Stories on the Police Chief candidate withdrawing were in both the Morning Call (read it here) and the Express-Times (read it here). Both indicated that no reason was given and that two other candidates are being considered. It is expected that a new candidate will be announced at the next meeting.
The Express-Times also had a story on the lighting at the Police Station (read it here). In this story it notes that Daugherty was absent (as noted in the post below) and says that he called on Council to come up with a more cost effective solution via an email that was read. While I didn't see the email, as I recalled his email recommended using floodlights off the back of the building plus hanging lights from existing poles, which was a less costly option - and that was his request of Council to go with the less costly but equally effective solution.
The Morning Call article on the Chief candidate included some statements related to skateboarding that I found interesting.
The topic of skateboarding has recently become a sore spot for many parents of skaters, who feel their children have been unfairly targeted and cited by Nazareth police.Regarding "many parents of skateboarders", based on what I saw at the meeting there was one parent of one skateboarder who was cited and spoke with both reporter's after the meeting outside. During the meeting Councilman Herbst gave his opinion that skateboarders were being singled out and he feared harassment of them once the Skate Park was complete (for instance that they would be fined the moment they skated outside the fenced in enclosure). The parent, Ms. Romanishan sat next to Herbst's wife who was also speaking with reporters and whose son also skateboards. Taken together there were three adults representing two skateboarders at the meeting as could be observed.
Teri Romanishan spoke to the council Monday about her 15-year-old son Alex, who'd been given a $157 fine for skating on the basketball courts.
There are no signs in that area of the park that say ''no skateboarding,'' though there are many signs that ban animals and bicycles, Romanishan said. ''If daddy is teaching little Janie to ride her bike, they should take her bike away,'' just as they take away skaters' boards, she said.
But they don't, and that's discriminatory, she said, adding that she is one of many parents who feel their children are feeling unfairly singled out.
To my knowledge and understanding, no one confiscated the individual's skateboard. Further based on Ms. Romanishan's public comments at the meeting her son was cited after he failed to respond to the officer. She stated the officer's perception that her son was ignoring him was in reality the result of her child listening to an ipod and not hearing him.
I don't know what took place and won't get into he said, she said, but I do know based on my own observation and comments previously posted on this site that many people are not happy with the general lack of respect displayed by many of the skateboarders in town. The lack of respect is for both property and individuals. Kids have used personal, private property for their own amusement, have been rude and disrespectful to individuals who have asked them to move along, have had a disregard for public safety by skating in intersections off curbs during daytime and evening hours and down the middle of the road despite holding up vehicle traffic.
Does every kid who has a skateboard do this? No I'm quite sure they don't, however, until the behavior ends they are going to and should be targeted by police as it is not a nuisance, but a problem.
The Borough has invested significant money in its public property and should be enforcing its proper usage. It has also invested in a skate park to accommodate this activity. The kids who skateboard have a responsibility to demonstrate they deserve it.
While the police have many issues to address right now it would seem with the skate park ready to go there is no excuse for skating on other public or private property. The more $100+ citations issued the quicker the individuals who have no regard or respect for others will change their attitude.
What do you think? Are more people upset with the skaters or the harassment of them?
Note: This was posted 7/3 and I went to tinker with a link and add one to other past articles and messed it up (deleted it instead of saving it actually), but fortunately I had it saved in email so here it is again as posted previously.
24 comments:
Disrespect? Lets start by shining a light on the people who are earning skate boarders respect!
1) Jack Herbst, for going against nearly the entire opposing grain of old fashioned, ignorant individuals who see no value in giving our children a place to exist, yet command respect when we tell them NO.
2) The multitude of PRIVATE businesses and individuals who are right now donating their time, effort and thousands of dollars to make this skate park a reality.
3) Their parents who go to meetings to put up with this type ridicule in their defense.
4) All of their hero's who do this at both amateur and professional levels — just like any other sport!
Now,
Lets take away every basketball court, every baseball field, every track and field that our children use — then lets tell them they can't play in the street. Tell me, how much respect do expect to garner from anyone who is told they are not allowed to partake their hobby, sport or interests.
I don't care who you are or what your child does. Do you really expect any type of respect, or admiration from children in that situation?
And you better believe thats their situation — its the same old vs young song and dance that has been playing out since I was a kid on a skateboard some 20 years ago.
~ Richard Strucke
I don't think the issue at hand is earning the skateboarders' respect as much is it is the skateboarders' being respectful.
