Public Safety Voices | Assessment Services Review

Public Safety Voices | Fire Chief Alan Ernst

Budgeting to meet the needs of the community.

“The biggest challenge we face in the Central Valley is our budget. It’s a constant struggle to maintain the resources we need to serve our community.

“One step we’re taking to address this is fire regionalization. Two other agencies are now contracting with the Modesto Fire Department for fire services, so we’ll realize some savings and see some revenue from that.”

Recruiting is not a problem here.

“We do well with recruitment. Interest in the fire service is strong in California. We provide potential firefighters many educational opportunities, and the job itself has a lot of natural publicity that comes with it.

“Modesto also offers an explorer program for students ages 16-20 that’s affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America, and several of our employees have graduated from that program.”

It’s all about the moments.

“There’s no one rewarding moment in my career. For me, it’s all about the opportunities when you get to see that your actions affected someone’s life in a positive way. As the chief, I am honored to engage with the public and support our firefighters and the difference they make.”

The fire service is in my blood.

“I’m a fourth-generation firefighter. My great grandfather was a firefighter in Oregon, my grandfather served in Monterey, Calif., and my dad served in Sacramento. And, my son is now in the fire science program Sierra College.”

We hope the community recognizes the toll the job takes on us.

“This is a very demanding job. One concern of ours is that the community doesn’t recognize the toll it takes on us — the toll it takes on our mental health … Suicides outpaced line-of-duty deaths in the fire service last year. We see horrific scenes, and when you’re talking about a 30-year career, it just keeps building up.

“We’re paying a lot of attention to the mental health of our department. To that end, we’ve added a behavioral health specialist to our staff and instituted a health and wellness program to ensure everyone gets the help they need, whether it’s with home or work.”

Cancer rates are much higher for the fire service.

“We also started a cancer reduction program. There are many dangers that are visible, but it’s the dangers we don’t see that are really affecting us. The chemicals associated with the fires we go to are really dangerous, even at a house fire.

“As a result, the cancer rates are much higher for the fire service. We’re taking steps to reduce exposure, including emergency decontamination, cleaning equipment and clothing in an extractor, showering immediately after a call, etc.”

Getting kids involved.

“We also started a hands-only CPR program in which we taught every middle school kid in the city how to recognize the need for and initiate CPR. We’re now going to the high schools also.”

-Chief Alan Ernst, Modesto Fire Department, California

By Jenny Donovan|2019-08-19T15:22:33-04:00August 20th, 2019|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Joel Merry

The opioid epidemic and succession planning are my two top concerns right now.

In Sagadahoc County, the opioid epidemic is of real concern. There are a lot of issues related to it that require a great deal of our time, from the number of calls we take regarding overdoses, to investigators working on trafficking cases, dealing with the number of people in our jails who are addicted and getting folks into treatment and recovery – it’s a lot for any department.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff Joel A. Merry | Image: Bangor Daily News

Succession planning is my top human resources issue. Retirement is the main reason we’re losing people, though we recently lost two transport deputies to the private sector. On the patrol side, we’ve had a very stable workforce, but we do have some pending retirements. This concerns me due to what my fellow law enforcement administrators are going through with recruiting. It’s a real concern. When I started my career in law enforcement 35 years ago, it was so competitive that I didn’t get my first two attempts.

We’re answering the call with life-saving aid, aggressive tactics, education and recovery.

Sagadahoc County is one of the first agencies to start carrying Narcan in Maine. We did this because we service a lot of small rural communities where EMS are 15-30 minutes away. Having a deputy with AEDs and Narcan can save a life.

The other thing we’ve done is get more aggressive on the law enforcement side trying to eradicate the traffickers and educate the public. We’ve trained patrol in interdiction strategies and we work closely with MDEA (Maine Drug Enforcement Administration) on public awareness, as well as some diversion tactics.

The tactic I’m most proud of is one where we connect people with a recovery coach and group counseling. Our programs deputy carries a caseload of 7-15 folks who are required to check in every night and meet with him face-to-face once a week. They are also subject to random drug testing and need to be employed or looking. We want to hold them accountable. It’s another level of probation and provides additional support to the probation office to help keep them on the right track.

