President's Message
Trust within the ranks takes dive
Officers are by nature distrusting individuals, as we see the worst of what humanity has to offer. Day in and day out officers go to work knowing that at any moment they could make the ultimate sacrifice.
However, as of late the concerns are not coming from the outside. They are coming from our own department.
I have spoken many times to the chief about the distrust officers have of upper management. He claims he understands it and is working to build the trust with the rank and file. I wrote an article last month regarding traffic stops and why they are down across the city, and this is true with most police agencies.
In this day and time when everyone wants “transparency,” we see that it only goes one direction. The department started this Being First Program to change
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Why fewer HPD traffic stops?
There is a lot of discussion going on about the fact that traffic stops are down around the department. A recent report showed that very few patrol officers conduct proactive traffic stops or on-view investigations.
I received a call from several within the command staff asking what can be done to improve the traffic stop numbers. It is well known that traffic stops often lead to arrest for various violations of the law. For a number of years TACT teams and gang units have been using traffic stops for probable cause, that have led to the arrest of crooks.
Over these years, the tactics have changed, so longer investigations are conducted to go after robbery crews, juggers and other violent offenders. This is a big shift in mindset that has allowed our TACT teams to truly thwart cr
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