You mention taking away facilities and wanting to participate.
You give your kid an object to use, be it a basketball, softball, Frisbee, or skateboard, and you expect a facility to be built to accommodate that object and if it isn't provided by the borough, they are allowed to do it in the street (at the child's danger and in complete disrespect for other individuals and their property).
If the police or borough tells the child they can't do it in the public area or on private property, where the owner of the property does not give them permission, they will give you no respect or admiration.
And this is the Borough's fault?
Let me ask you this. If I gave my child a rifle and there wasn't a range, would you be alright with me setting up a target against your house or down a public street for my child to learn how to shoot?
If you didn't, would you be denying me a right? Should I be bitter with you for trying to stop me?
I think the answer is if I want my child to shoot I get them to a place where it is available to do so. It is my choice, not the borough's requirement to provide it to me.
If you give your kid a skateboard, it is your responsibility to make sure it is used with respect to people's property. If your child is lacking a facility to use the skateboard, you as a parent haven't tried hard enough to find a location to use it for them.
This is not a problem for the public, it is your job as a parent.
Thanks to Councilman Herbst, there is going to be a SkatePark available very soon, which means there is no reason to skate on any private or public property other than the skatepark.
I hope at that point the users of the Skate Park appreciate what they have been given and reciprocate that respect by respecting the property of others.
Mr. Strucke,
Very well said! What Ross and many others ignore is that this is an athletic endeavor, and these kids are discriminated against for pursuing it. There are numerous instances, inside and outside of Nazaeeth, of children who are abused by police simply because they are on a skateboard.
And the young man in Nazareth who was fined $157 was a victim of harrassment. Had he been on a bike, no cop would have said a word. In fact, cops don't sday much or do anything to the kids who tear up and down a very narrow Main Street at 50 mph. And those kids are endangering a lot more than property. Most cops are very lenient with kids because many of them drove like that when they were kids, and some apparently still drive like that as cops.
But cops have little familiarity w. skatebaording. It's foreign to them. And we tend to fear what we don't know or understand. In Nazareth especially, I have noticed that. People here tend to be slow to accept, whether it's racial diversity, the Sunshine Act or skateboards.
Last night, I attended the terrific production of Oedipus Rex at Nazareth Park. Several people brought their dogs, another clear violation of Naz. ordinances, and for good reason. Not a word was said to those folks. So far as I know, skateboards don't crap and pee all very the very lawn we are asked to sit on.
Incidentally, Ross' statement of the facts is inaccurate. That child's skateboard was confiscated. When his mother went to pick it up, police refused, saying they were keeping it as "evidence." The news reporter had her facts right, and I confirmed that by speaking to Herbst.
Just as a baseball can smash a window at your home or car, a skateboard can do damage, too. But police don't throw a ballplayer on the ground and begin accusing him of using drugs, do they?
Bernie and Richard, very well put. This is just another example of authorities singling an entity out. And it's difficult to understand why they choose skateboarders. Speeding (automobiles) in this town are exponentialy more of a public nuisance than people on four wheels and a plank of wood.
Regarding the skatepark, I am curious about the expectation of life with a skatepark in-town. Will skateboards effectively be outlawed anywhere in the borough other than the confines of the skatepark? Cetainly, skateboards will be allowed on public road, right? I mean, not everybody uses a skateboard the same way. Younger, or less skilled kids, may just want to putter around and not do tricks. The skatepark will be of little use to them. And what about kids who use skateboards, like longboards, as legitimate transportation? (Longboards are designed for handling and speed and not for leaving the ground or doing tricks) Longboards are a great way to get from A to B. I used one in college everyday.
Bernie, I think I noted I was not stating facts and it was my understanding. If the board was confiscated I stand corrected. The reporter noted that many were upset with the harassment and I noted there were two people she spoke with after the meeting and I only questioned on the site if more people were upset with the skateboarders being harassed by police or with the skateboarders being disrespectful of others (and I also noted it is not all of them) so please be fair to me in your corrections as well.
The point of my post was not to argue this single instance, but instead to point out that there has been a lack of respect by skateboarders for public and private property and you cannot demand respect until you give it.
Using a Board for transportation is fine. Going slow down the middle of the road to intentionally slow traffic or playing in the intersection and using the curbs while cars are trying to get through is not showing respect.
The community is giving these individuals a space to use and I believe that is a generous allocation of funds that could have been spent on another recreational activity/facility that could have been used by many more residents, but they chose the Skate Park.
