It seems the Board of Commissioners and Hankerson continue to stick to the cobb way of conducting business. Officers continue to leave the police department in mass while they (the board) act like nothing is wrong. All the while claiming public safety is a priority to them. That is a bold faced lie and anyone who does their research can see that. A few things have bothered me for awhile now. Have you ever wondered why Hankerson continues to get his contract renewed while the police officer gets furloughed, insurance premiums increased, equipment in deplorable condition, and the worst morale problem I have ever seen in the department? Hankerson gets a salary roughly triple that of a 10 year veteran with the department, a take home car, and doesn't have to worry about putting his life on the line everyday he puts on a uniform. The 10 year veteran has seen a noticeable increase in insurance, poor pay and morale, no take home car, and increased retirement contributions. Something seems obviously wrong with that picture if you ask me. Our commissioners make what a veteran officer makes and the commissioner gig is a part time position. Chairman Tim Lee sits at the throne making about three times what the veteran officer's salary is while claiming county employees should get a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. Guess what Mr. Lee, if you are a police officer with the Cobb County Police Department that isn't happening. What is happening is plain to see. Officers continue to leave the department as fast as they can, equipment is crap, morale is a word that invokes laughter amongst the troops, and the county leadership refuses to acknowledge there is a problem.
Tim Lee and Joann Birell took two police cars off the road the other day for a photo shoot to show off two new cars purchased to replace the aging police car fleet. Those two cars weren't able to respond to calls for service just so the board of commissioners could make it appear they cared what was going on in the department. The new cars being purchased don't do anything to expand the fleet and are too little too late to replace an aging fleet. The norm for a police car in Cobb today is a high mileage police vehicle with over 120,000 miles and in most cases over 150,000 miles. Several reports of cars close to 200,000 miles are patrolling Cobb streets. A major crime or emergency call comes in and you see police officers waiting in the squad room with nowhere to go because they are either waiting for a car to come in or all the cars are at the fleet maintenance center being worked on because they are wore out and old.
The Chief of Police knows the needs of the department and has undoubtedly conveyed this to the public safety director, county manager Hankerson, and the board of commissioners. He knows what it will take to get the department where it needs to be. The Chief however is in a position where he cannot make the necessary changes because the board of commissioners are pulling the strings and have better things to do than worry about the public's safety. I see a big "I told you so" coming for the commissioners and Hankerson in the not so distant future. I am sure they will find someone else to blame though. After all that's the Cobb way.
Crime is up and morale is down. Say cobb is safe all you want to but all you have to do is watch the local news to know that's not truth. Murders at both malls in Cobb, a mass shooting at a large business, and police officers leaving the county as fast as they can because they can't feed a family on a "fair day's pay". Something has to change for the better now or this crisis will get out of hand and no amount of attention will get it turned around. The commissioners and county manager are ruining any chance of turning around the path of public safety in Cobb. By their actions it seems that is their ultimate goal.
13 comments:
Hey- at least the FedEx shooting was across the street from the precinct so those officers could just jog to the call. Not like you'd prefer your officers to be fresh going into a 500,000 sq ft building to hunt down an active shooter.
Don't forget about cars being pulled off the perimeter of a fleeing felon 2 weeks ago while k9 was actively searching for him. You know we got to get that next shift loaded up to answer calls.
But don't fret. We will have plenty of cars as they continue to put transmissions and other major repairs into 170,000+ mile cars. The good news is there's always a car to pick up at the camp when you're dropping off the one you're in.
I wished they'd take a picture with that silly grin standing next to some of our rusted out high mileage junkers to show what they've really accomplished.
Cry, cry, cry....I'm getting so sick of hearing all of this crying. Those bastards at 100 Cherokee St. don't give a damn about us! Something else that needs to be addressed....most of the SGT's and above only care about when they're getting promoted!!!! Its sickening. I am disgusted. It sucks going to work every day having SGT's and LT's worring about stats and padding their next promotion all while the department is at the lowest of lows in the morale status. I've been here over 11 years and I have 12 to go to reach my rule of 80. Id leave this damn place in a heartbeat if I got offered a job where I could make the same or just a bit more. This whole crap about raises, cars, insurance, commisioners, county manager, etc. is BS!!!! Im sick of it!!!! It sucks being a cop for this department. I bet if we all took a day off people would listen. Its a damn shame that wouldnt work...too many kiss asses out there worring about getting promoted or whos feelings would get hurt. Pathetic.