Thinking ahead, we’re providing leadership training, adding specializations, and performing youth outreach.

Everyone who applies for a promotional position gets to attend a leadership training program through Granite State Police Career Counseling. It consists of a one-day leadership course and a three-day course on supervision, teaching them what supervision is within an agency, what does it mean and how will your role change as a supervisor.

Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Dept. attending a You Matter event at Woolwich Central School. The officers greet students as they arrive.

We’re also adding in some specializations to build skills and to help keep our deputies interested in this agency. To that end, we recently restarted a K-9 program, and we have another deputy who is specializing in accident reconstruction.

We have done some youth outreach, including Project ALERT, which is similar to DARE. Prevention work is something I would like to do more of. I’ve toyed with the idea of a visitation program such as deputies stopping by schools to say hello and have lunch with the kids.

9/11 was a defining moment in my career.

One of the defining moments of my career came when I was a lieutenant with the Bath Police Department. My chief at the time was away attending the FBI academy, which corresponded with 9/11. A lot of things were fast moving. There were so many unknowns: are we a target, are we next?

The USS Zumwalt at Bath Iron Works. Image: Bangor Daily News

In Bath we have Bath Iron Works, which is a major U.S. shipyard and producer of naval ships. We had a lot of protocols around that – we had to provide guards 24/7 to protect the military assets. We were working very closely with neighboring law enforcement departments and built strong partnerships during that time.

Working with other agencies in both the private and public sector, I had to learn a lot of communication skills very quickly and make sure information was being shared — that I was communicating with all stakeholders. I had to focus. It provided me with insight into what leadership needs to be: As a leader, you have to be thinking about the now and what happens tomorrow at the same time.

We care.

What is the one thing I’d want our community to know about law enforcement? We care. We really do care about the health and well-being of our community.

Our communities are a great place to live, work and play, and as members of law enforcement, we work hard to keep them as safe as possible so people can live without fear and enjoy their lives.

-Sheriff Joel Merry, Sagadahoc County Sheriff’s Office, Maine

By Jenny Donovan|2019-04-22T12:50:51-04:00April 23rd, 2019|Police-Community Relations, Public Safety Voices, Recruitment, Succession Planning in Public Safety|1 Comment

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Ty Trenary

Creativity is key to meeting the challenges we face.

We’re facing four major challenges – all equally big. First, we’re one of the top five fastest growing counties in the country, and we’re having a hard time keeping up with that growth. We’re not currently staffed appropriately to provide the level of service we’d like to. Most days it feels like we’re throwing mud on the wall and seeing what sticks. We’re working with other elected officials on growth, helping them see why we need add staff, but it has been and continues to be a serious challenge.

We also police the transit system. Plus, a new commercial airport is set to open where Boeing is, and we have to police that also. We have got to staff up to these changes, and it’s been a challenge, especially in the current climate. We’ve had to become a lot of more engaged with the community and connect with youth.

Then come the big three: mental illness, homelessness, and the opioid crisis. All three affect how we manage policing. We’re constantly thinking about how to keep everyone safe and in the loop. These issues create challenges that force us to look beyond traditional policing. How do we retool ourselves?

We’re in the midst of a public health crisis: 60-70 percent of our inmate pop have reported metal illness in the last five years. The Snohomish County Jail isn’t staffed for or designed to be a mental health hospital. We can’t use the jail in this way. People aren’t getting the help they need. We can’t make them healthy and are thus sending them back out with same issues. We’ve enhanced our medical staff, brought in outside vendors, we use Facetime for therapy with outside providers, and partnered with the state to bring folks in part-time. But the state is backlogged.

And there’s the opioid crisis. Over 90 percent of our homeless population is suffering from an addiction or mental health issue. Some of our deputies are partnered with social workers, and they’re going out to homeless camps to try to figure out who needs help with addiction and get them treatment.