I also never said or declared whether or not this was an athletic activity. I don't argue that it is athletic in nature, yet you say I do. My point to that end is simply that the Borough is not obligated to provide a facility for every activity that someone wants. And if they don't provide the facility a resident doesn't have a right to conduct it on public or private property without permission.
Can a basketball rebound or get knocked away from a court and into a car and do damage? Yes, and that is called an accident. Taking a board jumping it onto a picnic bench and sliding across it repeatedly will also cause damage, but it is not an accident.
Ross,
Here's what you stated. "To my knowledge and understanding, no one confiscated the individual's skateboard."
That is inaccurate.
The board was, in fact, confiscated and held "as evidence" for a few days. It's clear to me that some police officers are harrassing kids on skateboards. They're easy targets because they don't get much sympathy from folks like you. Ross, if you spent as much time talking to these kids as you do complaining about them in various posts over the last year, you might actually eliminate the problem on your own.
If I see kids playing baseball, basketb all or football, I often stop to appreciate what they're doing. And I'm sure to let them know. How many of us ask a skater to show us one of their moves? I've started doing that when I see them, and they really appreciate it. Give a little respect, and you get respect in return.
A skate park is a wonderfu; opportunity for local police to open up lines of communication with the skateboarding crowd. If they instead use it as a place to lie in wait for someone who dares get on a board to go to an unused basketball court, they are in fact being the aggressors. They are totally defeating Nazareth's purpose in having a park. It is there to encourage, not deter, a sport. I have a story about Wilkes-Barre police. They were sent to arrest a bunch of kids who were actually demonstrating for a place where they could skatebaord. Most of the skaters disappeared when they saw the cops. Those that stayed had a very unusual surprise. Instead of arresting these kids, the cops talked with them, signed their petition, and gave them an escort!
Imagine how many lines of communication were opened by that simple act.
Also, Paper Boy is right. Some folks use it as transportation. I can't imagine it being that popular as transportation in this hilly town, but kids have inexhaustable reserves of energy.
But even there you've got problems, and start complaining about kids "[g]oing slow down the middle of the road to intentionally slow traffic ... ." You and I must live in different downs because I never see that. Sure, kids on boards can't go 50 mph down Main Street, but most drivers I see are always well in excess of the speed limit, and it definitely is intentional.
I ride a bike. Before I injured a shoulder nerve two years ago, it was pretty much my sole source of transportation. Just about the only place I had trouble was in Nazareth, where one old bastard cursed me out one day for riding my bike and shouted from his car window that bikes don't belong on the road. After he vroomed past me, I noticed where he went, and it was to a local gin mill. Heavens, I slowed the old coot from getting his daily shot of Jim Beam.
And speaking of bikes, we're the idiots who ride three and four abreast, in violation of the Vehicle Code. How many cyclists get cited for that? Not one that I know of, even in Nazareth.
We're adults, so cops leave us alone. We can bite back. It's much easier to pick on a 12 or 13 year old. What we end up doing is driving the youth away. Nazareth is an old town in more ways than one.
Wow.. a rifle or a skateboard. Deadly weapon that can kill someone if you point it the wrong way vs chipped up curbs — the horror.
And Yes Ross, this is the Borough's fault. This is the county's fault. This is our states fault. This is everyone's fault.
This has been a problem for well over 20 years and there isn't one public (supported) skatepark in the entire Lehigh Valley.
Yet, we seem to be able to budget endless amounts of cash for "jock" sports year in and year out, re-turfing football fields, ruberizing tracks, re-hooping netting and painting basketball courts that, even if empty, kids with skateboards can be harrassed and arrested on.
I mean give me a break, GIVE ME A BREAK — skateboarding on a public basketball court gets you a $157 fine! Who's private property was he destroying — what was he destroying at all? As far as I see it he was doing the right thing by not destroying private property. He was staying out of trouble!
But hey.. he's riding one of those skate-em-up-boards lets MAKE darn sure he's up to no good.
Skateboarding is not a crime, a lack of respect is not a crime, but harrasement thats 100% criminal.
I don't mind discussing/arguing this, but lets at least address the topic within the same framework (and Bernie I acknowledged your point and stand by the fact that I never claimed it to be a fact and qualified it as you can see where you reprinted it).
My point was in regard to the question: Are more people upset with the skaters or the harassment of them?
I sited incidents in town, not at the Park, where obvious disrespect for other people's property (be it public or private has occurred) have and continue to occur with regularity and it is more than a nuisance, it is a problem.
