Text: Mayor's letter on police promotions The promotion of these police officers and the resulting controversy has provided us all an opportunity to see how flawed the City's long-standing system is for officer promotion.The buck stops there.
Today I will start implementing several reforms to address this situation in the future. I am announcing a new policy that will set a standard of zero tolerance for domestic abuse.
Zero tolerance is for those who don't want to think.
Those who can't think again are not well suited for public office.
This is wrong on many levels.
For starters, the reform and future fix resides within the present, mandatory domestic violence. Great double-speak. A supplement to the mandatory training goes an extra inch, perhaps. Relief is sure to come from all concerned now.
Next, they'll conduct actual reviews of candidates. Before they must have just drawn straws. Could not have pulled names from a hat as then there would have been a 'written record.'No written recommendation by the review panel is submitted to the Chief now. That's why they must draw straws -- or else flip coins. The "rock, paper, scissors" options would have counted as documentation to them I imagine.
A list of "disqualifiers" is going to be made. Even Santa Claus checks his list twice to find out the naughty and nice. Our new reforms are going to bring us in line with North Pole like scrutiny. These disqualifiers COULD eliminate a candidate from consideration for promotion, or they could NOT. Sounds less like a disqualifier and more like a finger wagging.
Even eight-year-old swimmers in a competitive team understand what a disqualification means. When police could look the other way, then it is fair to say we've got a resounding enforcement issue.
Enforcement is always a top concern, along with parking, at community meetings these days. Enforcement could be a problem because what could occur and what should result is never clear. Crooked ways dominate.
An internal panel of senior supervisors are going to be the one's to examine themselves. This is peer review. This is just what we don't need from the Police. This would sustain bad behaviors. This is why we have a citizens police review board -- because the police are often at odds with reality when it comes to the management of each other in police affairs. The police gang have a code. The police networks are complicated, deep and standard for the job at hand.
Again, the mayor is passing the buck by putting more weight onto a panel of senior supervisors. The mayor is the city's most senior -- err -- top supervisor. The guy or gal at the top needs to be 'in charge.'
These are LUKE's works, not the reporter's transcriptions of things that may or may not have been said. Luke's letter has serious holes in each paragraph. The logic and outcomes are worthy for the trash.
What procedure is going to more closely track all Police Officer incidents?
The whole holistic approach sorta falls flat with mandates, when necessary.
The shift of burden onto the officers to avail themselves to this and that is but another way to say that the mayor is passing the buck to them. This is Luke's problem now. Luke didn't do the oversight when it was needed. The domestic violence is bad but the cluelessness from the mayor is worse.
Once again, Luke gets the city into a legal problem. Prudence is not on Luke's side.
Look, Luke looked at the rules of the city! Did he listen to the 'acting city solicitor?'
So, again, we have some enforcement here -- and some lack of enforcement there. Works for them, but not for others. This is ignored while that is followed.
If the city rules are obsolete, why didn't Luke change them when he was President of City Council? Why didn't the obsolete rules get fixed in the first weeks of the mayor's new administration. Why are we only here this as an excuse now -- when there is little else to put the blame other than on himself.
It is time that all zero tolerance policies be revoked.
It is time that all leaders (especially the mayor) take deliberate steps to manage, promote and demote people with integrity -- without needing to make 'hard decisions.' This is another 'no win' opportunity. We've got too many no-win choices because there is a lack of wisdom on Grant Street.
It is time that the city embrace pro-active leadership that goes beyond the same, stale Dem. Party Machine.
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full text of letter:
Text: Mayor's letter on police promotions
Friday, June 29, 2007
The text of Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's letter on why he can't reverse the recent police officer promotions:
PITTSBURGH, PA -- June 29, 2007 -- Mayor Luke Ravenstahl issued this statement today regarding the recent Police promotions:
The promotion of these police officers and the resulting controversy has provided us all an opportunity to see how flawed the City's long-standing system is for officer promotion.
Today I will start implementing several reforms to address this situation in the future. I am announcing a new policy that will set a standard of zero tolerance for domestic abuse.
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police will institute revisions to their current Domestic Violence policy to incorporate the best practices recommendations of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP).
Mandatory Domestic Violence training is currently provided to all Pittsburgh Bureau of Police Officers. They will work in conjunction with the in the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office and the Women's Center and Shelter to supplement the mandatory Domestic Violence training.
A review of each candidate will be conducted by an internal panel of senior supervisors to examine all data contained in the candidate's PARS and OMS files along with any OMI and Citizens Police Review Board complaints. A written recommendation by the review panel will be submitted to the Chief.
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police will initiate a list of disqualifiers for cause that could eliminate a candidate from consideration for promotion.
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police will implement new procedures to more closely track all Police Officer involved Domestic Violence related incidents.
The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police will take a holistic approach to the overall well-being of its Officers and their families. They will encourage, or mandate when necessary, Officers to avail themselves to counseling and/or other social service resources, especially in Domestic Violence related situations.
These steps are just the beginning of the reform, not an end.
With regard to George Trosky, I have stated previously that I was aware of his decade-old issues. I was also aware of his decades of exemplary service. While promoting him was a hard decision, it is one that I stand by.
With regard to Charles Rodriguez and Eugene F. Hlavac, as I have said, I was unaware of there being any issues in their background prior to public reports last week. That is a result of the Police Department not reporting to me that information. Had I known of that history, I would have urged that extraordinary steps be taken to further look into their respective issues, just as I had done with Detective Trosky. I have reprimanded Chief Harper for not sharing that information with me.
The problem that we face today is a legal one. The City's obsolete and flawed system for promoting officers has bitten us today. While I would like nothing better than to hold back these promotions pending further scrutiny, the law is not on our side. Legally, these men have already been promoted and the only action that could now be taken by Chief Harper would be to demote the two officers. I have been told by counsel that such an act would violate the current rules and the City would be on thin ice legally; therefore, the officers will not be demoted at this time.
I am upset and frustrated by the existing obsolete City rules that allowed for these promotions to take place in this way. It won't stand. It must change. We must make those changes necessary to restore faith in City Government. That is the good that has come this day. Today, we'll begin to change a practice and a process that has been going on for decades. It's time this City embraced a zero tolerance policy on domestic violence.
Officers' promotions will stand, Pittsburgh mayor says The review panel's work might resemble procedures used during the 10-year tenure of former city police Chief Robert W. McNeilly Jr., now the police chief of Elizabeth Township. He said that during much of his 10-year tenure, he solicited written input from supervisors about the individuals up for promotion to sergeant and lieutenant.
"I had it put in writing whether or not their supervisors believed in their promotion," Chief McNeilly said. "Nobody was ever promoted that their supervisors suggested they not be."
He and then-Mayor Tom Murphy also ended the practice of allowing detectives to become commanders, requiring that candidates be either a sergeant or lieutenant. Mr. Ravenstahl's administration changed that rule, allowing Cmdr. Trosky to rise directly from detective.
The mayor said that though he hadn't reviewed Sgt. Hlavac's entire personnel file, he knew "enough to raise concern. There's still concern there."
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