The New Detroit Police Chief Police Speaks

[MidTownMs]

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/22...e-for-violence

Did he say delapitated police cars...

[Crumbled_pavement]

Ehh, I'm one of those people who don't believe "grammar" and "spelling" determine intelligence. I know some very smart people who can't spell, but understand the meaning of the words they use, and some very dumb grammar professionals who get every word spelled correctly, but haven't a clue what they're talking about. Give me someone who can get the job done, not just able to spell it out all nice and pretty. I like what James Craig has to say so far. Let's see if he can put some positives actions behind those comments.

[cramerro]

Decapitated, dilapidated, hell, incapacitated... the message is the same - the DPD done broken [[intentionally poor grammar).

[Honky Tonk]

I don't understand what he's wining about, They just spent $60 mil for a brand new police station.

[brizee]

That line about targeting young men...

I hope that doesn't mean future hassles for me because I drive a nice car [[or my little brother because he drives a beater for that matter).

Tough talk is nice I just hope he's competent. Evans seemed to get results, Godbee got the highest stats since the 80's. So I guess we'll see.

[cla1945]

He did say "dilapidated" and he's absolutely correct. The police on the streets are driving old, damaged junks. No sirens, lights are not working, heaters blowing heat in 90 deg. weather, no air-conditioning, windows that don't go up or down, computers unusable, and I could go on and on.
The new cars are coming, but we all know who will get them...the brass. Until the City puts it's priorities in order and starts holding people in the administration to a higher standard, Orr, Craig, or God himself can't solve Detroit's problems.

[motz]

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/22...e-for-violence

Did he say delapitated police cars...

Oh man, go and read anything off of Fox 2's site. It is riddled with spelling errors, terrible grammar and sentences that read like it was run through Google Translation three or four times.

Don't care about what he says until he actually puts his words into actions. That's all I need to say.

[ct_alum]

That line about targeting young men...

I hope that doesn't mean future hassles for me because I drive a nice car [[or my little brother because he drives a beater for that matter).

Tough talk is nice I just hope he's competent. Evans seemed to get results, Godbee got the highest stats since the 80's. So I guess we'll see.

Here's a little tip for you - The crime stats improve when you close the fuc***g station at 4:00 p.m. and make it an endurance contest to make a report when the station is open.

Evans "got results" because stops were made and searches conducted without PC. In addition, who do you think reviewed the stats before they were released?

The cars could be Cadillacs, it doesn't matter when there are only 2 on the street per shift in all the precints.

[MidTownMs]

He did say "dilapidated" and he's absolutely correct. The police on the streets are driving old, damaged junks. No sirens, lights are not working, heaters blowing heat in 90 deg. weather, no air-conditioning, windows that don't go up or down, computers unusable, and I could go on and on.
The new cars are coming, but we all know who will get them...the brass. Until the City puts it's priorities in order and starts holding people in the administration to a higher standard, Orr, Craig, or God himself can't solve Detroit's problems.

He did not say delapidated.

[Downriviera]

He better be good for 225k per year. Thats way more than previous chiefs and even more than Bing is making.

[cla1945]

He did not say delapidated.

At 01:30/02:20 of the link above, Craig said "dilapidated".

[cla1945]

Rumor has it that Craig and Brown were partners on the job in the D back in the old days. Can anyone substantiate that?

[48205to24]

I am on the fence regarding this guy. On a recent interview, I think it was Taryn Asher and someone else. They asked him how will police officers be able to reduce crime under the following conditions, vehicles in poor condition, pay cuts, 12 hour shifts, lack of contract, potential reduction and his comment was something like when morale is high its not about the money. How can you boost morale without paying a living wage and providing working equipment?
I also dont agree with a $200,000+ salary from the start. It should have been merit based. If he fails, its wasted money, just like everything else.

[Hypestyles]

I wrote the chief a letter. mailed it out Saturday to the new HQ. hope he gets to read it.

[cla1945]

I am on the fence regarding this guy. On a recent interview, I think it was Taryn Asher and someone else. They asked him how will police officers be able to reduce crime under the following conditions, vehicles in poor condition, pay cuts, 12 hour shifts, lack of contract, potential reduction and his comment was something like when morale is high its not about the money. How can you boost morale without paying a living wage and providing working equipment?
I also dont agree with a $200,000+ salary from the start. It should have been merit based. If he fails, its wasted money, just like everything else.

Exactly. What makes Craig think he can boost morale and what could he possibly do that others haven't tried to do? It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that when you take a person's wage and chop it up, when you take a persons health care and demand more money for it, when you take away...morale will be about as low as it can get.
Then add up that the officers don't have decent equipment to work with, a small uniform allowance, they can't even go to the gun range to practice or qualify when they are supposed to because the City can't pay for ammo anymore. We all know that he can't buy them new whistles and expect their morale to be at 100%. DPD officers don't need to be out on the streets of Detroit while worrying about where their children's next meal will come from or if they can afford braces for their teenagers. They need to know that they are making a decent wage and they can take care of their responsibilities.
Craig, making a quarter of a million dollars a year is outrageous, unacceptable and insulting to those officers who are working every day in police cars that have no heat in the winter, no air in the summer, paint peeling off the hood, broken doors, windows, computers, etc.
Gary Brown making a quarter of a million dollars is outrageous, unacceptable and insulting to ALL City workers. He has a hard on for DPD and you'll see what happens in the near future....more ugly.

