Crunching the Numbers

The early part of the year can be some of those most difficult weeks for any police chief. It’s the time when the fiscal budget is prepared and submitted to the City. What has happened to the economy over these past two years means that there are some tough decisions to be made. While there is currently no talk of eliminating commissioned officers, we do have to look at every other available avenue to cut costs and cuts can certainly have a negative impact. My commitment is to do everything I can to maintain the highest possible level of police service for the City of St. Louis. Mayor Slay has expressed his commitment to the same thing. There will be some difficult choices to be made, but I want St. Louisans to know that we will do everything in our power to make the very best decisions possible.

Service

The four core values of the Metropolitan Police Department are service, integrity, leadership and fair treatment to all. When people hear “police department” and “service” they automatically assume that it simply means serving the people of St. Louis by making every possible effort to prevent or solve crime. However there is another kind of service that our officers are dedicated to as well and the actions of our employees over the last two weeks prove it.

The department participated once again in the Warners’ Warm Up—a coat drive sponsored by former St. Louis Ram Kurt Warner and his wife Brenda. Many of us may take for granted the fact that we have coats to keep us warm, but there are many men, women and children throughout our area whose Christmas wish list isn’t filled with luxury items but with basic necessities like winter coats. In this difficult economy where many people have lost their jobs unexpectedly, I’m sure some of those who are now struggling to make ends meet are those who never imagined they would be in this situation.

I’m proud to announce that yesterday we delivered 20 bags filled with coats to the Warners’ Warm-Up, held in partnership with Operation Food Search. Those coats will now go to those who need them most. Once again, our officers and civilian employees have shown their commitment to the community. This is the kind of service that goes to the heart of our core values.

Mourning a Loss

This morning our hearts are very heavy because last night we lost a member of our police family. Officer Julius Moore passed away 9 days after a vehicle accident. Officer Moore was just 23 years old. We hear the phrase often that someone had their whole life ahead of them. At 23, Officer Moore really did have his whole life ahead of him. He and his wife were raising their three young children together, planting roots and planning their children’s futures. Now his wife and children, parents, sister and extended family and friends are planning for his funeral. The grief is indescribable. The loss is inexplicable. Please pray for the entire Moore family and please pray for the Metropolitan Police Department family as well. I said to the men and women of our department last night that leaning on one another, we will get through this. But that doesn’t mean we will hurt any less.

Difficult Week for the Metropolitan Police Department

Last week was among the toughest the Metropolitan Police Department Family has faced in a long time. On Monday, one of our officers was shot five times during a home invasion and robbery. The same incident left one woman dead and another injured. Our condolences and prayers go out to the families of all of those involved. Our officer is amazing her doctors, her family and all of us with her sheer will and determination to recover. On Tuesday, another one of our officers was critically injured in a vehicle accident while responding to a call. He remains in critical condition as of this writing and his family remains by his bedside around the clock. Please pray for the officer and his family. On Friday, a teenager was sentenced to life plus 50 years for the 2007 shooting death of Officer Norvelle Brown. It brings an end to the legal proceedings but the only thing that could truly bring comfort to the family, friends and co-workers of Officer Brown would be if this tragic, senseless shooting had never happened to begin with. Last week reminded all of us inside the department of the dangers of this job, though it’s really something that’s never far from the front of our minds anyway. Our officers aren’t always applauded in the press. They don’t make the biggest salaries. They don’t work the shortest hours. Yet their resolve, their commitment and their courage in the face of danger never cease to amaze me. Please keep the families of all of those involved in your prayers and please pray for the men and women of this department as they go out to face another day.

The Results Are In

In May, 900 of you completed a telephone survey about the Metropolitan Police Department. Our hope was that the survey would help us learn what you thought we were doing well, where we might need to focus resources or attention and what issues concerned you most. The survey results are posted in their entirety on this site but here is what we’ve learned.

Three-fourths of you are satisfied with the Department overall. Three-fourths of you feel safe in your neighborhoods. Three-fourths of you are satisfied with the overall competence of the Department. 80% of you complimented the professionalism of the employees who answer your 911 calls and 86% of you said our police officers are pleasant and courteous. That is a true compliment to the men and women of this Department who work so hard to protect all of St. Louis. Still, we’d like to see those numbers rise even higher and we’re committed to working hard to do that.

There were also some areas where we need to focus our attention. For example, 38% of you said you weren’t satisfied with our efforts to get drugs off the street. We hear you and are responding. The Narcotics Unit has recently completed extensive training and has a new focus—street-level drug transactions. For many years, the Department focused on higher-level offenders who were moving larger quantities of drugs. We will continue to go after those suppliers, but you are saying to us that the drug dealers moving smaller quantities in our neighborhoods on street corners or from their homes are your priority. They will be the priority of the Narcotics Unit as well. I also want to encourage you to take advantage of our “Secret Witness Hotline.” This hotline is different from CrimeStoppers. You call CrimeStoppers to report information about a specific criminal incident, for example a shooting you witnessed or a burglary you have information about. The Secret Witness Hotline is the number you’ll call if you believe there is drug activity in your neighborhood and you want to make sure we know about it. You can help us by describing the people and activity you see. When is the activity taking place? Is there a certain car you always see? Are people going inside a residence, to the back of a residence or are they staying in their vehicles? We don’t want you to conduct surveillance—that’s for trained police officers to do—but if you live in an area where drug activity is occurring, you likely see things when you walk out your front door that could help us. Call us at 241-COPS and tell us about it. The Secret Witness Hotline is anonymous and the line is not recorded.

