From an anonymous contributor:
"It's funny that you mention that you were only able to stomach half the video. I could barely make it through the entire video. When Mickey "I got a Silver Star" Lloyd was the public safety director he never sent out any propaganda videos. But then again everyone knew just where he stood as far as things went. As long as he got what he wanted, hey all was well right? I guess Ol' Sammy Boy is a little more technically savvy and he really feels that he is reaching out and bonding with his video. Oh but let me back up a little bit, director Heaton did a survey too....oh yippee...he did a survey to find out things that were already known because of Director Forsythe. Hey Mr. Hankerson I got an idea I'll do a survey ....wink.....wink....also known as a stall tactic.
You heard that he went to the FOP meeting and said he would support the police department you say. I heard he went to the FOP meeting and dodged every question that was thrown at him. Kind of like that SNL spoof...we're working hard and we're putting in late hours....blah...blah....blah! I have a question for everyone out there...do you think that "Director Heaton" would've been suggested as a replacement for Director Forsythe if he was not a company man? I think of it like this...Forsythe's seat wasn't even cold before they (the commissioners and Hankerson) wanted to put Ol' Sammy Boy in the seat. If you watch the video and look closely you can see the curtain move behind Heaton. You can also hear Hankerson clear his throat in another effort to throw his voice. Hello...hello...puppet....that's my point!.... Heaton is nothing more than a puppet in the political game. Uh oh... I got a great idea...in an effort to save the county money do this....see we have to do a pay study even though there has been more than enough information provided to Hankerson and the commissioners.....I say get rid of Heaton and use his salary to pay for part of the pay study...the position that Heaton holds is useless...it is controlled by Hankerson and Heaton has no power.....lets face it...Hankerson probably tried to hold Forsythe' s head down into the Kool-Aid trough. Imagine Hankerson standing on the back of Forsythe's head pushing it down into a trough of Kool-Aid labeled the "Cobb Way". Forsythe wasn't going to have it...but imagine this....Heaton picks the trough up and says, hey Mr. Hankerson look at me, as he tips the entire trough of "Cobb Way" Kool-Aid back...Lets face it Heaton is a fireman...always has been and always will be...we don't need a fireman over the police and the fireman don't want a policeman over them....you may say hey....Mickey "I got a Silver Star" Lloyd" was a policeman and he was over the fire department....I say this....as long as Mickey got what he wanted he didn't bother the fire department and nor did he care about the police department....
Some of you may say wow...you're negative...I bow respectfully and say you have your opinion...with respect I say that Heaton has had a his chance and he has shown nothing...when Hankerson says hey, Ol' Sammy boy jump.....Heaton asks, oh...oh... how high sir? The bottom line is this... Heaton is a "puppet" and is only worried about himself...maybe even the fire department... who came blame him after all he is a fireman...he doesn't give one care about the police department and you cannot convince me otherwise....do I knock him for being a fireman? no absolutely not... that is all he knows....for Christ sake look at his ending message on the video... he talks about replacing batteries in a smoke detector....that's his closing...that's what matters most because in closing you wrap it all up right...? talk about what's important...again what was his closing?....batteries in smoke detectors....WOW...where is my free toaster?
I don't know all the answers but I do know this....then men and women who put on a badge and a gun and do their jobs as Cobb County Police Officers deserve better....I salute you....each and every one of you have the other police departments... looking like they are going in slow motion....you don't even think about the bull s #&% that's being handed down as you work your shifts...these lambs in Cobb County have no idea of the awesome men and women that keep the wolves at bay...I STRONGLY FEEL WITHOUT A DOUBT....that the men and women of the Cobb County Police Department deserve better across the board...shame on you Heaton....I do not buy your propaganda (and nor do the men and women of the Cobb County Police Department)....do what is right and quit looking out after yourself....step up and challenge Hankerson and the commissioners and fight for the Police if you have it in you!"
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Thoughts from Director Heaton's latest update?
Director Heaton recently released the second installment of his public safety update. In it he outlined recent changes implemented and changes to look forward to. He mentioned movement within the department and changes in how information is spread throughout the department. He also touched on the loss of 70 officers last year and where those 70 losses came from. In it he made it a point to mention that only 11 officers left for other departments. Regardless of where the manpower is going, it seems to me it is a mute point. The fact remains they left and there are no incentives for keeping them from leaving. Director Heaton also mentioned the "pay and compensation study". We all know this process is a farce on the county managements part to stall. No one believes they will implement the findings in the first place and if they do they will do it county wide because that's the "cobb way." Maybe the ditch digger can pick up a gun and fill a beat if that's what the county is going to compare us to. Anyways, how does everyone else feel about the recent video and the current state of affairs at the moment?
