On the Police Chief issue, Jonathan Palmer tries to discredit Mark Anderson's major point which was:
Of course many will disagree with me, since I think Olson has been the best chief we've had for decades. Under his leadership, the crime rate has decreased, and the instances of thumping have gone down too. Obviously there's still much to improve, but that's how evolutionary change works, things get better slowly. Olson doesn't have very good political skills, so he didn't explain his actions well at times when it was sorely needed. But his management abilities resulted in an improved Department. I'm afraid that Rybak is replacing Olson with someone who is more like Rybak -- McManus has a slick tongue, but how well does he manage people that report to him? The Dayton street cops think not so good. Since it looks like McManus will be our new chief, I hope they are wrong.
Mark,
Can you provide a little more specific information on this, like what you
read or some link? From what I've read, the only people who seem to have a
problem with McManus in Dayton is the Police Union and that was because of the
changes McManus made to the regulations regarding firing at fleeing suspects, and
possible the efforts he made to make the department more diverse and bridge
the city's racial divide:
http://www.daytondailynews.com/opinion/content/opinion/daily/1229mcmanus.html
In fact the only reference I can find to street cop dissatisfaction is this line: "His ideas haven't received universal approval from the rank and file." Which doesn't really indicate alienation, but more disagreement. Of course it was followed directly by this line: "Indeed, the Fraternal Order of Police angrily has opposed some of his initiatives." Which leads me to believe it's what I mentioned before. Article follows:
http://www.daytondailynews.com/opinion/content/opinion/daily/1213transplant.ht ml
Anderson's point was that McManus was great at PR over substance.
although GR Anderson said that McManus "not afraid to alienate a few
rank-and-file cops if that's the price of the ticket." when talking about McManus
being the "rare police executive who is serious about reforming certain aspects of
how cops do their jobs, particularly where encounters with other races and
cultures are concerned":
http://www.citypages.com/databank/24/1203/article11775.asp
Anderson's column doesn't really add anything to this.
If I've missed something I, and I'm sure at least 7 other Council Members and
many citizens would like to know about problems he's had, especially with
street cops, so if you can clarify it would be immensely helpful. We already
have some Council Members who made their decision prior to even meeting McManus,
and I'd hate for one of them or others on the List to add "I heard he
alienated the street cops" to this without some substantiating evidence as they
consider the nomination.
I think Anderson's point was a question about how well McManus manages people. McManus didn't stay in Dayton long enough to follow through with his ambitious reforms.
Eva Young Near North Minneapolis [EMAIL PROTECTED] Blog is up: http://lloydletta.blogspot.com
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