Man not to beat you up or anything but it seems your doing some crying of your own. All of us are in the same boat. This is a place to vent that frustration not bash our own. Yes there is dysfunction in the department and yes people are complaining about it. They will continue to complain and leave until something gives. And I don't blame you one bit for taking a better paying job. I'm right there with you.
maybe if we get these new guys and all of the officers to QUIT, I SAY AGAIN, QUIT giving the county your off time to help out other shifts. USE YOUR OFF TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY. If we have guys coming in to cover the ailing shifts, the n UPTOWN will see beats filled. Do not give this agency ANY of your free time. THEY REFUSE TO GIVE YOU ANNUAL LEAVE.
Make them feel the hurt by not showing up when you are supposed to be at home. The guys that are on duty will take care of their beat partner. Unless you let them feel the pain, they will have NO IDEA that they are in a crisis.
I saw a job listing in the county for a security guard with the water dept. the starting pay was $25 an hour part time!! I don't make that now and I have been here for years as a police officer not some damn security guard!! Tell me our pay scale isn't broken.
It's in a ridiculous shape. The commissioners should be ashamed of themselves. Time to vote!!!!
It looks like Hankerson & Lee continued their bullying.
The press release SIGNED, SEALED and DELIVERED
The BOC meeting was a farce. It truly sickens me to my core having to watch their circus. The people of Cobb County deserve to have both voices heard when the County is about to spend 400 million dollars of OUR money. How did you all like that extra 29 million for incidentals Lee added. That must be for, his and those voting in favor of this travesty, lifetime BOX SEATS.
This is an absolute ABUSE OF POWER forced on Cobb County Citizens.
Our Public Safety will be depleted by 2017. The business owners and citizens only have to look at the press of Clayton, DeKalb and Fulton Counties to see what the future looks like.
Business owners and Citizens, your BOC's have failed you. They have offered up your properties and assets to the criminals. Look at all the trends around your County Police Precincts. They are under staffed! The police cars are looking highly distressed! The quality of the individual officer is being sacrificed. The hiring standards HAVE lowered.
All the powers that be will say NO to that, but is a fact. Now they want to rehire recruits that have failed portions of the process. Recruits that have failed firearms are being sought after to return.
Cobb Police Recruiters now have to beg people to work for this agency and give concessions to the training. This agency use to hand select, only the best of the best, to wear that uniform.
With lower standards comes increased liability! Increased risk to us the tax payer; increased monetary lawsuit payouts.
Is this what, you, the people of Cobb County want? If so do the same as you are or absolutely nothing! If you do care about your property, your lives, your businesses; just make a call or go visit your police officers and see what they are going through.
The majority of them are here because they care about Cobb County, they grew up here and have a vested interest in you, your family and the businesses you own and are employed with.
A large portion of them may in fact be a family member. Several are mine and not only by blood.
My family, this family of officers is in a desperate crisis to survive and protect the prestigious name of the Cobb County Police Department.
They run to the fight as they did in the Penske Active Shooter event! The FedEx Active Shooter event! An increased number of calls dispatched, where a person is shot, throughout the county. They run to the scene knowing bullets are flying.
This family is no less deserving of proper benefits and pay than the ones serving in our armed forces.
I am retired with 25 years of military service and multiple combat engagements. This family engages in combat in your backyard. It is suppressed by the media to not shed a bad light in lieu of the Braves coming to town.
I am asking you to think for yourself and get informed on this crisis. It is real! It affects you and me too!
Are they asking for too much? I think not. Look at what other agencies provide. Compare that with what they are asking.
Right now they work with less man power than other counties similar to Cobb. They are doing it with less and less each month. They have been told that the burden of man power is on their backs. They cannot take vacation to spend with their families because the Command Staff has ordered supervision to deny vacation time. This is summer break for families with children in school. Now, because the BOC have allowed this agency to dissolve in manpower; those who remain have to wear an increased burden and get no break to get away to a well deserved rest.
