brainwashed their entire lives by the constant drumbeat of anti-drug propaganda coming from drug warriors, law enforcement and the criminal justice system, and endlessly parroted by self-serving politicians and the media.
Less than 10 years ago, the DEA made prescription drug abuse its primary mission after its survival was threatened because of its failure to have any impact on the availability of street drugs. The DEA ginned-up a lot of bogus statistics about deaths supposedly due to prescription drugs and they cranked-up their propaganda machine in concert with their allies in various public and private agencies who all have one thing in common; they owe their existence to the war on drugs. The media accepts press releases from these agencies and does stories on them without any critical examination of the claims being made. Mothers who lost their children to drug abuse are invited to testify before Congress, giving our representatives an opportunity to exploit their grief in a national spotlight for political gain.
The DEA has focused on doctors who prescribe a lot of pain medications to chronic pain patients because they are easy targets. Doctors keep good records and they have a lot of assets that can be seized. And the DEA is far more interested in seizing assets than they are in seizing illegal drugs. Doctors who prescribe narcotics are now living under the constant threat that they will be arrested by the DEA and prosecuted as if they were running a drug cartel.
Once arrested and stripped of all his assets, a doctor will be charged with tens, if not hundreds of individual crimes, so that they will be under tremendous pressure to plead guilty to lesser charges in order to avoid a lengthy prison sentence. Many doctors who are totally innocent cave-in and accept a plea bargain because they know the odds are stacked against them."-deasucks.com
""To be a competent physician," says Hochman, "every doctor in the United States needs to be adequately trained - and most are not - in the management of intractable pain. Law enforcement and physicians must work together to separate the sheep from the wolves and to identify and prosecute the small number of prescription abusers. Targeting the physician only drives legitimate pain patients into deeper despair, terminal hopelessness and into the black market for relief - as in the case of Rush Limbaugh."
The DEA's heavy-handed approach is a three-part recipe for disaster:
1: Abandoned patients. As doctors lose their licenses, the number of abandoned patients goes up and all pain sufferers will have a harder time finding the care they need.
Where will abandoned pain patients find relief when other doctors in town are "narcophobic?" Many will turn to illegal channels, meaning the DEA will actually create new customers for the same black market in drugs it claims to be dismantling.
2: Fearful doctors. To avoid trouble with the DEA, fewer physicians are likely to start new pain care practices. Signs already appearing in doctors' offices read, "Do not ask me to refill pain medications" and "Don't ask for opioids," as doctors adopt a cover-my-rear medical ethic that ignores their patients' welfare.
Even nursing home care is being harmed. Until outside pain consultants step in, terminally ill nursing home patients are not getting the pain control medicines they need. Staff physicians are too afraid of the drug warriors to do their job.
3: Government intrusion. Despite surveys showing that seven of ten Americans want their doctors, not the government, to decide what medical treatment they will receive, an aggressive DEA is bullying the medical community to undertreat Americans with severe pain. How? Dr. Jane Orient, director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, sums up DEA this way:
"Throughout the U.S., physicians are being threatened, impoverished, delicensed and imprisoned for prescribing in good faith with the intention of relieving pain. Law enforcement agents are using deceitful tactics to snare doctors, and prosecutors manipulate the legal system to frighten doctors who might be willing to testify on behalf of the wrongly accused doctors."
This year American taxpayers will give DEA about $120 million to target doctors who aggressively use legal drugs to ease pain."-deasucks
"...I will prescribe regimens for the good of my patients according to my ability and my judgment and never do harm to anyone.
I will not give a lethal drug to anyone if I am asked, nor will I advise such a plan; and similarly I will not give a woman a pessary to cause an abortion.
But I will preserve the purity of my life and my arts.
I will not cut for stone, even for patients in whom the disease is manifest; I will leave this operation to be performed by practitioners, specialists in this art..."-Hippocratic Oath
ah...This was a discussion about having more police presence on foot, and has suddenly become a trashing of the DEA and an indictment on the war on drugs.
I hear there are some good drugs for ADD and ADHD.
Don't wait..get them from your physician right away...you need'm.
Bravo Doctor America. I am in shock that I agree with Moe - that isn't always a "given."
