So Finally...O'Toole

In this post I offer the final chapter to The Seattle Situation: A City Adrift. Things often go very wrong in police departments before the media take off the rose-colored glasses and come close to effective reporting. The media overlook or obscure indicators of potential problems that may result from decisions made early in the tenure of new police administrations. The honeymoon period has become sacrosanct. Newcomers are treated as special people by Seattle media. This default position is worthy of some conversation later on.

By the time critical reporting begins (if ever) it can be too late to correct the course. That has been the case at Seattle PD for thirty or more years. Here we take a look at a new police command in its first year - the “Early Katie O’Toole” - based on a growing record of her actual decisions and utterances. My observations about the history of the decline in police management are not intended to imply that there can be no quality administrators imported from other Cities, nor that O’Toole is flawed because of her membership in this class or because of her gender. Initial contacts with her were positive, but the “honeymoon” had to end and real measure necessarily commences. Failure has been a constant over far too many years hereabouts. Only a harsh light will reveal the cracks in a new regime while there is still time to recover.

SO FINALLY…KATIE O’TOOLE

Katie O’Toole is the latest in a line of imports to the position of Police Chief here in Seattle. She represents yet another player in the Seattle edition of the modern era of  police management. Over the past half-century many cities have taken to a ritualized national search for the best available candidate when replacing a departing chief. Local talent is marginalized in many of these cases. The best available standard is often farcical. It may have less to do with actual expertise than certain other “desirable” but subjective factors. For instance, a city that has had noticeable racial strife can almost certainly be counted on to select a minority as the new Chief. Women also bring to the process a certain novelty that has political value but may have far less practical effect.

Women and persons of color have provided high quality service to police agencies around the country. I don't imply that their novelty lessens the quality of leadership, but rather that the media become so fixed on that novelty that they blind themselves, and the public, to early problems that may fester and worsen because of the fog in which the media wander. The results of this "best available" process are mixed at best.

To understand what confronts O’Toole, and thus be able to measure her progress, one must accept that Seattle is in serious straits and that O’Toole inherited a calamity. No other perspective can derive from the well recorded history of police command failure here. And to understand O’Toole further I am going to reflect on her early decisions against a backdrop that the media can’t seem to grasp or are unwilling to confront.

But first… Seattle is in the toils of the “Federal Adoption process” that I mentioned earlier. The systemic failure that set that process in motion cannot be attributed to any cause other than the failure of management at SPD that began with Patrick Fitzsimons back in 1979. My observations are backed by that well-recorded history. I add that fact here because of my personal “collision” with Pat Fitzsimons back in the mid-80s: I confronted him publicly about TOLERANCE OF DRUG-DEALING in inner-city Seattle neighborhoods. Some will say that conflict alone motivates me to haunt Pat with criticism. (Look forward to a post in the near-future entitled for the actual details.)

The first of the "special travelers" - Patrick Fitzsimons

Fitzsimons, in his paranoia about “corruption,” curtailed drug enforcement and crippled Civil Abatement, a patrol division program for confronting and shutting down the “crack-house” scourge that had many Seattle neighborhoods in a state of siege. Fitzsimons cryptically blocked an invitation by the DEA for two patrol sergeants, the principal architects of this very effective strategy, to address a DEA Seminar in San Francisco…such was the degree of his spite. Note here that Fitzsimons was not invited, nor was his Narcotics unit Commander. It was clear to the DEA and other agencies that these two were actually dragging SPD out of the regional drug enforcement effort.

A perspective on this mysterious withdrawal can be found soon in this blog. Also, on the last Sunday of December, 1985, the Times finally did a rare front page review of Fitzsimons’ destruction of the regional anti-drug effort. Well worth reading…especially for doubters of my criticisms here. It serves as both a measure of police management and an indicator of what the media COULD do if politics were put aside in the interest of public safety.

On to California Dreamin' or the Reign of the Norman (Stamper, that is) King.

Next came Norm (“make no waves”) Stamper, who wanted the “seas to remain calm around City Hall” at any cost! Don’t wanna waken his Honor the Mayor, now do we? So dedicated was he to the illusion that all was well if the cops stayed away that Norm let the WTO demonstrations get completely out of hand with enormous property damage, injured cops, and disgrace for the SPD. So long Norm!

