With Doug’s retirement this last Friday, I suppose I should make some comment about his tenure. First off, I wish him luck. From talking to other city retirees, I can guarantee, you will be a lot happier 🙂
As for the job Doug did, I guess I couldn’t really say anything bad or good. He has kept our city relatively safe.
I can say though that while the mayor was running for his second term it was disengenious of Doug to back the mayor in saying that the violent crime rate increase wasn’t concerning.
I also think some improvements that Doug could have worked on are;
• An internal affairs department that processes and resolves all citizen complaints about officers
• More transparency with evidence to the public
• Getting our officers in the same physical shape as our firefighters
• Require officers to go through criminal justice training/schooling (and pay for it).
Other then that, I don’t have a bone to pick with Barthel’s job performance. Could he have done more? Yes he could have. But he certainly didn’t do anything detrimental to the force.
Now if he can just hand over the Tuthill Ghost!
I’ll not be so kind. False arrests were a problem. When the city doesn’t pay for the jail, everybody goes to jail. His passive approach to rising crime made areas of town unsafe. The force went from 150 to 225. More overhead, less protection. When 2 officers made an unsubstantiated complaint against a mayoral candidate, they should have been reprimanded. Police protect and serve, it’s outside their realm to judge ethics. Police are bullys with insignificant training. There’s no method to cull rogue cops without a complaint process. You call them police, I call them the mayor’s gestapo. Perhaps the new chief can restore confidence, ethics, and regiment. I doubt it, he’ll also hide for several years awaiting his golden parachute retirement like past police and fire chiefs.
Could you please elaborate on requiring officers to go through criminal justice training? I am no longer a SFPD officer, but 20 years ago, I went through 8 weeks of classroom training at the SFPD, 8 weeks at the law enforcement training center in Pierre, two additional weeks in the classroom back in Sioux Falls, and 13 weeks in the car with a training officer. That is in addition to having a Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice. Present day; the training is longer. Would you please explain your premise?
As I understand it now, there is no requirement for at least a two year associate degree in criminal justice. I would require it as police chief for nay new hire, and any currently employed officer get the training, or get packing. As I understand it, they only have to go through the academy to get hired.
City documentation is vague. Per a KELO clip from 2012; they must have some higher education, have prior police or military background, and go through an 8 month certification process. Supposedly, requirements are stricter as of August 2014. Starting pay in 2012 was $21/hour.
On the City website for PO req’s –
Associates degree or at least 60 semester hours of college credits from an accredited institution; or two years of certified law enforcement experience; or two years of active
full-time military experience; or any such combination of education, experience, and training as may be acceptable to the hiring authority.
Just wanted to point out the last sentence:
“…. and training as may be acceptable to the hiring authority.”
This translates to openings for under- and/or un-qualified, cronyism, and nepotism…not good.