Last week I went to lunch with a friend of mine who is a police officer for a local community. He and I have been doing this for several years, and we always alternate who picks up the check. Never had a problem until last week.
He and I went into a new restaurant in the area for lunch. He was wearing his uniform and I had my usual golf shorts on. We were sitting talking after ordering, when a woman, who we can only guess may have been the manager, came up to us. Without hesitation she asked are you both police officers. I politely told her that my friend was the officer and I was the tag along. She then firmly announced that it was the policy of their restaurant to provide free lunch to police, and that she would take care of it. My friend felt uncomfortable, and told her that he would not accept a free lunch. She firmly announced again she would handle it. I told her that since it was my month to pay for our lunch, I would handle the check. She stormed off in a huff.
When the check came, they had taken his lunch off the check. Not wanting to make a scene we left, however, we will not return to the restaurant and I will make sure my other colleagues know how they disrespected the officer's wishes in this matter.
If you want to know where the restaurant is located; Highway 377 in Keller, TX. It is a Tex-Mex restaurant.
Any thoughts.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Police Misconduct...More, Less, or the Same
Over the last several months, I seem to be reading more and more about police misconduct. I am beginning to wonder if this is a new cycle, or is the news media just having aome bad news days.
We all know the media is selective, self absorbed, and just loves something that will stir the flames of discontent. So when a cop does something that may or may not be a good thing, they jump on it and condemn the police. As far as many of the media are concerned, the officer is guilty until proven innocent. The last time I remembered it was innocent until proven guilty.
Now admittedly, I have been reading about some really bad moves by cops, and in fact, they have been found guilty and paid the price for their misdeeds. This does not mean all cops are guilty by association...I would surmise that 98% of our officers are outstanding and it's the 2% that mess up the party.
I was at a meeting the other night and someone brought up some silly police misdeed. Almost immediately, the crowd was disturbed and the tone of the conversation changed to anti-cop. Very few supported the police. I asked the group if they had to answer this question quickly and honestly, how would they do it. The question; "Which public safety group to you hold in higher respect, police, fire/ems, other?" The answer was interesting. About 85% percent answered fire and ems. The media is hurting law enforcement's image, in my opinion.
Now, what about the police themselves. After 30 years of involvement with public safety, I have seen both sides of the fence. A couple of quotes come to mind quickly, "Perception is Reality," and "We have met the enemy and he is us!!" Stop and think for a moment about some of the things officers do everyday and don't give the issue a second thought, e.g., introducing themselves as "Officer JW Jones" and not I"m Officer Jeff Jones. Much easier on the receiver's ear, and doesn't sound as stiff. What about comments overheard by the public like, "he's a civilian and would never understand." I could go on, but maybe its time for the law enforcement community to embark on a campaign to be more human.
Think about how you can be more human in everyday dealings. I personally know hundreds of officers of all ranks who fall in this category. I also know the ego centric ones who think they are better than the public they serve. Is it a regional issue? Is it a local issue? Listen to yourself. The old adage "it's not what you say but how you say it," can go a long way in building relationships.
We all know the media is selective, self absorbed, and just loves something that will stir the flames of discontent. So when a cop does something that may or may not be a good thing, they jump on it and condemn the police. As far as many of the media are concerned, the officer is guilty until proven innocent. The last time I remembered it was innocent until proven guilty.
Now admittedly, I have been reading about some really bad moves by cops, and in fact, they have been found guilty and paid the price for their misdeeds. This does not mean all cops are guilty by association...I would surmise that 98% of our officers are outstanding and it's the 2% that mess up the party.
I was at a meeting the other night and someone brought up some silly police misdeed. Almost immediately, the crowd was disturbed and the tone of the conversation changed to anti-cop. Very few supported the police. I asked the group if they had to answer this question quickly and honestly, how would they do it. The question; "Which public safety group to you hold in higher respect, police, fire/ems, other?" The answer was interesting. About 85% percent answered fire and ems. The media is hurting law enforcement's image, in my opinion.
Now, what about the police themselves. After 30 years of involvement with public safety, I have seen both sides of the fence. A couple of quotes come to mind quickly, "Perception is Reality," and "We have met the enemy and he is us!!" Stop and think for a moment about some of the things officers do everyday and don't give the issue a second thought, e.g., introducing themselves as "Officer JW Jones" and not I"m Officer Jeff Jones. Much easier on the receiver's ear, and doesn't sound as stiff. What about comments overheard by the public like, "he's a civilian and would never understand." I could go on, but maybe its time for the law enforcement community to embark on a campaign to be more human.
Think about how you can be more human in everyday dealings. I personally know hundreds of officers of all ranks who fall in this category. I also know the ego centric ones who think they are better than the public they serve. Is it a regional issue? Is it a local issue? Listen to yourself. The old adage "it's not what you say but how you say it," can go a long way in building relationships.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Are We The Best At What We Do?
Fort Worth, TX, Sunday, February 22, 2009, 1624 CST
After several months of studying the issues of Crime Prevention in the US and other countries, I have noted something. The US is not the best in Crime Prevention. Canada, England, Austrailia, and New Zealand seem to have surpassed us. So why is this happening?