Clearly, some folks have an issue with the DEA - & any intelligent person will agree that the Rockefeller Drug Laws are NOT serving anyone well. But to turn to DEA trashing is not a way to have an intelligent discussion on the drug problems in Lockport, New York, is it?
It all boils down to the Hippocratic Oath set forth for your reading pleasure by Doctor America. All physicians take this oath when they graduate from Med School. In my opinion all Physician grads intend, at that point, to keep that oath. Unfortunately, many seem to forget this as they begin to actually practice on their own - not in a hospital Intern or Residency program where they are monitored very closely by the senior physicians and the hospital pharmacy.
It's downright frightening the number of physicians who become addicts themselves, often to keep up with the demands of the programs they must follow for years as the new kids on the block. Most conquer this as their work load lessens. Some get worse. Others, knowing the dollars they can get by writing scripts for addicts who then go out and sell a lot of them on the street with the Docs getting a cut, are, IMHO, the worst. See the doc in The Falls above. People like that should lose everything they have because they got the stuff on the backs of addicts. The Docs aren't users, but they create and maintain so many folks who are. People who buy drugs instead of feeding their children. The stories are legion - and true.
The restrictions placed on good physicians - like my closest relative - have actually loosened up in recent years. Notice the signs in the hospitals with "levels of pain?" That stuff is relatively new - and effective. If you, or a loved one, is NOT getting the pain meds they need - report THAT - don't assume that no one cares about your loved one.
It's a touchy subject - as evidenced by the "deasucks" comments. A good physician will do what is needed to help the patient and their pain. If he/she isn't qualified or FEELS they're not qualified to treat a patient's pain - get another opinion. There are a lot of pain specialists who have gone that route because there is clearly a need for them. They won't hesitate to prescribe what the patient needs - even if it boils down to an addiction. There's help for those people too, you know.
First let me say the following: My name is Mike. The opinions and observations expressed in my entry are my own. Where they come from is 29 years experience as a police officer in this city. The last twelve were supervising the midnight shift. I retired two months ago. I am a life long resident of this city, and a homeowner and taxpayer in it. That being said, let’s get down to business.
You were wondering if a foot beat officer and/or bicycle patrols would make life better for the citizens. The short answer is that it would. Anything that provides improved service to the people that are protected and served should be employed if feasible. However, there are limitations, big ones. Every night when I went into work I had the challenge of deploying the available manpower to get our job done, which was to provide police service to ALL the citizens of the city of Lockport. This forces you to prioritize. The vast majority of nights this involved having three officers and one field supervisor to cover an entire city. When I had extra officers available, special assignments were carried out. Plainclothes duty, staking out of “hot spots”, and even an occasional bicycle patrol were used. Unfortunately, these nights were in a minority. Even with three officers, when reports were reviewed, better than half of the calls logged by midnight officers on a typical night were self-generated, meaning the officer was initiating things and being proactive.
In respect to being reactive, there are many types of calls that necessitate a two officer response. That is an officer safety issue. It is paramount, you do whatever takes to make sure every one goes home at the end of their shift, even then there were nights that it did not happen. If it comes down to an officer receiving back up or someone walking a beat that limits mobility, the beat is a luxury that has to be forgone. Well, maybe that can done on the other shifts. The other shifts suffer the same manpower dilemma that I did and that my successor still has. It is not an atypical evening when the afternoon shift gets 40-50 requests for police service. Now spread that among three police cars and a supervisor making sure things are done right, it’s a hustle just to be reactive. On day shift the population changes. Your target demographic is now at work. The criminal element tends to be off the street until later in the day. Also, if you lived in another part of the city, you have the same right of police service that probably would not be as efficient getting the service to you if an officer was limited to the geography of a foot beat. Emergency services have an enemy when getting to an incident, it is time.
So what it boils down to is manpower and money. The department barely has enough officers to give you the service you want, that I want as fellow taxpayer. Three officers that have left have not been replaced. There are rumblings that a certain alderman wants to cut police further because he feels we are “over policed”. One of the biggest reasons I stay in the city is when I need them, the police at my house in short order. I understand that budgets are austere, and the police are doing more with less. Grant money for many programs is drying up. Unfortunately, programs and strategies you would like to undertake may not come to pass because the resources just are not there. You can only pull the string so tight.