Will the Police Command Staff go on vacation this summer? How many trips the members of the BOC’s will take on the taxpayer’s dime this summer? How much time off will they use?
Let’s provide a “Fair Pay and Benefits” package to those who are required to wear a bullet proof vest to do their job. Get informed and make your own decision, but at the very least; get informed!
$29,000,000.00 outta no where!! Priorities. That figure sounds like how much the take home car program was estimated to cost.
Precinct 3 day shift is about to be down to 14 people total to cover 10 beats every day. As it is now they have 16 officers assigned to the shift and are 2 and 3 beats open on a regular basis. The other morning Z2 day shift came across the radio on private to let Z3 know they only had 5 officers working and no one on their north side beats. We are loosing the fight people. And supervisors are talking about ordering people to work on their off days as the only solution. So not only can people not get time off in the summer to be with their families but now will be forced to work even more.
I would like to think that as Cobb Police Officer’s we support the team of Officers and not the team of Hankerson and Lee.
First and foremost I think we should let the Command Staff know that we, the “BEAT OFFICER” are tired. Not only is our moral state in the pits, but our physical and mental readiness is now suffering too.
I am a Cobb County Police Officer! I am tired and my family is tired too. We are tired of hearing, the running joke of, GOOD THINGS ARE COMING. If they show up tomorrow it is almost too late.
I tell you what is here. What is here and upon us every minute of every shift? High and aggravated criminal activity being deployed on the citizenry, the business owners and visitors who choose be out and about in this county. All persons who spend any time in this county are now at risk.
These High and Aggravated criminal perps have become embolden in their activities because they know we are an undermanned agency. They tell us we are not welcome in their safe haven communities of Z2 & Z3 and make bold threats against officers. There was a time in this not so distant past that perps were scared to cross the river because of the way Cobb Officers were able to work and support one another.
It is time for the Command Staff to understand! WE are losing OUR COUNTY to the thugs of society because of the actions of Hankerson and Lee.
I say this to the Beat Officer – DO NOT work your off time filling beats, Do not sacrifice your family time for the CIR that says your devoted your time to the Police Department blah blah. Work you beat for your scheduled time and then return to your family that should be more important to you.
I say this to you Special Unit guys. We are changing for the worse and be prepared to return to the precincts. I think everyone should have to rotate back through the precincts to see what working a beat has turned into these days. IT IS NOT THE SAME as it was 3, 5, 7 heck even 12 years ago when I came here. A Z1, Z2 and Z3 officer today with 3 years of solo time has more experience as a “REAL” police officer than the combined experience most special ops units and other officers within the county.
To the Command Staff; The 10 hour shifts are a pipe dream that will never be able to be properly carried out. Knowing this fact, IT IS TIME TO ABOLISH the trial period at Z2. NO BEAT OFFICER deserves better treatment than another. NO PRECINCT deserves star treatment over another. Disperse the manpower at Precinct 2 and dissolve the 10 hour shifts until it can be fairly and properly instituted throughout the department.
DO NOT ALLOW Tim Lee or any politician the ability to stage photo ops in the NEWEST of cars. DO NOT forbid the VERY OLD, WHITE patrol cars from participating in the Officer Memorial because they show the citizenry the truth about our fleet of cars.
Cobb Police Officer’s want to be Cobb Police Officers. They are being FORCED to look elsewhere because of the actions of Hankerson, Lee and the Board of Commissioner’s.
Sometimes we do have to draw a line in the sand and choose sides. I ask those who may read this to reply and BOLDY STATE WHERE YOU STAND!!!!!!!
Well said. I couldn't have said it better. I know everyone likes to remain anonymous on here so let's do this so other people can look on here and see which Precinct/unit cares. We need more people on here speaking out!! Z3
The car I drive regularly broke 160,000 a couple of weeks ago. And it's about average.
Pathetic? YOU are part of the problem. Let me help you pack. No self-respecting police officer would leave his work for someone else to do. Get a hold of yourself, man! Do a little self-assessment and decide if you are right for the job being a Police Officer; here or anywhere else.
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