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To: Tamara Barak, SF Examiner Reporter
Subject: The
title of today's 6-10-09 SF Examiner article
From:
Ann Grogan, Glen Park
Hello Tamara,
I was
dismayed and disappointed by the title selected for your
recent article headline, using the phrase "pseudo-cops"
and asking the public to see if they can tell the
difference between the SFPD uniform and that worn by the
Patrol Specials.
I don't know if you or your
editor selected those words, but I sincerely believe
they focus on the wrong issue, one not of real concern
to your readers or to those of us truly concerned about
the rise of violent and property crime in our City and
how to solve it and help ourselves.
That issue
is not: 'do Patrol Specials look like the SFPD officers
or not.' The issue is also not: 'are Patrol Special
officers 'real' police officers, or not.' Titling your
article as you did avoids the real issue.
The
real issue is:
How can we solve past or
present conflict between the Police Commission and the
Patrol Special officers, and negotiate acceptable
solutions that all stakeholders find acceptable in major
part, if not in toto, such that this unique, historical
safety service paid for primarily by their clients,
continues to operate and actually grows to serve and
help solve the growing crime in our communities?
It is my opinion and my experience as one client of
the Patrol Special Police that they provide valuable
policing services such as order maintenance and
observe and report functions focused on crime
prevention. More importantly, they provide those
services in unique ways because this policing force has
a built-in culture of care and community commitment
which arise from their long experience, as well as from
their structural and financial motivation to listen to,
advise, and serve their clients.
This culture of care is not built into
City-employed police officers or agencies, who even now
are re-inventing the wheel of "community policing" in a
small pilot program in the Ingelside District, thus
attempting to one more bring on board the SFPD regulars,
concerning a concept that has been around since the
early 1970s and a concept that is already is well
understood and implemented by the Patrol Specials. After
all, it's their business.
Thank you for your
attention, as ever.
Ann |
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