Sunday, March 2, 2014
more coverage in the MDJ
If you haven't had a chance to view it yet, there is a good column in the Marietta Daily Journal by Mike Boyce. The column details some of the issues facing the Police Department and seems to hint that public support is growing as we expected it would.
recent comments
"Can someone explain why the Chief told Tim Lee that the 40 positions would help morale. It's not making me feel any better about things. Please help me understand"
"Well, unfortunately it appears that they genuinely do not care. You risk everything doing something you love and the only people who care are those to your left and right. Going upstairs to type my resignation letter..."
"I wanted to offer some of my thoughts on the new "plan".
1. The BOC approving 40 more positions is almost comical. That allows us to go from 70+ vacancies, to 110+ vacant slots. This solves none of the identified issues. In the long term, I think we'll need the additional manpower, but this is pointless at this time. Knowing the time frame to fill the vacant slots, the BOC is offering an item that will cost them nothing for at least 18-24months if we only hire new officers and lose no one else for the next 2 years.
2. The county routinely bought 30 +/- cars a year. For the past few years however they have gotten away from that. The fleet is now in shambles; with constant maintenance issues on high mileage cars and too few vehicles. Most of the cars being purchased are coming from last years budget, so again the BOC is minimizing their cost. This is a small step that barely addresses the condition of the fleet. It is money they have to spend and does not improve any of the identified retention issues.
3. The pay study is a waste of time and money. They haven't used the last pay study they did. We just got our first raise in years; the need is clear. The study they need to look into is why we have multi-million dollar surpluses, yet the county is in headed towards fiscal shambles by neglecting legitimate needs.
4. We have been told for almost a year that plates/helmets were coming. As usual the county keeps making promises of things we never see.
5. Officers buying their own rifles? While this county should be able to afford rifles for officers, I actually like the opportunity to buy my own rifle. Same as point 4 though...we've heard this for years w/ no follow through.
6. Studying assigned cars? See point 4 and 5 for why this will never happen. This is a noncommittal political answer to make it appear something is being done. Do they really think we're that dumb?
7. When I came to Cobb as a lateral, it was primarily due to its reputation. Money etc was important, but I would not have left my department for the Cobb we now have. The best recruiting tool we had was being the best most professional department w/ squared away officers. Tattoos, etc opens up our pool of candidates but to what avail? When I came 10 years ago, there was a line to get in the door; not us trying to figure out how to beg people to come.
Our current state reminds me of a Teddy Roosevelt quote- "The best thing you can do is the right thing. The next best thing you can do is the wrong thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing.". The county has been doing nothing for far too long."
" County Managements True Colors 1
Wow! What a way to add insult to injury. Lets consider the proposal of the County Commissioners as stated by Director Heaton:
Items Approved:
Immediate (the numbers in parenthesis coincide with issues addressed)
1. The BOC will be asked to approve 40 additional police officer positions next week. This will help us to begin moving forward with a commitment toward 10-hour shifts. (1,2,4) **An additional 40 officers will need to be approved in the future to meet the staffing needs to meet the 10-hour shift transition. This will also allow us to begin re-staffing our specialty units.
This is nothing more than political sidestepping. There is no immediate cost to the county because the positions will not be filled. It is not possible with our current manpower deficit. This means nothing.
2. Thirty –seven patrol cars (Ford Interceptors) have been ordered and are scheduled to arrive in March. This order is to replace the order that was cancelled by the manufacturer last year. Another eight patrol cars has been approved for FY 14 along with twenty-two detective cars. We have support for adding additional cars to the police fleet as the 10-hour shifts take place in the Precincts. This will prevent officers from waiting on vehicles at the Precincts. This will also begin building a fleet for an assigned cars program if deemed appropriate. (1,2,5)
These were already approved in the budget, and frankly 37 cars will not replace enough of the old cars that have become increasingly dangerous for our officers to drive. The bottom line is that they were going to have to buy these anyway, but putting this out there makes it look like the commissioners are doing something for public safety. No additional cost to the county.
