I'm going to say diversity in LE is another area that needs addressing. What I saw in the last 5 years I spent with the SO as a part-timer was that 90% of the jail deputies transitioning to patrol were military. For the women it was 50%, and I'm thinking 5 women to 25 men in that time frame.
I'm going to say diversity in LE is another area that needs addressing. What I saw in the last 5 years I spent with the SO as a part-timer was that 90% of the jail deputies transitioning to patrol were military. For the women it was 50%, and I'm thinking 5 women to 25 men in that time frame.
There's one thing I have always wondered about Sheriff's Offices - in LA, the LASD is always "problematic" in its dealings with the people (mostly nonwhite) in the areas it patrols. But these deputies on the streets have spent a minimum of 5 years in the county jails - hardly a place to keep (or get) a favorable view of humanity, and a good place to pick up every bad trait they demonstrate out on the streets. I really don't think prison guards should become street police.
I'm glad to hear that. I do fear though that the "jail population" in Los Angeles differs a lot from Oregon. Dealing Bloods and Crips, and the various Latino gangs here would probably drive a saint off his perch. But our problem is the deputies have formed their own gangs - which extend out to the station houses for patrol officers, and their gangs differ from the Bloods and Crips only in that sartorial choices and the fact they have the authority of the state on their side (which makes them worse).
You are spot on. As I said earlier, I live in a racially homogenous community. We don't have a gang problem per se (mostly what we had during my time were groups of white boys who played at being ghetto gangsters. What we do see are the drug cartels coming into the state and growing MJ, and mostly mid level drug runners/dealers, few of whom spend much time in physical custody.
The jail is a great more or less controlled environment for people to learn how to handle conflict, talk with people from different backgrounds, learn how to work within a rank structure, and to figure out if this line of work is for them. Our patrol division basically gets the cream of that crop, and as a field training officer (FTO) our jobs were really pretty easy.
My personal reach after almost 10 years of retirement: the Sheriff, his Chief Deputy with the rank of Captain, and the Police Services Division Captain were all guys who rode with me as explorer scouts in the early to mid 1990's. The PSD Lieutenant, more than half the sergeants, and 2/3 of the detectives are former recruits of mine. I finished my career as a contract deputy in Creswell, OR. The guy who took my place, and ultimately became the sergeant there was one of my recruits. He retires this week, and another on of my recently promoted recruits is taking his place. Mother Hen Rides Again!
Our jail was the first in Oregon to receive national accreditation for its operation. They still do a decent job, but farming out our food services and medical services to contracted companies has hurt the operations.
Getting food from the lowest bidder is always a shaky idea and medical services even more so but yours is the first I've ever heard of a jail being even mildly well regarded for its performance.
Cook County (IL) Sheriff's Police officers are, or were when I was there, much the same; you didn't want to run into them, didn't mess with them if you did and, if they turned up to evict you, you left quietly unless a TV station turned up.
I've noticed, even in small town IN where I lived until shortly after I retired, that cops (most) don't try to have positive relations with the public any more. Maybe too many jokes about donut shops but most don't wave back if I wave at them and many cultivate the kind of game face that John Cena wore in most of F&F9 (a nice piece of escapist cinema). We might be better off if the first line in every LEO hiring office was - Don't hire a**h***s.
My observation is much the same as regards both military background and measures of sociological diversity. I suspect without researching it that SWAT teams are composed largely of people from the military and that their current employers take advantage of that background to skimp on situational training. As with most skills, even those required by Special Operators need to be refreshed from time to time and, if it isn't, situations like yesterday's can result.
On a separate but related topic, I think the public image of SWAT teams and special operators is based too much on Tom Clancy's books and TV shows like NCIS and Hawai'i 5O. Most of the officers I've met are quite good and very serious but they aren't magicians and the good ones know it. If the rest of us understood that better our expectations might change there might be more support for training and alternative strategies.
I was active with SWAT as a negotiator for about 18 years. I know the commitment and expertise of those that I served with. Alternative strategies is a really good place to start.