By the way, it isn’t a great place to hide, because you get caught.
In conclusion, IMHO this city has one heck of a fine police department. Professional, dedicated and active are some of the adjectives that come to mind. Be proud of your police department that we have in this city. I am.
Hello Michaell. You can't be retired - we're the same age!!
I, unfortunately, had to have the Lockport Fire Department carry me away a week or so ago for a lovely week's vacation at Millard Suburban. (Not the heart, my friend...) I DO NOT want a Rural Metro kid coming to get me when I'm in a bad way - I want the professional Firefighters/EMT's of the Lockport Fire Department. There are none better.
In addition, the Lockport Police Department, with which I've dealt for 20 years, with them, and as a citizen of this city, is the best in the area. They are both working understaffed, yet when it's time for the City Budget - slash Police and Fire. Are they the most expensive? Yep. Is it worth it? Absolutely.
Thank you for your service, Captain.
(How does your wife enjoy you traipsing around the house all day & night? LOL!)
Thanks to Mike for a comprehensive post..
Whether it's Police, fire, EMT, Building inspections, water depart, trash collection doesn't matter. These departments and services could be filled with the best of the best minds and bodies, but if the leadership and direction is not creditable, and the work force is not MANAGED properly,it becomes a waste of resources.
Most people think and feel the best way to improve a failing department is to increase the amount of personnel. That is an antiquated approach that has never worked.
We could have the most dedicated police force in the world and still not maintain adequate services for our citizen.
It all comes down to how you use your resources and I feel all ( yes all) of the resources in this city are being mismanaged by the current administration. Like him or dislike him, Mr. Tucker appears to be incapable of managing a complicated entity like a small city.
Criminals need to fear the presence of our police force. By their presence alone, they are a deterrent. The more visible the better.
If you have a speeding problem on East Ave. write more tickets and let motorist see that the speed limit is to be respected.The same applies to other crime.
If a cop is stationed or frequents a drug dealer corridor, there will be less drug dealing.
It all comes down to effective management of our resources. Our cops need to do more than react to crime, they need to discourage crime.
If the city and it resources were managed more efficiently we could do anything we set out to do!
just remember..last week a murderer from another state was hanging around Lockport. He wasn't here because he was likely to be apprehended, he was here because it was UNLIKELY he would get caught. At the same time he could hang-out with all of his criminal buddies and have a good ole' time. He happened to be riding with a "homie" who was too stupid to avoid being stopped. That is the only reason he was taken into custody. Stupid blind luck.
When criminals seek out the city as a easy place to hide< I would say the perception of our law enforcement isn't exactly what we would want it to be.
"just remember..last week a murderer from another state was hanging around Lockport. He wasn't here because he was likely to be apprehended, he was here because it was UNLIKELY he would get caught. At the same time he could hang-out with all of his criminal buddies and have a good ole' time. He happened to be riding with a "homie" who was too stupid to avoid being stopped. That is the only reason he was taken into custody. Stupid blind luck.
When criminals seek out the city as a easy place to hide< I would say the perception of our law enforcement isn't exactly what we would want it to be.'-Moe
Moe, I have to agree. It seems a lot of the criminals arrested in Lockport are from out of town, places like: Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Rochester, and New York City. I believe they come here to traffic drugs to the local dealers and to hide, because it is easier to hide in Lockport, New York. There seem to be plenty of local dealers too, judging by the deals I have witnessed taking place in broad daylight, in the Walnut, Elmwood, South, Washburn, Pine and Cottage area. I have also seen the same in the North end, especially near Outwater Park.
There are criminals hiding in every city.
Thank you for the comment above Mike. I would be happy to add officers (tax money) if I was getting an additional service.
Also, do you see it as that problematic to park the car for 15 min a few times shift and walk a block or two?
MJ...Every time I hear someone exaggerate the fact that Lockport is a city, I have to chuckle.
Why is it a city anyway? but that's another story for another time.
Why not just put up a sign. "Welcome to Lockport, we're not paying attention"
Lockport is an "easy mark" for the criminal element. There is very little respect for the law here, and very little fear of it..I would say the scum is laughing at us everyday, and inviting there criminal friends to hide here because of it's proximity to Niagara Falls, Rochester etc. It also doesn't help to have the county jail here. ( is is here right?).
