Nearly 50 San Bernardino cops receive pink slips

Could this be the reason I have seen a spike in speed traps in the recent past?? "Fines double in construction zones." They could be patrolling their crime ridden ghetto but they choose to harrass people on their way to work instead. Just because they know they can pay the fine. Just dirty police work. I wonder how many times you hear the generic, " I dont make the laws, I just enforce them." As they speed off well in excess of the speed limit!!

I'm sure that the fair citizen Joe Blow has no clue how tough it is to enforce crime in a city like San Berdoo. I think that the people who actually live there will be very upset indeed when 50 of their officers disappear and crime begins to skyrocket.

Joe Blow has no clue! If all he is worried about are speed traps..he has another thing coming. Joe Blow better hope that there are enough police around when the ghetto he lives in or passes through consumes him! Stop speeding Joe and you won't need to worry about the "speed traps"!

We all know that the overall economy is in a mess, but San Bdno added to their own economic problems by passing measure Z. The nations economy had something to do with all the car dealers that went out of business in SB, however measure Z added 1/4 percent to the sales tax. Now I ask you. If you were buying a new car, would you buy in SB at 8% tax or another city at 73/4% tax. Now they want to lay off police. A crime filled city such as San Bdno. can not afford to lay off police. The officers they have now have their hands full and it will only get worse with any police lay off. If in fact some lose their jobs, don't think they are going to sit around and wait for a call back to work. They will get hired else where and SBPD will have a hard time getting qualified people to work for them knowing that their jobs are not secure. I say give those that are set to retire in the next 2-3 years 2 years credit in PERS and let them retire now. Those positions can be left vacant at a savings to the city.

Hey but lets waste millions trying to keep a strip club closed instead :)

Will we really miss forty-nine police officers. They don't seem to do anything as it is right now. Years ago, I had a lot of respect for law enforcement officers. Today, they seem to have this elitist attitude. They make themselves look busy but, in reality, are very inefficient in their jobs while collecting insane health and retirement benefits. I suggest that we save the city some real money and lay off forty-nine more!!!

What a bunch of mess. What happened to the policeman brotherhood that they have for each other! What happened to Police taking care of their own. I guess when it comes to the mighty dollar everything goes out the window! The "Interim" City Manager is okay with laying off 29 officers? Is he a resident of this fine city? Does he know what happens when the is 29 less policemen patrolling our streets? I have lived in this city for 27 years I have seen what has happened to our town! We can not afford to skimpy on the only people that are keeping us safe!!
Yes, I understand that money is money and times are hard. I understand that taking a pay cut hurts and will have an impact. But come on. This is going to the all the police that are not getting pink slips and get a vote along with a fabulous "Interim City Manager". What is going to happen when you are in Delman Heights, the streets off of Highland and Arden, or pretty much any place in San Bernardino now a day and come across a situation that you can't handle? It would be really handy to call one of those 29 police officers that you had an opportunity to protect and didn't.
I understand that you are overworked and underpaid, but put yourselves in their shoes. The shoes of those that you recently trained, went on patrol with, and waved to as you patrolled the streets. They have families that they need to support too.

My brother is one of the 27 police officers that are getting a pink slip. I know first hand what impact it will make. I would just like for people to see the situation in a different perspective.

I am in full agreement with some of the previous blogs. First off, the present police officers appear to do bare minimal work and collect huge amounts of pay and benefits. On the flip side, many employees have this "me" attitude. If "I" am not going to be on the layoff list, why should I take a pay cut to save a co-worker's job. Fortunately, I work for a company in which all of the employees took it upon themselves to pass around a petition which went to management. The petition called for a 10% decrease in EVERYONE'S pay in exchange for a promise from management not to lay off anyone. Management accepted the petition and no one is being dismissed. We knew that this process would bring the entire employment base closer together. Never did I know that employees could care so much about each other and morale is at an all-time high. The 10% pay cut is sure tough to deal with, but the loss of a job would have been even more troublesome to the dismissed individuals and the economy.

Why weren't any Capts or Lts affected by all this? Why only the rank and file? Also will the police managers going to take the same 10% cut too.

You are in debt, you are cutting vital money to Agencies that help the poorest and most effected communities by this Economic Crisis, and then to add insult to injury you remove your FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE a strong and healthy Law Enforcement. You bureaucrats need to be tried and jailed for extortion and treason! These Cops are your best bet against the Rioting that WILL take place once those IOU's hit people's bellies. You do realize people are loosing their homes, their livelihoods, and any glimmer of hope for paying back their bills by loosing their income tax money. Note to CA residents especially those in the San Bernardino area, GET OUT! Get out now before the entire state goes crazy. Leave the politicians there, in their gated communities with their damn Socialism!

Some of you really have no clue. Being a wife of a police officer in this city I know first hand what these men and women go through each day. You really think that these officers sit around and do nothing? If you are that naive you have no clue what is going on in the world around you. Don't get me wrong...every company has their occasional lazy employee but these men and women risk their lives everyday to keep YOU safe directly or indirectly. If you are not happy with your protection..GET OUT! Secondly, you have no idea what is going on behind the scenes. How do you know that the fellow veteran police officers are not willing to take a pay cut to save their brothers? This was just brought about within the last few days...give it some time and stop being hypocrites!

SB management is crazy. Why didn’t they include top brass in the lay off? A new Captain’s position was created to the tune of over $150,000 a year. At Lieutenant makes over $131,000 and that’s just cash, that doesn’t include bennies. This agency ran with just one chief and three captains back in the 80’s and functioned just fine. To eliminate front line patrol officers will come back and bite you in the rear via higher crime.

This new police organizational chart looks good on paper but if the city and the Chief really wanted to make things work, they would take all 16 motor officers and have them respond to all traffic accidents instead of just injury accidents (new plan calls for no police response to non injury accidents). This would free patrol officers to handle calls for service. The MET or Swat team should be disbanded in the form it is now and all officers should return to patrol and only be on call. Right now they do very little. That’s adding ten more bodies to the streets. And the same goes for area command liaisons. Each area has two police officers who really are nothing more than personnel gophers for problem areas. With four areas, you’d add eight more officers.

And the biggest waist of all is the use of the CSO. These people were hired to take non hazardous reports. Now they are assigned to each area commander as his personal secretary. There are some two dozen civilian CSO’s of which I believe the last time I checked you had maybe 2 in the field taking reports.

By the way I didn’t read anywhere that the Chief, and the Assist Chief and his four Captains and 11 Lts didn’t’ take a 10 percent pay cut? What makes them so special?

I'm leaving this city that is crashing and burning, because of its leaders. Even Compton or south central LA is be safer than this All-American city. What a bunch of doofs we have running this city and police dept. Hey, Billdt, Kimball, Lemos, Henson, Boom--you gonna take that 10% cut too?