I disagree with the point raised that a community is obligated to provide a facility for every citizen's preferred activity.
I also think it is unfair to mix school facilities with those of the borough (football field with artificial turf, rubberized track, etc).
You may think of a rifle only as a deadly weapon, but it is both an olympic and PIAA sanctioned sport. You got my point when you agreed you wouldn't want them fired down the street. Which leaves us to two points, who is responsible to find a place for these people to shoot and if one is not found can they use public property as the skateboarders do?
We can't accommodate everyone's interest. I think the borough has given a significant amount of investment to this SkatePark (along with those in surrounding communities), and I don't even know if that is appreciated as it seems to be expected.
You position me as being wholly against these kids and that is standard in modern discourse, but the fact is I noted I don't believe it is all the kids, only a small portion. I fully anticipate that the one's who go to the park are the ones that will be respectful of what they've been given. This leaves us with the ones that give everyone a black eye - and these individuals should be cited on a regular and ongoing basis.
If you don't believe I've been supportive revisit this post.
In there you will see a wide range of comments as well as links to photos of some of the bad apples who are giving the good kids who skateboard a black eye.
I think Nazareth needs to elect a Burgermeister Meisterburger, and all the kids should just stay home and wash their stalkings.
If we are going to penalize this group for a few bad apples, then there should be equity that we punish any group with bad apples. Every group has them, be they skaters, swimmers, football players, wrestlers, etc. If you tell me those groups don't have any bad apples, then you are not living in the real world.
Over the weekend, I noticed signs at parks that go beyond just skaters, but also roller blades, bicycles, and more. Maybe they should just put up a sign that says "No Fun".
My point is simple. Did every adult in this community forget what it was like to be a kid? Yes, you are going to have your rebels that think they are bad a**es, we had them when we were kids. But, our parents did not scream to have laws against them.
Most likely the reason these kids are doing what they are doing is because there is some adult telling them they can't and they are just pushing the envelope as well as a few peoples buttons. Both of which they seem to have been successful at doing.
I think my point is clear I am upset with the harassment of skaters as a whole due to the few bad apples AND a lack of facility which magnifies the whole being classed bad apples.
I applaud not only the (true leaders with insight in the) borough, but also Northampton County Council, Upper Nazareth Township, Bushkill Township, Tatamy Borough, and all of the private donors for putting forth the effort and resources to make this part of our park a reality.
I completely agree that the borough can't accommodate everyone's interest's.
However, how did we come to accommodate (be it in school or out) the athletic facilities we have today? I'll tell you, through numbers. We felt a rise in interest, defined the problems and we filled the need. The simple fact is there are a lot of skateboarders in our (and surrounding) area, young and old, with a definite need for a facility.
And Ross, don't get it twisted, I do commend you for your fair reporting — whether I see eye to eye with your opinions or not.
Saturday Afternoon---
Forest drive in the boro--
several M 80's go off in the woods behind our house---
two skateboarders emerge from woods and proceed to snake down the middle of Forest Dr ---
no more M 80's heard---
hmmm wonder who was setting off those M 80's?
just a few bad apples I agree but they make a strong visual representation of their sport/group when they blatantly display disregard for others safety---and if you know the topography of forest Dr you understand the level of peril (not to mention the annoyance of the M 80's)
with that said I completely support the skate park and hope it provides the much needed recreational space and is treated respectfully--
and when the next developer rec $'s need to be spent I hope the council will consider a path for biking as well as blading (my sport!)
Justmyopionion,
Curious, did you ever set off a firework (be it an m-80 or other) when you were a kid?
Do you think it is only "skaters" that are setting these things off?
Did you happen to notice on the 4th of July (and before and after) who was setting off all the illegal fireworks? I saw plenty of adults doing it for their kids.
It is easy to warp the facts to support your argument, but there are just as many facts out there that support the opposite.
As it has been stated numerous times, respect is a two way street. However, all I keep hearing from the "anti" crowd is that these kids are bad and they can't do their activity anywhere near other people and have essentially banned them from almost any location where it would make sense to let them do their thing (i.e., parks, playgrounds, etc.).
Maybe everyone would be happier if these kids were sitting at home typing away on the computer all day to virtual friends.
Stilfx,no worries, I never saw it as anything other than you expressing your opinion. I just wanted to make sure that you and Bernie understood where I was coming from.