[Honky Tonk]

I wrote the chief a letter. mailed it out Saturday to the new HQ. hope he gets to read it.

Did you mark it "Urgent" on the outside?

[SWMAP]

Ha, ha. Three years ago I wrote to Ralph Godbee after the SW District commander refused to see me when I was inquiring about a complaint that two officers left the scene of a burglary of a business IN PROGRESS and just drove away, causing the business owner to lose all his tools and work vehicles. The next day, the business owner tracked down one of the B&E guys with the witness to the crime who had called 911 originally. Still the guy was not arrested and held due to the fact that the POLICE did not witness the crime.

So the Commander won't engage. Wrote to Godbee, delivery receipt requested. Letter returned because they don't sign for mail, according to the P.O.
Sent email to the published address. Although the Chief's assistant assured me that HE read his own email, more than a week went by with no answer at all.
Next the Chief's assistant told me that really a sergeant reads the chief's email. Called him but he never available. Finally called that Erin Stephans you read about in the paper, the PR officer. She got sergeant to call me back. He said that they have no way to require the Commander to talk to citizens; however, he did track down Commander [[Serda) who then called. But Serda was really MAD and although he promised to meet with the business owners, nothing ever happened. Serda claimed that the police were never on the scene of the burglary although the 911 caller even spoke to them, begging them to drive around the back and see what was happening.
The business collapsed and the owners moved on, out of Detroit.

[cla1945]

^^^A sad state of affairs. That should never have happened.

[Honky Tonk]

Ha, ha. Three years ago I wrote to Ralph Godbee after the SW District commander refused to see me when I was inquiring about a complaint that two officers left the scene of a burglary of a business IN PROGRESS and just drove away, causing the business owner to lose all his tools and work vehicles. The next day, the business owner tracked down one of the B&E guys with the witness to the crime who had called 911 originally. Still the guy was not arrested and held due to the fact that the POLICE did not witness the crime.

So the Commander won't engage. Wrote to Godbee, delivery receipt requested. Letter returned because they don't sign for mail, according to the P.O.
Sent email to the published address. Although the Chief's assistant assured me that HE read his own email, more than a week went by with no answer at all.
Next the Chief's assistant told me that really a sergeant reads the chief's email. Called him but he never available. Finally called that Erin Stephans you read about in the paper, the PR officer. She got sergeant to call me back. He said that they have no way to require the Commander to talk to citizens; however, he did track down Commander [[Serda) who then called. But Serda was really MAD and although he promised to meet with the business owners, nothing ever happened. Serda claimed that the police were never on the scene of the burglary although the 911 caller even spoke to them, begging them to drive around the back and see what was happening.
The business collapsed and the owners moved on, out of Detroit.

They "abandoned" Detroit.

[EastsideAl]

He better have some way to get the DPD cops to give a f--k again and actually try to do their jobs. Otherwise, he's just a face to cover continuing failure and a waste of money.

[SWMAP]

cla1945: I know it should not have happened. What we could not learn was what may have gone into the officer's decision to leave the scene they were called to and later, why the burglar could not be arrested on a witness id. I blame the Commander and the Chief. My experience is that policing is not about the citizens - it’s some mysterious set of policies that are designed to keep the citizens from finding out that, actually, criminals have the upper hand in this city.

Can you imagine that Commander Serda REFUSED to return the businessman's call at all? What kind of operation is that?

I will say that I sent a letter to the new chief officer of the SW District last week, Commander Yost, and she at least replied. But the second-hand store selling obviously stolen power tools on Junction Ave still has the stuff for sale on the sidewalk. I just wanted the license checked to determine if it is actually a pawn shop in disguise.

[SWMAP]

And SW District lets "sex workers” operate just outside their front door on Fort St. Sometimes two or three at a time. No shame at all on either side!

In May, one of the girls was shot to death [[prostitution is such a victimless crime) just a few feet from SW District. Of course, it WAS closed for the night.

Anyway, there is no subscribing to the "broken windows" theory of crime diminishment here if observation of DPD operations is to be believed.

[48205to24]

As long as police officers dont live in the city. There is truly no vested interest.
Their main goal is 'arrive alive' to their homes in the safe suburbs. Even the cops who live in the city, often retire out of state. Maybe the EM should provide real incentives for cops to move back. I dont think Project 14 or whatever it was called offering $80,000 renovated houses was a real incentive. A mortgage in Detroit is never an incentive.

[SWMAP]

I completely disagree. The bosses have leadership problems.

I always point out: most of the polce officers who bravely went into the twin towers and lost their lives [[several hundred) did not live in NYC.

Detroit's own brave fireman who became paralyzed after a building on Jefferson collapsed on him - did not live in the City - although he gave his life and future to it.

In my own work, I see people passionately advocating for the City although they do not live here.

It is a spurious logic to assert that someone is less dedicated if they don't live here. And I live here.

Most of the bosses live here - yet they are the cowards who DO NOT LEAD.

[48205to24]

We will just have to agree to disagree.
I also do not believe most of the bosses live in the city.