"Hmm...when I get out of jail I think I'll just hang around and hide out" The rent is cheap, the social service offices are here, my parole/probation officer is here..great place.
There are four maybe 5 major north-South streets that go right through the center of the City, and we can't control daylight curb-side drug sales on those streets? You'd need a car parked there 24-7 to discourage that crap.
You'll get plenty of push-back from the Department about walking the beat. I frankly don't blame them.
I'm all for more video surveillance in the big crime corridors. Nothing Orwellian or unconstitutional about that.
I'll dig deeper into my TAX piggy bank for a larger police force any day.
just remember..last week a murderer from another state was hanging around Lockport. He wasn't here because he was likely to be apprehended, he was here because it was UNLIKELY he would get caught
yes, because if you travel 5-7 states away, it does decrease the chances that you would be caught
how is this some new lockport-specific news?
cleaned up for infighting
it's not..I didn't know everything had to be "new Lockport specif news...
clean enough?
It doesn't. I deleted for the infighting. But I agree. as I said above, criminals hide in every city far from where they are wanted. It most likely a subsequent stop/offense that catches them. It says nothing about this being a "good place to hide" or having a "sub-par" police force.
well..I guess as long as this is an opinion forum
there is no right or wrong, as long as it's not opinion stated as "fact".
So I guess we disagree......
"Like him or dislike him, Mr. Tucker appears to be incapable of managing a complicated entity like a small city"
That comment says it all. The current Mayor is incompentent of managing the city...period. He has all the Department heads answering to him, so therefore he is to blame for everything going wrong in the city. The residents elected a "team" of officials to run the city yet one person seems to think he's in control.
The drug dealing is at epidemic levels, whatever it takes to stop it should be done.
when one commenter tries to start an argument for arguments sake, it's best when it's removed
trust me you didn't miss much except someone making a fool of themselves
I will say this, I was helped by the Lockport Police when some young thugs were trying to steal license plates from my car, but I was also arrested for DWI. I can honestly say that the the Lockport Police Department were very professional both times.
"I will say this, I was helped by the Lockport Police when some young thugs were trying to steal license plates from my car, but I was also arrested for DWI. I can honestly say that the the Lockport Police Department were very professional both times."-Homer
Homer, I really appreciate your honesty!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administrative_divisions_of_New_York
Lockport has a "Strong Mayor - Council" city government set up. We grant the Mayor the power to appoint department heads and as such they should report to him. They are his employees. The council is there to legislate laws.
If we wanted some other form of city government we would need a referendum to change our City Charter. And yes, being a "Strong Mayor, he is responsible for those under him and a s such they should report to him. I don't see what all the hub-bub is in regards to that.
Perhaps those who do nothing but bash Mayor Tucker - and I admit I have had a few disagreements with him myself - just think about it! The NEXT Mayor, be it Tucker or Smith, will be in the same position as MJ described.
MJ, Patti-
People that ask questions of me deserve direct answers. First, my apologies for not replying sooner, I was out of town for a few days.
MJ- It is not so much problematic as it is “Murphy’s Law”. When I first started, I too walked a beat on Main St. It seemed like every time I was needed for something, I was at the opposite end of my beat. Maybe that was just my hard luck. Again, if manpower, call levels and circumstances would allow it to happen you can try. But knowing the situation as it was when I left, it would be unobtainable without that increase in resources discussed earlier. Departments that have made the community policing commitment increased their manpower. Buffalo PD that you use as an example from the article you linked has put on more officers. I’ll bet my bottom dollar that other divisions were not stripped of patrol personnel to accomplish the mission undertaken. Remember everybody in the city has the right of police protection. There are over one hundred miles of paved streets in our city and most nights, three cars to patrol them. How as an administrator do say to a taxpayer you aren’t going to get the service you are accustomed to and have a right to because I have to use my limited resources on another task? I have seen petitions from other cities that specifically state that the citizenry will live with a tax increase if it means more police on the street. MJ, it’s a laudable concept. Who would not want an increase in visibility, that perception of police omnipresence? But boy, the way it stands now logistically, I just don’t see it.
Patti- Thanks for your comment. I’m sorry I made you feel old. Hope you are feeling better. By the way, she hasn’t shot me yet! (LOL)
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