This is a nationwide crisis that’s on everyone’s mind; everyone wants to talk about it, and it’s going to be here for a while. The thing I’m proud of are the changes we’ve made: a pair of handcuffs and a trip to jail doesn’t work with this crisis. It won’t get us out of this. People say “take them to jail” all the time, but when we give people a hand up, we connect with them, we get them help, they’re not in our system anymore.

Ours is the one business that doesn’t want repeat customers. It’s not fair that we have to fix it, but nontraditional methods are working. We’re trying to be creative as we can. I deal with a lot of people — good families — who are dealing with this. These are human beings. We don’t choose who we protect and serve, it’s everybody.

Over 30 years in law enforcement has taught me a lot.

I’m getting ready to start my 32^nd year in this profession. Back when I joined the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Department as a deputy, I was chosen to be part of a community policing program. My experience with that program is something that has stuck with me and set me on a path toward working very closely with the community. I learned a lot from it. For example, I learned the importance of saying, “I’m sorry, we shouldn’t have done that.” And I’ve learned the importance of sitting with people and working together to find solutions.

Our motto is “community first,” and it’s the defining value of my career.

We understand our role as law enforcement; it’s a very honorable but contentious task.

If there’s one thing I’d like the people of Snohomish County to know about our job, it’s that we understand our role. We’re very fortunate to live in a community that supports law enforcement, and in turn we work really, really hard to reduce crime and be engaged in the community.

Every single day we work to engage and connect — and take our lumps when we need to. We don’t ever lose sight of that. Our is a very honorable but contentious task, and we have to be compassionate in everything we do.

-Sheriff Trenary, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, Washington

By Jenny Donovan|2018-10-03T16:52:23-04:00October 4th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Travis Patten

It’s going to take everyone working together to eradicate the violence from our community.

“We’re losing our youth to gun violence at a rapid pace. Youth of all ages have murdered people throughout our community, and it’s increasing at an extremely alarming rate, not only here but across the nation. We had two or three murders last year; this year it’s up to eight in total – city and county.

“We’re working to help reprogram the minds of our youth to understand that every time you kill someone, you’re killing off a whole generation. You’re also not putting any value on your own life or anyone else’s life. These kids need to understand that every time they kill someone, they possibly just killed the next mayor, sheriff, governor or even the next president.

“We’ve embraced community policing as a part of that reprogramming. I pick a school once a week and walk the school. We attend community events for youth – everywhere there’s a youth function, you’ll see me or one of my deputies. The kids call me ‘Uncle Travis’ now. I give them my cell number and they use it. Their concerns are my concerns.

“Recently a young lady [age 17] who was pregnant was killed in a drive-by shooting. Within minutes information started pouring in to my cell phone, and less than 10 hours later we had all four of the perpetrators in jail. The people in our community have taken a stand with law enforcement; they’re breaking the code of silence.

“Faith-based organizations are stepping up and going into rough areas and praying over the grounds. There’s a major push going on to get gangs to lay down their guns and give families the control over their neighborhoods.

“I personally engage with gang leaders and the people are, too. It’s a multidisciplinary team approach. We’re using what I call the ‘three C’s’: consideration, communication, and collaboration. Law enforcement didn’t start this violence – no officer has shot anyone in this community – and it’s not going to end with us. It’s going to take everybody to eradicate this problem from our community. I’m of the ‘it takes a village’ approach, and it’s yielding very positive results.”

The journey to becoming sheriff is something I’m proud of.

“When I ran for sheriff in 2015, the community was extremely divided. The racial makeup of Adams County is almost evenly divided between black and white. But as I went door to door, people started to see my vision; they started to buy in. For me and the people who voted for me, it was never about race or color. The community showed by their vote that it was about doing the right thing, even if it wasn’t the popular thing to do. It took the entire community’s support through a grassroots effort to get me elected.

“When I put my name on that ballot I’d never run for anything in my life, never spoken in public. I’m a Navy veteran, was a mortgage loan officer and a K-9 officer in narcotics. It was me against an incumbent and another guy who had 30 years of experience. I had no major backers and virtually no funding. It was truly a modern-day David vs. Goliath story.

