Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Daily Pilot On CMPD Attrition/Staffing

DAILY PILOT REPORT
This evening Bradley Zint in the Daily Pilot published his account of the recent attrition/hiring reports for the Costa Mesa Police Department released by the City of Costa Mesa last week, HERE.  This comes on the tail of my initial account last Friday, HERE, and Eric Hartley's four articles in The Current this morning, HERE.

ALSO INCLUDES BACKGROUND LINKS
Zint links to the Daily Pilot story from last August that first addressed the hiring difficulties the CMPD was having.  He also provided statistical analysis of the departures and hiring numbers.

GAZSI'S TAKE ON IT
And, of course, he has provided us with some memorable quotations by some of the main players in this drama.  For example, early on in his piece he quotes Costa Mesa Police Chief Tom Gazsi, addressing the recent spate of departures, as saying, "A number of these folks have left because of the contentious environment and a difficulty in predicting a future for their families and a career".  Gazsi went on to say, "They're seeking agencies where there's a breadth of assignment opportunities available to them, as well as development and advancement."

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR...
Mayor Pro Tem Steve Mensinger, a party to the lawsuit filed against the men and women of the CMPD, took credit for asking for the reports that were issued last week.  He is quoted as saying, "I'm troubled when anyone says he or she left the Costa Mesa Police Department because of the political environment, regardless of whether the politics are external or internal."  Huh?  I was in the audience that evening and muttered to myself - I've been doing that a lot lately - that he should be careful what he asks for.... Uh, Huh...

PAY ATTENTION, JIM!
Mayor Jim Righeimer, clearly out of touch with the issue at hand, is quoted as saying, "It's unfortunate that some of the rank and file somehow think that the city is somehow going to take away benefits or something they already have - which the city is not going to do".  In NONE of those statistics provided was there a single individual who said they left because of a fear of diminishing benefits - NOT ONE!

EXTORTION?  REALLY?
At the end of the article he accuses the men and women of the CMPD with extortion for the alleged placement of a tracking device on Mensinger's truck.  Hmmm, I wonder what those miscreants who allegedly placed that tracking device were hoping to extort from Mensinger?  So far, there has been no proof offered that anyone associated with the CMPD or the CMPOA had anything to do with the placement of a tracking device on any one's car.

FROM PILLAR TO POST...
So, the drama continues.  I suspect Righeimer, Mensinger and CEO Tom Hatch must be feeling a little like they're part of a big pinball game, getting batted from post to post, never really knowing where the next slap is coming from.  I understand there may be a decision by the judge in the bogus lawsuit sometime next week as to how it will proceed - or not.


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5 Comments:

Anonymous Where's My Coffee? said...

Do not forget it was Mensinger himself that hired a private investigator to follow employees in their off hours. He has nothing to complain about, if is even true. That old saying comes to mind, "What goes around, comes around"

2/26/2014 11:51:00 PM  
Anonymous Arthur Nern said...

Righeimer and his dumb policies and ideas have only hurt Costa Mesa. He needs to go somewhere else. Isn't Ukraine looking for a "leader?"

2/27/2014 05:50:00 AM  
Blogger Mike H. said...

I would like anyone to take a look at what CM4RG said five months ago and compare it to the Current and the Daily Pilot articles. How right or wrong was CM4RG? Give it your best shot. Our city's safety is only at stake.

2/27/2014 11:27:00 AM  
Anonymous now is the time said...

I'm not understanding how the mayor can make comments about contracts and benefits this early in the game. The CMPOA has not yet begun negotiations as their contract is not up for renewal yet. I most likely don't have a handle on all of the details involved in the COIN ordinance.....but don't his comments kind of violate the spirit of that ordinance?

And he speaks of "rank and file". Just who is he referring to? Only Police Officers or the rank and file employed by the city as a whole. His statement assures that no benefits will be taken away. As petty as it may seem to some, taking away modified work schedules speaks to the political environment in which employees work. Those schedules benefited both employees and city residents as they insured more hours of daily coverage in order to meet the needs/demands of residents and various city departments. That was a benefit taken away nearly two years ago. It cost the city nothing but boosted employee morale immeasurably. Not all benefits can be measured in dollar and cents.

2/27/2014 09:12:00 PM  
Anonymous Casual Viewer said...

Any truth to the rumors that someone would like to turn Costa Mesa's policing over to the sheriff's dept?

3/01/2014 01:47:00 PM  

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