From what I've learned the folks in those countries are not operating under severe budget constraints, nor are their CPO's burdened with several other duties which serve to limit their time in Crime Prevention. Most of them have been doing the things I have spoken or written about to include actively training their citizens, maintaining daily notes on e-mail systems, developing "schemes" (as they are called in the UK), being out in the community daily without being burdened with extra duties, and many other Crime Prevention and Crime Reduction Programs.
I do notice that some of our CPO's would rather allow themselves to be overburdened than try to come up with novel ways to increase their presence in the community, or to argue over criticism when challenged. Now I'm sure someone will argue with these comments, but I can assure you I have already heard many at conferences and training sessions. Discussion and disagreement is great, it means people are thinking through their options.
We need to get more creative in our programs. We need to think outside of the box!! Perhaps management needs to rethink certain positions. I read the other day that European law enforcement use smaller vehicles which cost less to operate. Maybe its time for us to think about alternative theories of achieving our objectives. When we're in a crunch, we seem to cut services, people, and less important departments. Since when did Crime Prevention become a less important function? We're quick to implement new techniques, but do we really explore less expensive alternatives?
With our economy going in the tank, we had best figure out how to stay even or get better with the resources we have.
I would be interested in hearing other opinions.
Steve Wallach
After several months of studying the issues of Crime Prevention in the US and other countries, I have noted something. The US is not the best in Crime Prevention. Canada, England, Austrailia, and New Zealand seem to have surpassed us. So why is this happening?
From what I've learned the folks in those countries are not operating under severe budget constraints, nor are their CPO's burdened with several other duties which serve to limit their time in Crime Prevention. Most of them have been doing the things I have spoken or written about to include actively training their citizens, maintaining daily notes on e-mail systems, developing "schemes" (as they are called in the UK), being out in the community daily without being burdened with extra duties, and many other Crime Prevention and Crime Reduction Programs.
I do notice that some of our CPO's would rather allow themselves to be overburdened than try to come up with novel ways to increase their presence in the community, or to argue over criticism when challenged. Now I'm sure someone will argue with these comments, but I can assure you I have already heard many at conferences and training sessions. Discussion and disagreement is great, it means people are thinking through their options.
We need to get more creative in our programs. We need to think outside of the box!! Perhaps management needs to rethink certain positions. I read the other day that European law enforcement use smaller vehicles which cost less to operate. Maybe its time for us to think about alternative theories of achieving our objectives. When we're in a crunch, we seem to cut services, people, and less important departments. Since when did Crime Prevention become a less important function? We're quick to implement new techniques, but do we really explore less expensive alternatives?
With our economy going in the tank, we had best figure out how to stay even or get better with the resources we have.
I would be interested in hearing other opinions.
Steve Wallach
Friday, January 18, 2008
Crime Prevention Officers
Friday, January 18, 2008, 0940 CST
This past week I had the honor of attending the Mid-Winter Meeting of the Texas Crime Prevention Association. I say it was an honor because I spent time with many of my crime prevention colleagues who work daily to carry the message to their communities in a dedicated environment. Oh yes, before I forget to tell you, I am a very proud Life Member of TCPA; my membership has continued for over 25 years. Finally, I also had the privilege this week of serving as an instructor in two subjects.
One of the things that has always been a fact of life for Crime Prevention Officers is that the organization and political environments within most law enforcement agencies causes the CPO to have extra duties to deal with. For example, some of the duties brought to my attention this week included:
This past week I had the honor of attending the Mid-Winter Meeting of the Texas Crime Prevention Association. I say it was an honor because I spent time with many of my crime prevention colleagues who work daily to carry the message to their communities in a dedicated environment. Oh yes, before I forget to tell you, I am a very proud Life Member of TCPA; my membership has continued for over 25 years. Finally, I also had the privilege this week of serving as an instructor in two subjects.
One of the things that has always been a fact of life for Crime Prevention Officers is that the organization and political environments within most law enforcement agencies causes the CPO to have extra duties to deal with. For example, some of the duties brought to my attention this week included:
- Internal Affairs Commander
- Court Bailiff Manager
- Patrol Duties
- CALEA Project Manager
- PIO
- Crime Prevention Officer
- Crime Analyst
And these are only a few of the tasks. Is there a solution to allowing the CPO's to fulfill their role as Community Services and Crime Prevention Officers? I don't know if there is any definitive answer. What we do know is that CPO's don't have enough hours to perform their Crime Prevention Duties in the best possible manner. All the other duties may well prevent that.
Over the last several years, I have noticed that our Crime Prevention colleagues in the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, seem to excel at their duties. When I started looking into why, it seems they, in most cases, seem not to have all the extra duties that USA officers are working with. Are the officers in the countries above better than those in the USA? I don't know that answer, but I do know that they have the time to create ideas that officers in the US just don't have the time to do.
So what is the answer to this dilemma? We want our CPO's to be really effective, but organizational life within the LE Agencies doesn't seem to allow it. I am open to comment on this issue. I would like to hear from those who are in Crime Prevention and the citizens who need the information.
Pleas feel free to comment.
Stay safe and secure.
Steve Wallach
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