I wasn't real sure about the Skate Park when it was brought up last summer. I saw alot of money being spent on a reasonably small number or Borough resident and felt it could have been spent in a way that would have served more residents.
I also was concerned that it was too far removed from town to draw the kids on the south end of town who were skating on people's property and in the streets (not going to work, but using the curbs of intersections).
I've listened at a lot of meetings and talked to Jack Herbst quite a bit since then and while it may not be my first personal choice of a project for the rec funds, I understand it and appreciate the need for it.
I hope now that we have it the proper understandings and communications are made so everyone, the kids, parents, police, council, etc., know what will be ok and what won't.
I don't think the Park will be the problem, though. I think it will come in town where some kids will continue to skate. It will put them all in a bad light.
Thanks for the comments and have a great night!
Ross,
Let's talk discrimination! I happen to be the mother of the child fined in the borough park, Alex Romanishan. Alex was not harming ANYONE, nor was he destroying ANY property, he was skateboarding! Since you have a lot of opinions, but obviously no knowledge, let me tell you about my son! Alex is an honor student at Nazareth High School. He is both a football player and wrestler (which I am an active supporter of both organizations). My son does not drink, smoke (and God forbid anyone who smokes around him, I know because I smoke!), nor does he do any drugs. Alex has never been in ANY trouble (except of course his monstrous crimes related to his love of skateboarding). He is also the first one to jump in and protect the underdog (as he was raised to do) and offer his help (except at home of course!). Is my son a saint? Of course not! Should my son be discriminated against because instead of sitting around getting high or watching TV all day, he chooses to skateboard? If the police constantly followed you around, confiscated your paper and pencils as "evidence" (and yes Ross, his skateboard was confiscated as "evidence" for a week, took me several attempts, both in person and phone, and finally the threat of an attorney to have it returned), told you it was a crime to write and fined you (originally $157 on the citation, but we are now told by the magistrate this is not a set fine and could be $300), for doing something constructive, something you loved, that wasn't hurting a soul, tell me Ross, HOW WOULD YOU FEEL????? Before you spout off about "disrespectful" kids, maybe you should actually take the time to get to know some of them.
Teri Romanishan
Teri,
As noted in an earlier comment I acknowledged that I stood corrected in regard to the board being confiscated based on Bernie's saying so. I took his word and I'll take yours on that point. That is why comments and input is encouraged to get the right information out.
However, I never said your son did anything wrong. I never said your son was disrespectful. I did say I wasn't going to discuss your son.
"Before you spout off about "disrespectful" kids, maybe you should actually take the time to get to know some of them."
What does knowing them have to do with disrespect?
If I saw one of the individuals who slowly skates in front of a car to hold it up knowing the person isn't going to run them over, and I pull them aside and talk to them, will I somehow gain understanding that will result in the act no longer being disrespectful? No, the act is disrespectful, regardless of the individual doing it.
Or if I see someone skating on someone's private property and I get to know them, will knowing them somehow make the act less disrespectful? I might learn the kids not a bad or mean person, but it doesn't mean they are no longer disrespectful.
Maybe they weren't taught well, maybe they don't care.
Again, I'm not saying go after every kid on a skateboard, I said to make sure you fine the one's abusing private and public property without permission.
In regard to how would I feel if the police harassed me, I try not to give them a reason to do so. If I'm in a public area and I'm getting shoed along, I wouldn't go to the next public area to be shoed again, I'd instead go a place I'm allowed.
"In regard to how would I feel if the police harassed me, I try not to give them a reason to do so. If I'm in a public area and I'm getting shoed along, I wouldn't go to the next public area to be shoed again, I'd instead go a place I'm allowed."
That's right. Be a good little sheep. Baaa. Ross, it's that kind of thinking that inexorably leads to totalitarianism.
If being responsible, respectful, and law-abiding makes me a supporter of the totalitarian state and against democracy in your world view, so be it.
Keep in mind when you quote me out of context that I was referring to at least a disrespectful act and at worst a law-breaking one as is the skating being discussed on public and private property without permission.
Ross,
This is being discussed in the context of skateboarders generally, and that Romanishan lad in particular. Rather than express any sympathy for the mother, your advice appears to be that he got what he deserved. He should not be giving police a reason to harass him. In essence, he should stop skateboarding. That is precisely the kind of attitude that leads to fascism. Rather than question police, you'd move along or stop skateboarding entirely.
Where is the Ross who stood up against Nazareth last summer?
And Ross, you really should be questioning that police department becauise things there are seriously amiss.