Now comes NO FRILLS GIL, The Man from Myopia

Next came Gil Kerlikowski…Gil from the same mold as Norm “no waves” Stamper. But Gil took hands-off policing to another level. One Fat Tuesday Eve (a big Mardi Gras-like celebration in Seattle that had become increasingly ugly in those recent years) Gil so restricted police intervention in an out-and-out riot in Pioneer Square that a horrible event occurred: a savage beating death occurred with cops held in check, literally watching from across the street.

Gil knew that the Mayor wanted the big celebration to go off without any police-related incident. So when a band of savages set upon innocent revelers on First Avenue he ordered the cops to stay out of the fray. Gil was taking all this in from the safety of a parking garage across the street, and some thirty feet overhead from the squadron of cops who were literally screaming for permission to intervene.

"Stand down!" came the order from above, and THE COPS DID SO! Remarkable, no? That default will be further reviewed here in time as well. So the savages set upon any and all at will. Then it happened - one heroic young man, Kristopher Kime, went to the rescue of a young woman who had been beaten down to the sidewalk. For his effort Kris was also savagely assaulted and was to die of his injuries. By the Grace of God the young woman survived.

The Mayor awoke the next morning primarily content that his police chief had not precipitated any uproar. A tragic preventable death as a consequence? Shit happens! Right Gil? But several of the cops who had been restrained at least spoke out publicly, and donated to the funeral fund for young Kris. Too little too late though…even if nobly done! Gil hung on for a time. In this interim he launched another “jewel of command wisdom.” He set the working shifts up so that the troops were only marginally under the purview of their supervisors. Some days for an hour or two, others not at all. People wonder then about patterns of mistakes by cops that grew in this vacuum?

The Feds properly made much ado about this absurdity - lack of first-line supervision - and it is finally going the way of other folly at SPD. Gil hurried off to become the National Drug Czar for some myopic president. Via Con Dios. There was a brief intermission for a hometown boy, John Diaz, but his was a rather unfocused tenure as Seattle continued to decline. John stumbled along as disoriented as his contemporaries at SPD. All had been crippled by the mismanagement styles they absorbed under the unholy three just mentioned.

Back to the unfolding O’Toole chapter

Here again I have to interject an update! I began the narrative below with the note that about six months had passed since O’Toole arrived. Some more weeks have passed and certain more recent events need entry at this time.

O’Toole has been busy at her musical-chairs command game, importing command-types from elsewhere, putting her team together, getting her ducks in a row, so she says. She has also mentioned again that she is hard at work on a computer purchase ($11,000,000) that will track citizen concerns about cops and policing. This is all part of her intensive effort to please the Federal Monitor. And she has taken a few definitive disciplinary steps as well. Jolly good show!

In the meantime, out on the streets, public safety itself is still very much in question! The hard fact is, what they bring into focus is that O’Toole continues to take refuge in the fog of that Federal Process. She has yet to sustain improvements in police presence and public safety. SPD IS STILL ON AUTO-PILOT!

Downtown is getting some attention…a little more foot patrol…but there is a dirty little secret to that. A forthcoming piece on The Great Labor Day Parade will make it clear that O’Toole did not show any initiative here until “motivated” by an old cop’s foot patrol demonstration that just happened to catch her eye.

Also significant is a news item from KOMO featuring Dave Meinert, a tavern owner on Capitol Hill. Last summer, Meinert with colleagues and other merchants, staged a public meeting to call out for more police presence, primarily foot patrol, to put an end to assaults and robberies and other mayhem they suffer along Broadway and sidestreets. Mind you, this all plays out within eyesight of the SPD East Precinct. And 12th and Pine!

SPD (O’Toole) responded with the requested increases, but only for a time. So there was Dave Meinert on the tube again the other night, praying that the City would go proactive  this year and step up the police presence BEFORE THINGS AGAIN GET OUT OF HAND!

KOMO went on to say that the Mayor ("Special" Ed Murray) had promised that patrol presence would be increased! INDEED! But there was no mention of O’Toole! No indication of interest or intention about the problem! And no KOMO comment to that point. Remember that O’Toole visited that Capitol Hill group last year…and acknowledged that she recognized their fears. But now she is absent? Oh the mystery.

It is as if the media and “Special” Ed have given O’Toole a pass. It seems that as long as she makes the occasional cameo announcing some type of bureaucratic move, she can delay her entry into the real arena - the cauldron of public safety - as long as the public allows. The backdrop is filled out by the news that Magnolia and Ballard are now on the verge of joining other districts hiring off-duty cops to have at least a minimally effective police presence. SO AGAIN, KATIE…WHERE THE HELL ARE THE COPS? You have a force of over thirteen hundred cops and you can't even mobilize half that many to get out on the streets and prevent more of the crime that people suffer?

