Crime is going up in Gilroy, so is the population, and our
unofficial city standard of 1.5 officers per thousand people has
dropped to 1.2. Meanwhile, burglaries are up 75 percent since 2002
and many other crimes are marching steadily higher.
Crime is going up in Gilroy, so is the population, and our unofficial city standard of 1.5 officers per thousand people has dropped to 1.2. Meanwhile, burglaries are up 75 percent since 2002 and many other crimes are marching steadily higher.
Police officers complain that a simple but significant change has forced them to spend less time on the street and more time behind the desk.
No longer do record clerks type up reports. Officers do. And they say it takes time away from patrolling the streets and, by extension, less visibility means more crime.
Meanwhile Police Chief Gregg Giusiana is waiting on the results of a $55,000 study authorized by the City Council to see if consultants recommend more police on Gilroy streets.
Gilroy’s habitual consultant hiring is a serious disease that provides an easy crutch for managers unwilling or unable to analyze situations and make tough decisions. But that is another matter.
Gilroy may, in fact, need more officers on the street. Regardless, record clerks are paid considerably less than officers. Why not shift the report writing burden back to clerks? Officers can review and edit the reports for accuracy and clarity when they’re finished.
It just shouldn’t be that hard to run an efficient office of clerk-typists. Setting report turnaround deadlines and adhering to a set of procedures for the dictation of reports should result in an efficient procedure allowing officers to spend more time out of the office fighting crime.
Rising crime rates are an issue for the entire community. In that vein, the City Council should address this issue. It’s not micormanagement, it’s an inquiry that residents should expect a conscientious City Council to make.
Chief Giusiana should explain the shift in procedure and provide documentation supporting the decision.
When police officers think the change has been anything but beneficial, the Council should listen. The position taken by officers shouldn’t be gospel, but neither should the notion that management knows best.
Ultimately, what counts is the most efficient way to ensure that Gilroy has as many officers on the street for as many hours as our city can reasonably afford.
Councilman Russ Valiquette zeroed in on the issue.
“The numbers don’t look good,” he said referring to the latest crime statistics. “Questions have to be asked and the administration has to give us some answers.”
That’s a reasonable approach to a serious issue. When crime hits home, it’s important to take a hard look at everything we can do.