3. Pay and Compensation Study – A county-wide pay and class study will be performed this year which will include all positions and will compare all benefits including annul leave, sick leave, holidays, health dental, long term disability, retirement, tuition reimbursement, education, shift differential, assigned vehicles, etc. (1,2,3,4)
This one really gets me. “County wide pay study”, that is just what we needed. Public Safety does not need a “County wide pay study”. Public Safety needs a “Public Safety Pay Study”. We are not losing librarians and water department employees by the dozens. We are losing police officers. No more studies. Get it done! The end result of the last pay study is what we have now. Does that sound like a waste of money to you? Officers are leaving and this is the bottom line reason. This department will be terminal before a pay study can be completed. Cost the county $1 million plus. "
" County Managements True Colors 2
4. An RFP is out for Ballistic Plates, Ballistic helmets, and ballistic plate carriers.
Already approved and taking forever! While this is great equipment for our officers it does nothing for retention or recruiting. No help. Very little cost to the county.
5. Working to supply all officers a patrol rifle and allow a buying program to allow officers to buy the patrol rifles through payroll deductions. This does not cost the county anything if it is a buy back.
This is also taking forever and is great equipment but again does nothing for retention or recruiting. No help. Cost the county nothing.
6. Develop a plan/procedure for assigned cars to include cost analysis and an advantages/disadvantages list. The plan will include all issues including any additional fleet costs, liability of the county for officers going to and from home, pay and workers comp issue, etc., and this program will be presented and discussed with the County Manager for possible adoption.
This is good but just talk. There was the same kind of planning in the early 1990’s when the commissioners were considering the purchase of a helicopter for an air unit. It was just talk then too. This again costs the county nothing.
7.Evaluation of our current recruiting, hiring, and training practices as compared to other departments in the metro Atlanta area and make necessary changes. Some issues include tattoos, lateral entry training, recruit losses during training, etc. (4)
LOL (laugh out loud for those of you without teenage girls) You could stand at our recruiting table naked and still wouldn’t attract any attention. It’s not about problems with our recruiting, hiring or training practices. Why does this continue to fall on deaf ears? It’s about incentives like money, insurance benefits, retirement and work hours all of which were pointed out by the previous survey. Once again no cost to the county.
Let’s recap. The only thing on the list of approved items that cost the county any real money is the County Wide Pay Study. A pay study that, as we have seen in the past, the county management controls the outcome of. The county management is willing to pay what I am certain will be more that $1 million dollars for a study. What will this study do one might ask. First, it will buy time for the county management. The study will take the rest of this year and it could take as long as another year to implement, if ever. Secondly, it gives the public the false perception that the county management is taking proactive steps to address the pay issue of the police department. This study will do nothing to benefit the officers of the police department. As a veteran of many years with the police department it is very disheartening to see this lackadaisical approach by the county management to a very serious problem. This is a failure of epic proportions. The county management has once again shown its true colors. "
"Well, unfortunately it appears that they genuinely do not care. You risk everything doing something you love and the only people who care are those to your left and right. Going upstairs to type my resignation letter..."
"I wanted to offer some of my thoughts on the new "plan".
1. The BOC approving 40 more positions is almost comical. That allows us to go from 70+ vacancies, to 110+ vacant slots. This solves none of the identified issues. In the long term, I think we'll need the additional manpower, but this is pointless at this time. Knowing the time frame to fill the vacant slots, the BOC is offering an item that will cost them nothing for at least 18-24months if we only hire new officers and lose no one else for the next 2 years.
2. The county routinely bought 30 +/- cars a year. For the past few years however they have gotten away from that. The fleet is now in shambles; with constant maintenance issues on high mileage cars and too few vehicles. Most of the cars being purchased are coming from last years budget, so again the BOC is minimizing their cost. This is a small step that barely addresses the condition of the fleet. It is money they have to spend and does not improve any of the identified retention issues.
3. The pay study is a waste of time and money. They haven't used the last pay study they did. We just got our first raise in years; the need is clear. The study they need to look into is why we have multi-million dollar surpluses, yet the county is in headed towards fiscal shambles by neglecting legitimate needs.
4. We have been told for almost a year that plates/helmets were coming. As usual the county keeps making promises of things we never see.
5. Officers buying their own rifles? While this county should be able to afford rifles for officers, I actually like the opportunity to buy my own rifle. Same as point 4 though...we've heard this for years w/ no follow through.
6. Studying assigned cars? See point 4 and 5 for why this will never happen. This is a noncommittal political answer to make it appear something is being done. Do they really think we're that dumb?
7. When I came to Cobb as a lateral, it was primarily due to its reputation. Money etc was important, but I would not have left my department for the Cobb we now have. The best recruiting tool we had was being the best most professional department w/ squared away officers. Tattoos, etc opens up our pool of candidates but to what avail? When I came 10 years ago, there was a line to get in the door; not us trying to figure out how to beg people to come.