BACK NOW TO THE GREATER PERSPECTIVE

Almost eleven months have passed since O’Toole took the helm. She was treated to all the ceremonials that befit the latest “special person” to enter the Seattle scene. All of her extensive police credentials were well published and received by the “special folks” hereabouts. Members of the media practically prostrate themselves at her door. But it was clear that her greatest merit was gender. That should not remain the major measure of her efforts, but it can hardly be any other way in Seattle.

Being “special enough” quiets more objective measures for quite some time. In some cases, quiets it, period. Point of fact, there is some incipient irony in this with respect to “Special” Ed Murray, who arrived just before O’Toole and in fact hired her. Ed arrived touted as Seattle’s “first Gay Mayor.” That aura has already affected coverage of his performance. Much as with Nick (“the Black Guy”) Metz, Ed may forever be seen through a different lens as a result of the agenda of some in the Gay community. It is a millstone he may not be able to shake.

Not a long tenure for O’Toole yet, but certain events to date seem to indicate what her style and priorities will be. Unfortunately, in spite of early indicators, she appears to have been caught off guard by the political firestorm she encountered. It will be difficult to regain her equilibrium and balance the political with the practical.

I made an overture to O’Toole soon after she arrived and settled in. I invited her to meet with a few of us retired cops. With collective experience of decades of policing in Seattle, extending back 60 plus years, we felt we could bring the Chief up to date on the mistakes of her predecessors and provide a perspective on some better moments in SPD history that no other group could. Some success to build on.

The initial response was encouraging, but we were not to hear from her for several weeks until she came to a luncheon we hosted. It was worth the wait. In her comments we could see that some of what we offered had impressed her. O’Toole noted that she had taken a hard look at the danger and disgrace that afflicts downtown Seattle and she confirmed the situation was unacceptable! That raised hope that she would promptly act to bolster police foot patrol to reduce the danger, both to the residents and business folk, and certainly the cops who work down there, always undermanned and at all the more risk as a result. But the first sense of doubt of her grasp of the needed measures began to emerge even as the lunch rolled on.

One of our first suggestions had been to adapt existing manpower to bolster the patrol forces. Based on our extensive experience we indicated that several dozen more cops could be mobilized by having the non-uniform personnel, detectives and actual command staff, work a day or so in uniform each week and “walk the beat” with the regular patrol forces wherever chronic problems arose.

But lo…O’Toole announced that she had had someone “survey the department staffing” and that she could only find SIX officers, out of approximately 700 non-uniform personnel, that could be so utilized. That is preposterous …and shortsighted. Hell, the command staff alone would provide at least sixteen more-or-less able bodies. And the exercise would do them good! I later asked her who had done that “survey” and offered to do another one for her. No response.

At a meeting soon after, O’Toole was asked by a distressed Rainier Valley resident just how manpower assignment decisions were made. This raises another issue, based directly on an early decision, of O’Toole’s competence. Clearly this resident had a sense that more troops were needed on the streets all over town. She remembered the days when there were more uniformed cops deployed to very good effect in Rainier Valley, which has always been “tough turf.” O’Toole’s reply was remarkable. She indicated that she was actually seeking a “consultant firm” to advise her on assigning officers. Two of her command staff were present and they tacitly endorsed her plan. They said not a word.

Then it was that I began to see more of the same old “special person chief” posture emerging. Can anyone possibly explain why an experienced Police Commander, accompanied by two veteran command staff, has to hire a consultant to figure out where to assign the cops? Collectively, O’Toole and her “commanders” have at least fifty years such experience. So what could be at work here?

What first comes to mind, when an apparently experienced person sidesteps so relevant a question, is that ineptitude or political concern is the factor. Politics seems far more likely, based on additional indicators of O’Toole’s disposition. Consider the uproar when an officer wrote a significant number of citations for smoking marijuana in public. These tickets were written in downtown areas where the smell of burning weed is constant, primarily as a result of inconsiderate and disruptive behavior, and primarily by a regular gaggle of young or homeless people who plague public areas like Westlake Park. Their antics also shield a lot of sometimes vicious criminal behavior.