“Some people tried to scare me away. They took my political signs across the river to Louisiana and sent me videos of my signs being used for target practice – shooting at my face – or being burned. But we pushed forward.

“The community of Adams County bought into my vision wholeheartedly, and for that I am extremely grateful. We overcame the odds. Ninety-five percent of the people here are good people who want change. We’re not going to let the 5 percent win.”

Whether you’re the janitor or the president, everyone deserves to be treated equally.

“If there’s one thing I’d like people to know about us [Adams County Sheriff’s Office], it’s that we have compassion in our hearts for the community we serve. We are not what they’re seeing all over the country. There’s a war going on between law enforcement and their communities, but we are not at war with the people of Adams County. We will always put them first while serving them. Our goal is to show the rest of the nation how well a community can thrive when law enforcement, the schools and citizens work together.

“I wish people understood the weight that rests on law enforcement’s shoulders. We’re almost like street pastors: People are looking to us for the answers to everything. A lot of people have problems, and for many, we’re the solution. I don’t take that lightly. When they bring those issues to us, we’re going to act on it.

“We’re always going to be transparent. People deserve to know what’s going on. Politics shouldn’t have a place in law enforcement. Whether you’re the janitor or the president, everyone deserves to be treated equally. You have a lot of outside influences trying to get you to go this way or that way, but I will not be bought or compromised. That’s what I want every citizen of Adams County to know.”

-Sheriff Travis Patten, Adams County Sheriff’s Office, Mississippi

By Jenny Donovan|2018-08-23T11:01:08-04:00August 23rd, 2018|Police-Community Relations, Public Safety Voices|2 Comments

Public Safety Voices | Warden Joe Chavez

Nearly everyone who comes in has either medical or mental health issues.

“The number of detainees we have with mental health issues absorbs a lot of resources. Nearly everyone (about 90%) who comes in has either a medical or mental health issue, which can be masked by dependency on medication or non-prescription drugs.

“We have 175-185 detainees at any given time. Of that number, 3-5 have a hardcore mental illness. It takes a lot of time and resources to meet the challenge of trying to determine how to help them while they’re here. You don’t want them to be restricted from the other detainees; it’s not good for them – isolation does more mental harm than good. But you also have to protect them from harming others and from others taking advantage of them.

“A lot of people don’t understand the difference between jail and prison. By the time a prison gets the detainee, we’ve baselined them to be ready for that incarceration. We get them raw. It may be their first time; they may be depressed or suicidal or have mild to severe mental health and medical issues.

“Our biggest expense is our medical and mental health staff. We have a psychiatric nurse and a team of counselors on staff. And, every year we try to add more hours to our mental health team, but it’s hard to budget for it. It’s a revolving door here. We don’t have the resources for long-term treatment.”

I speak to every detainee once a week; I go into every cell.

“I’ve been very lucky to be fully staffed. My main competitors are the prison across the street and the other detainment center, and now Facebook is coming in – and they all pay better. So we’re working on a stronger retainment package; I’m trying to get higher wages for my team.

“A seasoned officer for me is 8-9 years. You have to interact with the staff, show them you’re with them, help them to diffuse situations. Ours is not such an aggressive facility. That’s why the staff stays.

“I attribute this fact to our interaction with the detainees. They have access to us and an opportunity to voice their concerns. I and Deputy Warden Jesus Heredia go into every cell once a week to speak with the detainees, sometimes together or on different days. This also helps the staff because they don’t have to wait for an answer to issues they might be having. I or the deputy warden can make a decision immediately. It also helps us to see and address problems right away.

“That’s not to say that nothing ever happens here. There was an incident where a detainee didn’t want to lockdown. He had some inmates locked in a cell and was threatening to harm them; one was really scared. The guy had some grievances. I walked in there and was able to speak to him, and after a few minutes of talking to him, I was able to resolve it peacefully. When you can resolve something peacefully, with no physical contact, that’s a rewarding way to go home.”

