POLICE EVALUATION IS A BLACK MARK ON PERKINS
12-13-07
The recently released $48,000 assessment of the Selma Police Department, paid for by money which was budgeted for police officer SALARIES, is a black mark against the Perkins Administration. The entire 116 page report is posted on www.selmatimesjournal.com website. We don't think many people have the time to wade through the whole condemnation of Perkins and Martin; therefore, we are posting some excerpts and quotes from the report:
"Selma's crime rate exceeded that of most other cities in the same population category. Many cities throughout the country with far larger populations do not have a crime index as high as that of Selma"
"Closer examination reveals that Selma's crime problem approximates cities of 40,000 population or more" (Note: Selma's population is 19,300)
"The analysis of the Selma crime problem reveals a significantly high number of crimes . . as discussed above, Selma has a crime rate experienced by much larger cities"
"Selma Police Department is working considerably understaffed, which makes handling this workload more difficult, which may lead to officers avoiding reports when they should be taken"
"The unit is understaffed and no longer has any narcotics investigators"
"Selma has about 30 outstanding felony warrants and approximately 5,000 misdemeanor warrants"
"Selma has a crime rate equivalent to a city of approximately 40,000 people"
"It is low morale that is contributing to the high turnover rate. 46% of the department's officers have left in the last two years"
"The hiring of a new police chief is critical to the implementation of the required changes discussed in this document. The new chief must be a true leader, manager, and change agent"
"The Selma Police Department has hired several individuals with questionable backgrounds. In at least one case, the person hired had a warrant for her arrest. This is totally unacceptable"
"It is our opinion that new vehicles were being provided to those in the organization that did not require new vehicles"
"The department will need to maintain a police force of approximately 60 sworn officers"
"OVERALL THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IS IN A CRISIS STATE . . .the department has not had an accepted, strong, capable leader for a long time. The department's needs have been neglected"
It is very important for citizens to remember that THE POLICE CHIEF IS APPOINTED SOLELY BY THE MAYOR and serves at the pleasure of the Mayor. It is Perkins who appointed Martin as chief, kept Martin as Chief even though the SPD was in shambles and has allowed MARTIN TO REMAIN CHIEF FOR SIX MONTHS AFTER MARTIN ANNOUNCED HE WAS RESIGNING. Perkins and Martin alone bear the responsibility for the mess in the SPD and for the high crime rate in this city. Even Perkins does not think Martin is a good administrator and knows that Martin is ineffective, but does nothing about it.
NO WONDER PERKINS IS TRYING TO HIDE ALL THIS MESS BY FOCUSING ON A $12.3 MILLION BOND ISSUE. ($11.8 for projects and about $500,000 for his friends at the bond and law firms handling the issue)
CITIZENS OF SELMA: Look on this website and see a list of the businesses, that we are aware of, which have been robbed in the last 6 weeks. WHAT IS MORE IMPORTANT? Fixing the crime problem OR BUILDING A TENNIS CLUBHOUSE, MOVIE THEATER, AND BUYING MORE EQUIPMENT FOR PUBLIC WORKS TO TEAR UP AND BURN UP?