These citations have merit as one aspect of a police effort to discourage the rowdies from interrupting normal social activity and causing a lot of ordinary folks fear and distress. Seems like some good police work. But…the cop in question made a couple of irreverent notes on these tickets lampooning the City Attorney Peter Holmes, since Holmes is an avowed proponent of legal marijuana possession. The cop may have felt that some extra signal to Holmes might alert him to the very anti-social results of the MJ legalization.

Sure enough, Holmes takes exception, raises the matter with Special Ed and O’Toole, and the Seattle Times makes the expose of this cop’s “heresy” FRONT PAGE NEWS. This doubtless alarms Special Ed at City Hall. So something clearly has to be done…don’t you know?

Sure enough, the cop is hauled up on notice to O’Toole’s office and leaves chastened and apologetic. But the master stroke is O’Toole’s decree that those citations will all be cancelled because they were written for the wrong reason. The wrong friggin' reason!

So the questions must land on O’Toole’s desk! Chief, given that countless folks in a city like Seattle receive citations for some misdemeanor or other every day, how then will you decide which were written for the “right reason” or not? Will you attend to the concerns of any emergent “special” group of people like Special Ed did for Harriet Walden when she demanded that her new “special category” (Black guys) be exempt from routine handling in personnel assignments? Will you polygraph cops who seem to pay special (maybe excessive?) attention to certain groups of people, such as transvestites on Broadway to see just what motivates them?

What about the cops who specialize in DUI enforcement? Here is another very important public safety problem, impaired driving, and there are a few cops that really excel here. Will you accept questions of their “motives” from defense attorneys and drag those cops through the mill and subject them to public criticism?

It has to be said, Katie…you threw in with Special Ed and Pete with this sort of "PR sop”…and it will come back to haunt you. When you let special interests…or a petty minded City Attorney…dictate enforcement, you have crossed the sort of bridge that ALWAYS crumbles behind you.

As to the suggestion that you mobilize more cops into uniform to confront the runaway uproar and violence downtown. In the military they call this a “SURGE”…and they clearly work. On the one hand, you seem to get it: But on a recent weekend there were at least two more violent shooting events downtown. And you have publicly confirmed that you know this is an ongoing dangerous outrage.

SO…WHERE THE HELL ARE THE COPS, Katie?

After a “Holiday Parade” (a “one old cop” foot patrol demonstration) I conducted back on Labor Day you actually did marginally increase troop-strength downtown. More confirmation of my point that this is the solution. But here is the rub! .The violence continues, maybe even worsens - more strong-arm robberies, more drug dealing - so clearly you have not done enough! How can you now not put more boots on the ground? Do you dare wait until the bullets flying again kill some innocent?

Early decisions indicate that O’Toole, in the face of what she has herself described as an ugly and dangerous situation the heart of Seattle, declines to sufficiently bolster certain important enforcement (foot patrol - which are the scourge of drug use and dealing) and fails to employ available manpower to restore some equilibrium (safety) for the beleaguered folk who must live and work there. Everyone okay with that?

MORE TO THE POINT…WASSUP WITH THIS?

Here is the real grim possibility that may explain the disconnection that O’Toole herself has recognized. But reader beware…these facts are as politically incorrect as they are pertinent. It is clear that much of the violence downtown, in fact virtually all gun violence, is at the hands of Black males, young men who prey on one another  almost exclusively when it comes to the shootings, but prey almost exclusively on non-blacks when it comes to the muggings and other street crime they account for. Keep that in mind here as we examine the downtown situation in a more definitive light.

Recall the demotion of Nick Metz by Jim Pugel, which was reversed later by Special Ed (who is Pure Seattle when it comes to yielding to pressure from voices in minority sectors). Can the tolerance of so much of the downtown uproar result from some additional unholy concession made to those voices? A few strident voices in the Black community raise all kinds of hell when they feel some sort of “profiling” is occurring, when young Black people receive much attention from the cops. This is in fact one of the central complaints that brought the Federales riding into town. It is the most common stock-in-trade of police critics.

So polarizing and politically potent is the profiling rap that even any modest evidence of focus on young Black men by the cops can cause a near hysterical reaction from some in the “community”! The history of actual abuse that begot legitimate concern about “profiling’ in the Black community is not to be forgotten or excused. Time was that Black folks, not just young Black men, were in real danger in some parts just for being in the “wrong part of town.” But that concern has long been addressed with increasing integration (affirmative action) of police forces and education of all the cops about the unintended consequences of what may be reasonable actions in a given moment over forty or more years.