I enjoy what I do: I’m in a position to help people.

“Prior to becoming the warden of this facility, I served our country as a U.S. Marine from 1986-1990. After that I went to work for the New Mexico Department of Corrections where I served as a correctional officer (CO) for 19 years, eight of those here. In August 2010 I became warden. I feel so fortunate to be in a position to help the detainees and the staff.

“Being proactive and considerate of each individual’s issues is important. I live in this community, so sometimes I go to Walmart or a restaurant and a former detainee will walk up and thank me for acknowledging them and listening to them when they were in our facility. That’s a good feeling. And when you see them leave and they don’t come back – it’s a rewarding thing.”

Being a warden is a difficult position with a lot of responsibilities.

“You’re dealing with a client who doesn’t want to be here, and who has some very unique needs. And you don’t just deal with detainees, you have to deal with staff and make sure they’re not being malicious, the families that come in, attorneys, judges, police chiefs and sheriffs, the commission … there are so many entities.

“Corrections is the hub of law enforcement. You’re pulled from all sides, and you have to be diplomatic and stern at the same time.

“People don’t understand the whole process of a jail. It’s a 24-hour, 365-day community all its own populated by people who don’t want to be here and can’t leave. You have to clothe them, feed them, make sure the HVAC works, do their laundry … it’s a lot.”

I’d like for the public to understand the high level of stress and anxiety detention officers face every day.

“We work 12-hour shifts. Each officer is assigned (direct-supervision) to a pod of 40-45 inmates. They’re with them all day long. The stress of dealing with all those different personalities, maintaining control, making sure you’re safe, your fellow staff are safe, and the detainees are safe is a lot. Plus, detainees can have a drug withdrawal at any time, and someone is always on some type of medical or suicide watch.

“The public doesn’t understand the high level of stress and anxiety correctional officers work under. If there is a bad situation – suicide, assault of one inmate on another, assault on a fellow officer, an overdose – the officers experience PTSD from that. They don’t just sit around and babysit (as perceived by the public and other law enforcement agencies). These are people who feel that they’ve lost everything – that they’ve failed their loved ones. And it’s up to us to care for them.”

–Warden Joe Chavez, Valencia County Detention Center, New Mexico

By Jenny Donovan|2018-06-04T20:36:24-04:00June 5th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Police Chief James Abbott

There are three major challenges we’re facing right now.

“Race relations, the opioid epidemic and active shooter situations: those are the three major challenges we’re dealing with right now. To address race relations, the township created a Human Relations Commission (HRC), and we have an officer who serves as both our bias investigations officer and as a liaison to the HRC. We also conduct implicit bias training and officer wellness training.

“We’ve also modified our training to include shoot don’t shoot programs. Instead of going in and shooting at a paper target, we work on when it’s appropriate to shoot or not shoot – and once again work on implicit bias awareness.

“Operation Hope is our program for combating the opioid epidemic. This program started when we lobbied for, and subsequently passed, legislation that allows people to surrender drugs without legal consequences. We then get them into detox and a rehabilitation program. If they need help paying for treatment, we can help them with that, too. We do everything we can to keep it in the social service arena and out of the criminal justice system.

“To protect the public from active shooter situations, we partnered with the DOD (Department of Defense) and received a half-million dollars in grants to run active shooter trainings. These drills are coordinated with our federal, state and county law enforcement partners and have been a viable tool in showing us what we’re doing right, what we’re doing wrong and how to do things better.

“All of these challenges require a different mindset among police agencies. We’re constantly evolving to stay in front of the curve.”

Few officers get to lead an agency in their career.

“There have been so many rewarding moments in my nearly 40-year career, but by far the most rewarding was taking the oath and being given the opportunity to lead this agency [West Orange Police Department].

“Yes, I was appointed by elected officials, but those elected officials were put in office by the people. My appointment to chief therefore reflects the confidence of the public. That’s something I take very seriously.

“So few officers get to lead an agency in their career. I’m very privileged to be one of them.”

