Dustin Kass
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Police Dept. Needs Some Backup
Editorial
By Dustin Kass
It’s time to give the Osawatomie Police Department some help.
Due to the overseas deployments of officers who also have military obligations, the department has been without three very experienced officers for months. Additionally, the department is without the services of another officer who is currently in the police academy.
That’s quite a blow to a group that’s only 12 officers strong when fully staffed.
Chief Mike Stiles and the rest of the department have done their best to fill the gaps. Stiles has hired one full-time temporary officer and a part-time officer to help carry some of the load, but he says its tough to get quality officers when they face the prospect of being jobless when the other officers return.
Make no mistake about it: The remaining officers are doing their best to protect and police the city, but they’re stretched too thin. They need help.
In addition to the department being shorthanded, Osawatomie officers have been bombarded over the past year. Providing security and assistance nonstop during last summer’s flood and in its aftermath. Investigating and arresting individuals on two murders that have occurred in the city limits in the past seven months. Continuing to investigate multiple arsons that have occurred throughout Osawatomie. And that’s not to mention the other crimes — thefts, drug cases, burglaries, batteries, domestic disputes — that can easily consume large portions of an officer’s shift.
Some in the department are already carrying quite a load, even when they aren’t involved in comprehensive murder or arson investigation. Officer Ted Bartlett is a prime example. Many residents will recognize the name because Bartlett is fire chief of the Osawatomie Fire Department. For the police department, Bartlett serves as the city’s de facto animal control officer, as well as playing a role in codes regulation and enforcement. Some other local cities have one full-time person devoted to each of those tasks.
The lack of manpower is affecting how the officers police the town. Assistant Police Chief Bob Butters said officers don’t have time to be proactive, the way he wishes they could be. In a town with its fair share of criminal problems — which is the unpleasant reality — that’s bad news.
The police department is simply stretched too thin, and it’s time for the city to give them some help by adding another position.
The additional officer will help fill the ranks until the three men return from their military service, providing relief to the overburdened staff.
When the other officers return, the city and police department can decide how to best use the additional position. Maybe it’s time to put a greater emphasis on code enforcement, or animal control, or just patrolling the stretch of U.S. Highway 169 in the city limits.
It’s understandable that city officials want to be budget conscious, and that attitude has helped turn the city’s financial situation around. But the police department is not the place to pinch pennies, especially with the staffing challenges it is facing.
It’s time to give our officers some much-needed backup.
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Due to the overseas deployments of officers who also have military obligations, the department has been without three very experienced officers for months. Additionally, the department is without the services of another officer who is currently in the police academy.
That’s quite a blow to a group that’s only 12 officers strong when fully staffed.
Chief Mike Stiles and the rest of the department have done their best to fill the gaps. Stiles has hired one full-time temporary officer and a part-time officer to help carry some of the load, but he says its tough to get quality officers when they face the prospect of being jobless when the other officers return.
Make no mistake about it: The remaining officers are doing their best to protect and police the city, but they’re stretched too thin. They need help.
In addition to the department being shorthanded, Osawatomie officers have been bombarded over the past year. Providing security and assistance nonstop during last summer’s flood and in its aftermath. Investigating and arresting individuals on two murders that have occurred in the city limits in the past seven months. Continuing to investigate multiple arsons that have occurred throughout Osawatomie. And that’s not to mention the other crimes — thefts, drug cases, burglaries, batteries, domestic disputes — that can easily consume large portions of an officer’s shift.
Some in the department are already carrying quite a load, even when they aren’t involved in comprehensive murder or arson investigation. Officer Ted Bartlett is a prime example. Many residents will recognize the name because Bartlett is fire chief of the Osawatomie Fire Department. For the police department, Bartlett serves as the city’s de facto animal control officer, as well as playing a role in codes regulation and enforcement. Some other local cities have one full-time person devoted to each of those tasks.
The lack of manpower is affecting how the officers police the town. Assistant Police Chief Bob Butters said officers don’t have time to be proactive, the way he wishes they could be. In a town with its fair share of criminal problems — which is the unpleasant reality — that’s bad news.
The police department is simply stretched too thin, and it’s time for the city to give them some help by adding another position.
The additional officer will help fill the ranks until the three men return from their military service, providing relief to the overburdened staff.
When the other officers return, the city and police department can decide how to best use the additional position. Maybe it’s time to put a greater emphasis on code enforcement, or animal control, or just patrolling the stretch of U.S. Highway 169 in the city limits.
It’s understandable that city officials want to be budget conscious, and that attitude has helped turn the city’s financial situation around. But the police department is not the place to pinch pennies, especially with the staffing challenges it is facing.
It’s time to give our officers some much-needed backup.
Comments on "Police Dept. Needs Some Backup"
Comments are limited to 200 words or less.resident wrote on May 14, 2008 12:36 PM:
" I could not even tell you who Stiles was, if I saw him. It always seems that Bob Butters is the one you see out and about WORKING! "
Longtime city resident wrote on May 14, 2008 7:46 AM:
" It is time to consider outsourcing the police dispatch that is fully staffed 24 hours a day 365 days a year. The move could save the city $150,000 per year. Chief Stiles rails against the move but must face reality that his departments budget makes up 49% of the city budget. It's time for the Chief to get out into the public and put his butt in a patrol car instead of sitting in his office all day "