Now any youngster is as likely to earn the attention of cops as not, BECAUSE YOUNG PEOPLE ARE THE SOURCE OF THE BULK OF STREET CRIME. But…no matter to the “voices.” Seen in this broader perspective one has to admit that it isn’t just black youngsters that are being paid close attention. "It ain't the color…it’s the neighborhood…STUPID.” So it is that any other “color” young man who fits the general description of individuals or groups that are causing significant crime and uproar in any area can damn well figure to be confronted by the police in certain circumstances these days, and necessarily so.

But in Seattle and many other towns the cops can find themselves under not-so-subtle pressure…even to the point of not broadcasting the race of suspects of immediate crimes, if the suspects happen to be Black. This inanity (I call it cowardice) satisfies the ego of the few "Black Voices" but has an incredible price for the greater Black Community. It is in the shadow of this “protected status” that the incredibly destructive subculture of violence has engulfed many young black men.

But to settle the immediate question, which we leave with Special Ed, "Petey" Holmes, and Katie O’Toole: Has some “Devil's bargain" been struck here? Have you agreed to keep the cops’ attention off young Black men unless they are found directly involved in some violent incident for fear that they might feel “Profiled”? Is this why they are free to smoke dope, and in fact sell it, right out in the open in this city? If you doubt this, you ought to take a tour downtown. Do this with a police escort. I suggest you look up Officer Randy Jokela; he knows that scene pretty damn well.

The situation in Seattle begins more and more to resemble other cities that have gone into a spiral of decline. And it impacts most certainly inner-city and neighboring environs. There the greatest price is paid by good Black folk who live in a sea of crime, exacerbated by befuddled civic authorities and police command who read too much into the uproar caused by activists who use hysteria and dated history to stifle intelligent consideration of the problems suffered by the community.

In hard point of fact, young Black men, sheltered by the timidity of the Mayor and others at City Hall, are wreaking havoc and killing one another practically at will as police commanders look away from any but the most unavoidable confrontations. Can’t have anybody feel “profiled” now, can we?

Another anomaly in “early O’Toole” catches the eye as well - the announcement that all of her command staff would be required to “sit at their desks” and write some mysterious essay to justify their retention of command assignments. How curious? This charade opens all subsequent command assignments to a measure based on what? Poetic skill? Creative writing basics? Personal connections and allegiances? This again is one of those “early decisions” that has received absolutely no follow-up notice by the media.

So we have the specters of “police command by consultant” when it comes to line (street) assignments and “command assignment by default” when it comes to the command ranks.

I realize that these observations…criticisms…ain't exactly “Seattle Nice” and are bound to raise some hackles in the “special crowd” that doesn’t want any rain on the (extended) coronation parade.

But lace this subtle-mystery-method of command placement with the earlier signs that race (e.g., the Nick Metz affair), among other subjective factors, has apparently become a consideration in the management of civic affairs, and then have a look at another O’Toole maneuver - the exception of one Carmen Best (recently appointed Assistant Chief) from the mystery-method approach. What in the hell is going on here? Who is Carmen Best…and what qualifies her as the exception?

To be “sitting at the right hand of the throne” as a troubled police department seeks to “pull out of the dive”…would one not expect to find a veteran commander? Someone experienced in crisis confrontation and personnel allocation? What would come to mind for a candidate here?

It is important to provide a little insight here. Her colleagues generally think well of Chief Best. She is personable and presentable. She is well remembered in public thought, to anyone paying attention, as the “attractive face” of the Seattle Police department. Carmen served for some time as the media spokesperson. With numerous television appearances under her belt highlighting this crime investigation or other, Carmen joins the ranks locally of Sheriff John Urquhart, Ed Troyer down in Pierce Country, and others here and there who have become better-known to the public than even the various Chiefs they work for. Such is the power of video media.

However, a look at Chief Best’s actual police experience, especially in command roles, does not tend to “flesh out” the profile one would expect for the second in command at this time (or any other, for that matter). Yet…here she is. And because these are such critical times at the SPD, I have to touch again on the question: Does race matter in the civic world of “Special" Ed Murray? As onerous as it is, if there is to be real restoration of public safety in Seattle, these are the sorts of “early decisions” that demand more scrutiny.

Chief Best has very little operational command history. Hers have been those assignments generally associated with ascension up the “special ladder” in police departments. As much public exposure as possible…and usually little “combat command.” She served as South Precinct Patrol Captain for a brief three months last year. That’s it! No one has seen, or been offered, any more detailed history. Is anyone in the media, or at City Hall (the Public Safety Committee of the City Council maybe), asking why more “vetting” has not been done? Not a chance!