The badge we wear is a symbol of the public’s trust.

“Young police officers today seem to grasp the concept that it is a privilege – not a right – to serve. The badge we wear is a symbol of the trust given us by the public, and we appreciate that the public has given us that confidence.

“It’s a tremendous amount of responsibility. Integrity is indispensable, as are training, education and the experience of not only learning from within [your own agency] but taking notice of what occurs in other agencies – both good and bad.

“We’re always striving to be at the forefront, to figure out how we can do things better. From traffic accidents to demonstrations, we’re always asking ourselves: How can we do this better?”

–Chief James Abbott, West Orange Police Department, New Jersey

By Jenny Donovan|2018-05-15T15:08:00-04:00May 15th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Police Chief Jennifer Tejada

Our history has led us to this place in time; we have to own the negative narrative that’s out there.

“The biggest challenge we face in policing today is the lack of public trust in who we are, what we do and our reason for being. Our history has led us to this place in time; we have to own the negative narrative that’s out there — to respond to and understand law enforcement’s role in the history of society’s unjust treatment of communities of color. We need to look at how we do things, hold ourselves accountable and figure out how we can build public trust.

“There are many issues we’re all facing as a result: Recruitment is the most significant. The negative narrative we’re in creates the impression that this isn’t a great profession to join. We’re facing a lack of diversity: We’re having a difficult time recruiting females, and people from different cultures and ethnicities.

“Another major issue is that officers are being called on to do things that aren’t necessarily aligned with our training, such as being the main social worker. Social transformation is now our role by default. Mental health issues, housing issues, drug addiction — we respond to it all. The problem is, we don’t have the resources to train people to be everything to the communities we serve.

“Looking forward, it’s not a very optimistic landscape.”

This profession and the nobility of it and the ability to serve in this capacity defines my day and who I am.

“I never lose sight of that. We are selfless in this profession. The rewards are few and far between.

“When I look back and think about the reminders of why this is important, I think about things like getting letters from domestic violence victims I helped. One in particular comes to mind — she was in a really terrible and violent relationship of 20 years. A year after she got out, she wrote to thank me and to let me know she was safe. If we hadn’t taken the extra time with her the night she was badly beaten and pistol whipped, and given her the encouragement she needed, she would probably be dead.

“Stories like that remind me to keep doing what we’re doing. We do good work, and sometimes, at the lowest point in a person’s life, we’re all they have.”

Every officer came into this career with every intention of being a hero of the community.

“Look at the human behind the badge. No one enters this profession to do something wrong. We all enter it to do good, to be pillars in the community.

“Today’s policing calls on us to deal with so much of society’s ills. It’s an emotionally and physically challenging job.

“We’re called upon to solve issues that have nothing to do with crime suppression. But every officer out there came into this career with every intention of being a hero of the community. There’s a human behind that badge with good intentions. Too often we forget to recognize their value and what they contribute to society.

“We have one of the highest suicide rates of any profession, also one of the highest rates of depression, anxiety, obesity and cardiovascular disease. We [those in positions of leadership] often don’t pay attention to the emotional needs of our personnel. We don’t give our staff the resources to address the constant stress experienced in this profession. We have largely ignored the relationship between stress, trauma and resiliency.

“We’re at a time where the burden is greater than it’s ever been. We need to figure out how we can create and maintain resiliency in our officers and our profession so we can be the best we can be.”

–Jennifer Tejada, Chief of Police, Emeryville Police Department

By Jenny Donovan|2018-04-23T19:01:39-04:00April 24th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Fire Chief Brian Fennessy

The volume of emergency medical service calls is increasing every year – to all our detriment.

“The increased volume of emergency medical service calls, especially in large metro departments, is a big topic of conversation everywhere. It continues to increase exponentially every year – so much so that the current trend is unsustainable. People who aren’t experiencing life-threatening emergencies are calling 911, which leaves our resources unavailable to respond to genuine emergencies. So we’re looking at our EMS response system and modifying how we respond to these calls.”