I'm going to say diversity in LE is another area that needs addressing. What I saw in the last 5 years I spent with the SO as a part-timer was that 90% of the jail deputies transitioning to patrol were military. For the women it was 50%, and I'm thinking 5 women to 25 men in that time frame.
There's one thing I have always wondered about Sheriff's Offices - in LA, the LASD is always "problematic" in its dealings with the people (mostly nonwhite) in the areas it patrols. But these deputies on the streets have spent a minimum of 5 years in the county jails - hardly a place to keep (or get) a favorable view of humanity, and a good place to pick up every bad trait they demonstrate out on the streets. I really don't think prison guards should become street police.
We havenтАЩt ever had that issue in our county. The jail is a great learning environment, and our patrol training program was generally successful.
I'm glad to hear that. I do fear though that the "jail population" in Los Angeles differs a lot from Oregon. Dealing Bloods and Crips, and the various Latino gangs here would probably drive a saint off his perch. But our problem is the deputies have formed their own gangs - which extend out to the station houses for patrol officers, and their gangs differ from the Bloods and Crips only in that sartorial choices and the fact they have the authority of the state on their side (which makes them worse).
You are spot on. As I said earlier, I live in a racially homogenous community. We don't have a gang problem per se (mostly what we had during my time were groups of white boys who played at being ghetto gangsters. What we do see are the drug cartels coming into the state and growing MJ, and mostly mid level drug runners/dealers, few of whom spend much time in physical custody.
The jail is a great more or less controlled environment for people to learn how to handle conflict, talk with people from different backgrounds, learn how to work within a rank structure, and to figure out if this line of work is for them. Our patrol division basically gets the cream of that crop, and as a field training officer (FTO) our jobs were really pretty easy.
My personal reach after almost 10 years of retirement: the Sheriff, his Chief Deputy with the rank of Captain, and the Police Services Division Captain were all guys who rode with me as explorer scouts in the early to mid 1990's. The PSD Lieutenant, more than half the sergeants, and 2/3 of the detectives are former recruits of mine. I finished my career as a contract deputy in Creswell, OR. The guy who took my place, and ultimately became the sergeant there was one of my recruits. He retires this week, and another on of my recently promoted recruits is taking his place. Mother Hen Rides Again!
That's impressive, I wonder if they've ever had their program written up and circulated.
Our jail was the first in Oregon to receive national accreditation for its operation. They still do a decent job, but farming out our food services and medical services to contracted companies has hurt the operations.
Getting food from the lowest bidder is always a shaky idea and medical services even more so but yours is the first I've ever heard of a jail being even mildly well regarded for its performance.
Cook County (IL) Sheriff's Police officers are, or were when I was there, much the same; you didn't want to run into them, didn't mess with them if you did and, if they turned up to evict you, you left quietly unless a TV station turned up.
I've noticed, even in small town IN where I lived until shortly after I retired, that cops (most) don't try to have positive relations with the public any more. Maybe too many jokes about donut shops but most don't wave back if I wave at them and many cultivate the kind of game face that John Cena wore in most of F&F9 (a nice piece of escapist cinema). We might be better off if the first line in every LEO hiring office was - Don't hire a**h***s.
My observation is much the same as regards both military background and measures of sociological diversity. I suspect without researching it that SWAT teams are composed largely of people from the military and that their current employers take advantage of that background to skimp on situational training. As with most skills, even those required by Special Operators need to be refreshed from time to time and, if it isn't, situations like yesterday's can result.
On a separate but related topic, I think the public image of SWAT teams and special operators is based too much on Tom Clancy's books and TV shows like NCIS and Hawai'i 5O. Most of the officers I've met are quite good and very serious but they aren't magicians and the good ones know it. If the rest of us understood that better our expectations might change there might be more support for training and alternative strategies.
I was active with SWAT as a negotiator for about 18 years. I know the commitment and expertise of those that I served with. Alternative strategies is a really good place to start.