What could be the consequences for this situation at SPD? Troop morale and operational competence are already in a tailspin, but...what the hell? Again, the “Murray moment” here in the Emerald City poses real questions that, like previous chapters in the decline of SPD, has been insulated by adoring media from these sorts of questions. Whatever her level of choices here, O’Toole will pay the price for the uncertainty this all creates. In this silence, the working cop is left to wonder, are "special credentials" paramount at SPD? Were more competent commanders passed by to satisfy the need for “special imagery” in Seattle? For the unhidden fact is that Chief Carmen Best is Black…and she is a woman! There it is, Ed…there it is, Seattle…there it is, media…the very sort of unholy question no one wants to hear. Yet a question demanded by the earlier capitulation to artificial racial  concerns in the Metz matter. Is Carmen Best just another convenience in the campaign at City Hall to keep the Rainbow shining…at any cost? Is gender now a prime qualifier?

There may be holy hell in some precincts for even raising such issue. Just not “Seattle Nice” is it? But posturing along such lines (if it is in fact the motive here again), catering to strident voices without reason, is a distinct part of the recipe for urban decline in this country. Both the Seattle Police department (with all its diverse collection of faces) and Carmen Best deserve better. 

And where does this all land? Oh…the toils of Katie O’Toole!

If Carmen Best is the preeminent candidate for second in command, more power to her! If she is not, explanation must be sought. And if anyone wonders at my motives here (an old white cop who won't go away) in raising this disturbing issue, I am going to add a personal note. Read Shootouts in the Ghetto for some insight. You will see why I present myself as distinctly qualified to raise this critical issue in the moment here. And Carmen…I hope you can find the time to read it, too. Regards…Chuck Pillon.

WHERE THE BUCK STOPS!

In the final measure here it is up to O’Toole to grab the reigns and run up against the bewilderment at City Hall and the conflicted voices of “community spokespeople," to tell the Federales  to take a deep breath and put the cops back on the corner. Don’t let these political cancers grow! Further, she is going to have to be a lot more transparent. Don’t leave these early decisions to swirl in a mysterious cloud. If certain quotas or personnel expectations have been imposed, either by the Feds or Special Ed, out with it! For the good of the City…and the Service.

Things looked good in the beginning but the political winds have shifted and O’Toole’s sails seem to be going slack. In a telling utterance after a wringing-out in the Federal Court recently, O’Toole remarked that she “thought she finally had her ducks lined up” in her effort to please the Feds. Enough already!

Time to regain command of that adoption process. The “friendly Feds” can’t be allowed to do more harm than good. Cooperation shouldn’t lead to surrender to that unquestioned process. And there the media have set up SPD to fail as well. They should be doing more incisive reporting on the problems in “adoptions” elsewhere.  The old bromide about ignoring the lessons of history hangs over all of this like an anvil teetering on a ledge. Katie…I hope you reconsider and find some time for us old troops. “Special" Ed, Merrick Bobb, Bernie Melekian, Judge “Roy Bean” Robart, no one at City Hall…none of them are going to be able to tell you about the effort to bring the Anti- Crime Teams into being, the advent of the K9 Unit, the once-grand Block Watch Program, the outreach to the original Youth Service Bureaus and alternative school programs. They know virtually nothing of these stellar moments. Just ask them. They are simply voices in concert with the Federales, joining in blind obedience to a process that, while it has some marginal merit, has crippled the very institution it is supposed to be improving. Have you asked Merrick Bobb what brought him to conclude that there is DE-POLICING going on in Seattle? If, as it seems, you are going to stay in lock-step with them, you will be letting the danger you have publicly recognized grow even as the Federal Charade continues to sweep you along.

You may not be mindful of the observations of another recent candidate for the job there at SPD, a guy named Rick Braziel out of California (COP in Sacramento) who declined to even take the test here when you did because of the contradiction and incompetence he observed in his preliminary visits to City Hall. He made it clear that the mess would make it extremely difficult to right-the-course at SPD. HELL! We veterans could write a book on the subject. The pretenders and partisans at City Hall have long been a serious factor in the decline of this City. Those observations are worth remembering. Braziel’s credentials are substantial, like yours, and we know that things haven’t gotten better at City Hall. That ain’t the Mensa Society meeting at Fifth and James! Let your allegiance be first to the folks in this City. Let Special Ed and the Federales take their proper place in line. And let folks hear from you on this subject.