Ross,
I am not pro-skateboard, incidentally. I am pro-kid. I didn't like it last summer when the good ol' boys tried to take away a portion of one of their parks. And I don't like it now when police are cursing at and harassing kids, especially when the sole crime is innocently skateboarding on a basketball court with the permission of the other basketball players there. I know I won't be moving along.
My post is not about Romanishan at all. It was a launching point for the question: "What do you think? Are more people upset with the skaters or the harassment of them?"
That is clearly where we differ, but I'll speak to your points.
I spoke up when the Council was violating the law.
I'm not discussing one individual case because I wasn't there and don't have the first or second hard information.
You say the only option is skate in public or on other's private property or stop skating.
What happened to ramps and skate accessories at individuals homes? Maybe I'm to old, but when kids used to skateboard usually one kid had a bunch of stuff at his house.
I don't have a problem using a skateboard as a means to get around, be respectful of others also wanting to get around by foot, bike, or car.
I am mostly talking about kids using intersections, private property, and public property posted no skating as impromptu skateparks and being disrespectful of others while doing so. If you do that and get chased out and do it again and get chased out you are asking for trouble - go somewhere that you aren't being abusive and disrespectful to others - then you won't be harassed.
And don't get me wrong, if there is legitimate harassment, I'm not defending that, but I do believe there are times and instances when kids, being kids, do things to push it and antagonize people (including police). Is it right to push back and put them in your place? No. Are there times you want to? I'd bet.
Again, this isn't about one kid, it is a launching point for a larger and apparently needed conversation.
Don't interpret this to mean I don't believe you, but if the harassment you note is true then something does need to be done. I don't personally believe that an investigation will just take place within the police department, so it would require individuals to act. Would people be willing to take that up? Would individuals be willing to submit affidavits attesting to these charges to force either the Mayor or Council to launch an investigation?
I don't know if this is the right way to do it, maybe someone else does.
Bernie,
I thank you for your comments and support! I TOTALLY agree that my child is not a sheep to be shooed along! And Ross, just WHERE was my child to be shooed too??? His bedroom to play with his virtual friends doing virtual activities? Gee, lots of virtual exercise he would get there! There isn't a place that the police do not harrass these children. Where are your comments on the police behavior and their total disregard for respect. Because my son is only 15, he doesn't deserve to be respected? He deserves to have someone in "authority" scream at him and use profanity? To be respected maybe they should show some respect. My children weren't raised to meekly "follow" orders, but to question "why" they are being given that order and then make an informed choice wether to follow. I have taught my children to have enough self-respect and confidence to stand up for their beliefs and I wouldn't want them any other way.
I am not writing about your son.
I've tried to make my position and comments as clear as possible and having obviously failed I'm moving along...I guess you could say you've shoed me.
Bernie hits the nail on the head, mainly we need to question why the police are going after these skateboarding criminals.
What about the fact that two Main Street establishments were robbed the weekend before last? Both within a short distance from the police station? If the robbers were on skateboards, I bet they would have caught them in minutes.
Every day on the Nazareth streets I see adults crossing in the middle of road, even with oncoming traffic, and we have to slow down to let them get across. They know they are doing it and it is wrong, but they do it any way. How is that different from a kid on a skateboard slowing traffice? Where are their citations?
I said it before, to get respect, you have to give it as well. We can't assume that every kid on a skateboard is up to no good, yet that seems to be the attitude of a lot of people (and no Ross, I don't include you in this group).
Ross,
The mayor, who claims he is the administrative chief of police, is not the person to investigate this harassement. That department is out of control, and it is largely the result of Keller's failure to do his job. The harassment is just the tip of the iceberg, a warning sign that things are amiss. It goes much deeper, from theft of office supplies to abuse of OT and a shocking 67% increase in wages over the past 5 years. Police officers are allowed to set their own schedules instead of the mayor or acting chief doing it for them. Aside from what I note on my blog, there are other allegations, and they are very troubling. From what I can tell, council knows it has a problem. The best solution is a new chief, and the sooner the better.
If council can make a good hire, a new chief will straighten out that mess. Right now the inmates are running the asylum.
We don't need a town where a group with different tastes is shunned. Just today, two boys who skateboard at the park were forced to stand outside in a thunderstorm while waiting for one of their mothers. The parks employee refused to let them take shelter in a bathroom because they had boards.
This is mindless discrimination and harrassment. And what community exposes its children to lightning? That's a disgrace, dude.
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