You also said you want us to focus more attention on community outreach efforts. Today, we are beginning our first Citizens Academy since 2005. We received more than 70 applications for just 30 spots! This Academy offers citizens an opportunity to spend 30 hours over a period of 10 weeks, with police officers. Citizens will learn everything from how 911 calls are handled to how a patrol officer spends a “typical” day, (although no day is ever really “typical”), to how specialized units like Bomb & Arson and Homicide work. It is an opportunity for you to get more insight than ever before into your police department. Although the Fall 2009 class is already full, we will let you know when we are planning to begin the Spring 2010 class. We have also recently retrained our Community Outreach Officers. These officers are the ones you meet at community meetings, they can help you organize a Neighborhood Watch and this fall they will begin working with St. Louis Public School students. We will continue to look for more opportunities to bring the police and the community together through outreach programs.

You also sent a message to us regarding honesty and integrity. I have no doubt that this is likely a direct result of some of the unfortunate incidents over the past year. I have said over and over that when it comes to law enforcement, the actions of the few can taint the reputations of the many. The overwhelming majority of our officers are honest, dedicated and committed to serving this community with the highest of ethical standards. I also hope that you have taken notice that many of the incidents that have come to light in recent months, have done so because of our own commitment to policing ourselves. We started the investigations. We will not turn a blind eye to wrongdoing and will continue our efforts to root out any and all persons who abuse the very laws that each of us is sworn to uphold.

Finally, I want you to know that we take your concerns to heart. We are determined to make a strong impression on the citizens of St. Louis and to send a strong message to the criminals—the Department and the community are a united front. We will work together to prevent crime. We will work together to solve crime. We will make our community a safer place to live, work and play. We will not tolerate anything less.

Welcome to the NEW slmpd.org!

If you remember the old slmpd.org then you already know that things look a lot different around here today. We’ve launched a completely redesigned web site that we’re pretty proud of. Allow me to give you the grand tour!

On the home page, you’ll find a link to current news which will show you the most recent news releases we’ve issued. You’ll also find a link that will give you information about how to compliment an officer. We’re also going to feature some of the many letters we receive about the good work that our officers do. There is a neighborhood link that will help you find out the police district in which you reside, and there are individual pages for each police District. It’s important for you to know who the Captain is for your police District and how you can get involved in things like Neighborhood Watch or community meetings. An informed neighborhood is usually a safer one. Get involved! The Internal Affairs link will provide you with information about how to file a complaint against an employee and there’s even a form that will allow you to begin the complaint process online. The form goes directly to a supervisor in the Internal Affairs Division and is confidential. Our most requested links are also on the homepage, including information about how to retrieve a copy of a police report, and a link to more detailed crime statistics than we’ve ever had on this website before. We’ve broken down the statistics by city neighborhood, by police District and by political ward. The Fallen Officer Memorial pays tribute to the 161 police officers who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. Finally, there are links to CrimeStoppers, (where you can report anonymous tips online even), CALEA, (the organization that awarded us an international accreditation), and the St. Louis Police Foundation which generously donates funds to the Department in an effort to help us provide the highest level of police service possible.

And all of that is on the homepage! Our former website had 22 pages, this one has more than 70 and we anticipate adding even more in the weeks and months to come.

Once inside the website, you’ll find a complete Department history from 1808 to today, information about the Department’s Senior Commanders and information about community outreach programs like the Police Athletic League and GREAT—our anti-gang program. We’ve also added in-depth information about the process of becoming a police officer. If you’re thinking of applying, you’ll definitely want to read the Careers section. We have more information about the application process than we’ve ever had before. We’ve also added a cold cases page, where each month we’ll feature a different case. If the exposure is able to generate even one new lead, it’s worth it. There is also in-depth information about various divisions of the Department as well as tips about everything from preventing fraud and identity theft to how to make sure your children are safe while surfing the internet.

One of the most significant changes is the rotating headlines that are featured. It’s our way of keeping you informed about the latest happenings inside the Department. These headlines will change frequently so you will always be in the know.

So step inside, take a look around. I think you’ll like what you see and I know that some of what you find here will help you too.

We’re Opening Our Doors—Come on In!

After a four-year hiatus, the Citizens Academy is back! The Citizens Academy is a ten-week interactive course held at the Police Academy where you will learn about every aspect of the Metropolitan Police Department. Police Officers teach the course where one night a week for three hours, you’ll hear our history, learn our theories on community policing, about see the sophisticated systems we use to predict and respond to crime. You’ll also hear directly from the Police Officers assigned to special investigative units like Bomb & Arson, Homicide and CyberCrimes. Don’t worry--you won’t be sitting in a classroom simply listening to lectures. I wanted this course to be hands-on and it will be. You’ll take a spin in our driving simulator, participate in a simulation at the shooting range and see a few areas inside headquarters that are normally off-limits. My goal for this program is to build even stronger relationships with you—the citizens we serve. I think knowledge is power and you will graduate from this course with a great deal of knowledge about how the Metropolitan Police Department works, what a typical day is like for an Officer and how you can help us as we work to protect and serve the community. For more information about the Citizens Academy, email citizensacademy@slmpd.org. The 2009 class starts September 16th. I’ll see you there.