Our current state reminds me of a Teddy Roosevelt quote- "The best thing you can do is the right thing. The next best thing you can do is the wrong thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing.". The county has been doing nothing for far too long."
" County Managements True Colors 1
Wow! What a way to add insult to injury. Lets consider the proposal of the County Commissioners as stated by Director Heaton:
Items Approved:
Immediate (the numbers in parenthesis coincide with issues addressed)
1. The BOC will be asked to approve 40 additional police officer positions next week. This will help us to begin moving forward with a commitment toward 10-hour shifts. (1,2,4) **An additional 40 officers will need to be approved in the future to meet the staffing needs to meet the 10-hour shift transition. This will also allow us to begin re-staffing our specialty units.
This is nothing more than political sidestepping. There is no immediate cost to the county because the positions will not be filled. It is not possible with our current manpower deficit. This means nothing.
2. Thirty –seven patrol cars (Ford Interceptors) have been ordered and are scheduled to arrive in March. This order is to replace the order that was cancelled by the manufacturer last year. Another eight patrol cars has been approved for FY 14 along with twenty-two detective cars. We have support for adding additional cars to the police fleet as the 10-hour shifts take place in the Precincts. This will prevent officers from waiting on vehicles at the Precincts. This will also begin building a fleet for an assigned cars program if deemed appropriate. (1,2,5)
These were already approved in the budget, and frankly 37 cars will not replace enough of the old cars that have become increasingly dangerous for our officers to drive. The bottom line is that they were going to have to buy these anyway, but putting this out there makes it look like the commissioners are doing something for public safety. No additional cost to the county.
3. Pay and Compensation Study – A county-wide pay and class study will be performed this year which will include all positions and will compare all benefits including annul leave, sick leave, holidays, health dental, long term disability, retirement, tuition reimbursement, education, shift differential, assigned vehicles, etc. (1,2,3,4)
This one really gets me. “County wide pay study”, that is just what we needed. Public Safety does not need a “County wide pay study”. Public Safety needs a “Public Safety Pay Study”. We are not losing librarians and water department employees by the dozens. We are losing police officers. No more studies. Get it done! The end result of the last pay study is what we have now. Does that sound like a waste of money to you? Officers are leaving and this is the bottom line reason. This department will be terminal before a pay study can be completed. Cost the county $1 million plus. "
" County Managements True Colors 2
4. An RFP is out for Ballistic Plates, Ballistic helmets, and ballistic plate carriers.
Already approved and taking forever! While this is great equipment for our officers it does nothing for retention or recruiting. No help. Very little cost to the county.
5. Working to supply all officers a patrol rifle and allow a buying program to allow officers to buy the patrol rifles through payroll deductions. This does not cost the county anything if it is a buy back.
This is also taking forever and is great equipment but again does nothing for retention or recruiting. No help. Cost the county nothing.
6. Develop a plan/procedure for assigned cars to include cost analysis and an advantages/disadvantages list. The plan will include all issues including any additional fleet costs, liability of the county for officers going to and from home, pay and workers comp issue, etc., and this program will be presented and discussed with the County Manager for possible adoption.
This is good but just talk. There was the same kind of planning in the early 1990’s when the commissioners were considering the purchase of a helicopter for an air unit. It was just talk then too. This again costs the county nothing.
7.Evaluation of our current recruiting, hiring, and training practices as compared to other departments in the metro Atlanta area and make necessary changes. Some issues include tattoos, lateral entry training, recruit losses during training, etc. (4)
LOL (laugh out loud for those of you without teenage girls) You could stand at our recruiting table naked and still wouldn’t attract any attention. It’s not about problems with our recruiting, hiring or training practices. Why does this continue to fall on deaf ears? It’s about incentives like money, insurance benefits, retirement and work hours all of which were pointed out by the previous survey. Once again no cost to the county.
Let’s recap. The only thing on the list of approved items that cost the county any real money is the County Wide Pay Study. A pay study that, as we have seen in the past, the county management controls the outcome of. The county management is willing to pay what I am certain will be more that $1 million dollars for a study. What will this study do one might ask. First, it will buy time for the county management. The study will take the rest of this year and it could take as long as another year to implement, if ever. Secondly, it gives the public the false perception that the county management is taking proactive steps to address the pay issue of the police department. This study will do nothing to benefit the officers of the police department. As a veteran of many years with the police department it is very disheartening to see this lackadaisical approach by the county management to a very serious problem. This is a failure of epic proportions. The county management has once again shown its true colors. "
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