I can train just about anyone to be a firefighter, but I can’t train them to be a good person.

“Traditionally the fire service has not done a good job of preparing its future leaders; we’ve relied primarily on luck. The cost that comes from not developing your leaders can have huge ramifications.

“Many of our engine and truck companies are responding to calls for service nearly continuously each day. The ability to treat people with dignity when you’re tired and you’ve already run 30-plus calls can be a challenge for some, but it’s a critical part of the job. During the hiring process we do all we can to determine whether candidates share our organizational values and principles: I can train just about anyone to be a firefighter, but I can’t train them to be a good person. Someone who doesn’t have the right qualities can cause a lot of harm to the department and the public.

“We’re putting time into developing leaders at every level of the department (12 years ago we initiated a leader development program), and the results are clear. There are some amazing stories coming up about firefighters going above and beyond. For example, one of my engine companies recently responded to an elderly female who fell and cracked her head open on the hardwood floor in her home. After the crew had treated her and transported her to the hospital, they went back to the house, made entry, and cleaned up the area in her house where she had fallen (there was a lot of blood) so she wouldn’t have to return home to deal with cleaning that up all by herself.

Times of San Diego

“Another example came on a medical call – cardiac arrest. The engine crew responded quickly and took good care of the husband, as well as every family member there. The wife called me later that week to share how our crew had treated her husband and family with great care and dignity. I asked how her husband was recovering. She told me he had passed away. Even though she had just lost her husband of many years, she called to thank us for the care we gave him and her family. That says a lot about the quality and character of our firefighters.

“Statistics demonstrate that most people will never call 911 in their lives. However, when they do, they may be experiencing the worst day of their life. We have to remember that – to treat people well. The citizen and their family will remember that day forever. Those are the kinds of things that are most important.”

There’s no greater threat in San Diego than a wildfire.

“Wildfires are always a big concern here; there’s no greater threat to life and property in San Diego. It’s year-round, and climate change has only made it worse.

“Last year, more than 11,000 structures were destroyed in the state of California, and hundreds of thousands of acres were blackened. The average annual rainfall in the city is approximately 11 inches. We’ve received a fraction of that this year, meaning that we expect to experience critical fire conditions once again this year. And once the Santa Ana winds start blowing, we’re going to experience some fires that are uncontrollable.”

We show up ready.

“The San Diego Fire-Rescue Department has some of the best trained firefighters in the country. We work hard and spend a lot of time and resources on training. We’re also fortunate to have the best equipment available and the latest technology at our fingertips.

“We do this so that when we do arrive, our citizens have some of the most highly trained firefighters in the country taking care of them. We take a lot of pride in that. We’re going to show up, solve your problem, do it quickly – and treat you with great care and dignity.”

–Chief Brian Fennessy, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department

By Jenny Donovan|2018-04-23T19:17:13-04:00April 10th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Former Deputy Chief John Haas

Vacancies should be filled by those looking to make the world a better place.

“In general, this is a really challenging time for law enforcement. Bad judgment needs to be addressed. It’s getting a little tougher to hire good people and, as a result, agencies are dropping their standards just to get people in, which is only going to make things worse. It might solve the vacancy rate, but in the long term, it’s going to be an issue: problem employees create liability, poor community/police relations, bad media and press.

“Agencies need to hire the best and brightest they can – experienced, worldly, mature – those who are looking to make the world a better place.”

There are three events that stick out in my mind as “defining moments.”

“9/11 – the Pentagon is in Arlington, so we [Arlington County PD] were the first responders for that. I was in Miami Beach that day and immediately tried to get back home when it happened, but every travel avenue was booked. So, I ended up driving home in this huge white Cadillac.

“I’ll never forget the feeling of not being there. I was very disappointed I couldn’t be there with my department, helping. By the time I got there a couple of days later, everyone was so exhausted –emotionally, mentally, physically spent. But I was fresh and could take command of the situation, so that was actually a good thing. The first thing I did was walk to the site … and it impacts me still today.

