Council members should reconsider

To the editor:

I would like to discuss something that happened at the last Redkey Town Council meeting.

But first, I would like to commend Redkey Police Department for the great job it does. Crimes are down, accidents in town have been reduced and a lot of drugs have been taken off of our streets.

Just recently, this police department became the first in Jay County to carry naloxone in its patrol cars. There was no cost to the town. The police department obtained it through a grant from the state attorney general’s office. The department has already had to use the drug to revive someone who had overdosed on heroin.

For the last three years, our police officers had been permitted to take their patrol cars home. They would log on their computers and notify Jay County dispatch when they started their shift before they ever leave home, and the same when they arrived at home at the end of their shift. They are never used for personal business. These officers work for very small salaries compared to the salaries of other towns and cities. The only benefits they receive are paid insurance for themselves, a clothing allowance, vacation pay and some personal days. They are required to work all holidays, and they receive no overtime pay or comp time. They get paid the same regardless of if they work the required 40 hours a week or 70 hours a week, and the town has no pension plan for them. But yet, they do whatever it takes to do their job.

After the first of the year, they were able to purchase out of their police department budget some much-needed and updated laptop computers for their patrol cars. This is something every officer uses every day. It’s a part of their job. Anyone who knows anything about laptop computers knows that they require special care. They should not be left in a closed-up car in the extreme heat of summer or in a cold car in the winter. This also applies to naloxone. It becomes useless under either of these conditions. Leaving the cars at the station rather than storing them at home in garages will make it more difficult to carry these items every day.

These patrol cars are well taken care of by our officers. Sometimes they change their own oil and brakes and make other repairs themselves to save the town costly bills from repair shops.

Town council is supposed to help and be supportive of its police department and provide the tools they need to do their job in a safe and effective way, not try to tear it down.

At our last meeting, I feel that our police department received a slap in the face and disrespect from three of our board members. They voted not to allow police officers to take their patrol cars home, except on the weekend when they are on call. One cited wear and tear on the vehicles and use of gas for the extra 10 to 12 miles per day as his reason. The police department has the money in its budget to allow for this.

Our city building has a one-car garage, so there will always be two vehicles sitting out in the weather. Our officers have garages at their homes.

I voted against this new policy, as did our town council president. But we lost 3-2.

I urge you, the citizens of Redkey, to contact the other council members and tell them they need to reverse their decision on this for the safety of our people and our community.

Mike Wright

Redkey Town Council