“The second event was a hostage situation that took place when I was evening section commander. A former husband had taken his wife hostage. He was armed. We negotiated all through the night, and it kept getting worse and worse and worse. Finally, I authorized the SWAT team to go in. There were three rounds of shots and officers down. My heart stopped and for a moment I thought I’d sent three officers to their graves. Luckily, they all sustained minor injuries and had killed the hostage-taker – but that was really hard. It’s an awesome responsibility.

“And the third event (actually two events) involved use of deadly force — when I could have used deadly force and didn’t. One was the right call, and one was wrong. In the first event, I was working midnight shift when I came up on two guys breaking into a building. I got one guy on the ground, and he pulled a gun. I thought it was a toy gun and didn’t shoot. But it was real and if the guy had pulled the trigger, I would have been dead.

“The second time was during a burglary in progress. There was a woman screaming and crying on the front lawn. She convinced me that someone was in the basement. I went to investigate, and there was a dark figure in the corner. I started giving orders. But the figure didn’t move. It took me a few minutes, but I finally figured out it was a stuffed gorilla.”

What should people know about us? Cops get scared, too.

“Cops get scared, too. Split-second decisions in the field can be very, very difficult. We’re only human, and sometimes we make a mistake.

“But there are two types of mistakes: mistakes of the head, which are due to a lack of training, poor judgment, etc., and there are mistakes of heart – when you know it was wrong, but you did it anyway. When you make the latter, it’s time to leave.”

–Former Deputy Chief (retired) John Haas, Arlington County Police Department, Arlington, Va.

By Jenny Donovan|2018-04-23T19:18:37-04:00March 27th, 2018|Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

Public Safety Voices | Sheriff Kevin Joyce

We’ve been forced to make a lot of changes in our hiring practices.

“Filling vacancies – specifically in corrections, and to a lesser extent in patrol – in today’s workforce has forced us to make a lot of changes in our hiring practices. To start with, we have to move a lot quicker, which causes anxiety in HR at times: the whole ‘haste makes waste’ adage. But for some Millennials, there’s an expectation for immediate gratification: instant replies, constant communication. It’s labor intensive for my command staff.

“We’re also finding that fewer and fewer applicants make it through the entire application process. Before, we used to get a mass number of applicants for an opening, and it would take about eight applicants to get one good candidate. Now, only 2-3 at a time are dribbling in.

“We spend a lot of money just trying to recruit people. We’re competing against employers who don’t have the rigorous vetting process we do, and against the current reputation of law enforcement in general, as well as the nontraditional work hours and demands of the job.

“Attending local job fairs and placing job announcements in the paper used to be all it took in terms of advertising, but now we have to hit every job fair – even those a couple hundred miles away. We even installed an electric message board at the end of our driveway to advertise vacancies.

“There are people who still respect what we do, and there a lot of people doing good work still. But the role of our command staff has changed to some degree; they’ve had to become cheerleaders for their staff.”

Thirty-two years on the job, and I wouldn’t change a thing.

“The reality of the job is that there are a lot of calls and ways you assist people that have an impact on their lives. The job is whatever you make of it.

“I have 32 years on the job. It’s gone by fast, and I wouldn’t change a thing. You see danger, trauma – what people would consider a lot of negatives. But you see a lot of positives, too.

“I’ve had several people whom I’ve arrested for various issues, or given tickets to, who have later shaken my hand and thanked me because at the time it happened, they were misguided, and if I hadn’t done that, God knows where they would be. That’s the real reward of the job.”

The job isn’t about one officer or one agency – together, we make an impact.

“As an officer, you are a member of a profession that together works as an aggregate. We all make an impact, it’s not just one officer or one agency: It’s everybody working together.

“We have to hold ourselves accountable while trying to hold the people we serve accountable. We have to work to keep the profession honorable.”

–Sheriff Kevin Joyce, Cumberland County, Maine, Sheriff’s Department

By Jenny Donovan|2018-04-23T19:19:44-04:00March 13th, 2018|Assessment, Public Safety Voices|Comments Off

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