TPD officers jumping ship

DOWNTOWN TOLEDO - Next Tuesday, April 7, Toledo City Council could vote to declare the Glass City in a financial emergency.

If that measure passes, contracts for groups like the Toledo Police Department would be voided.

Council will then vote on the mayor's recommendation to give all officers a 10-percent pay cut, 5-percent cut in benefits and a hit to what the city contributes to their pensions.

That would be a huge hit in pay for members of the force.  Officers are now talking about moving to other cities to find work, filing for bankruptcy in order to handle the pay cut, and retiring.

Since word about the cuts has spread, there has been what seems to be a mass exodus at TPD.  Several officers and lieutenants are turning in equipment, filling out paperwork and getting out before that vote next Tuesday.

FOX Toledo's contacts within the police department say Chief Mike Navarre has had meetings all day Thursday with several officers, lieutenants and sergeants.  They all turned in the proper paperwork to either resign of retire.

 So far FOX Toledo is hearing five lieutenants, one sergeant and a handful of officers will retire as soon as Monday, April 6, before the pay cut. And there are several more rumored to follow.

On a chalk board at TPD's central station an officer wrote, "World Ends Tue 4-7-09 1300 Hrs."  That's the day and time council is expected to vote on the pay cut.

A 25-year veteran of the force said, "The morale in the police department is the worst I've seem in my 25 years."

The veteran Toledo Police officer warned Toledoans need to know what's going on inside the downtown Safety Building. "If I'm an average citizen of Toledo, I definitely would be concerned," the unnamed officer said.

All of these retirements, topped with 40 to 75 officers proposed to be cut will bring staffing levels on the streets to the lowest number in decades.  Police officers FOX Toledo News spoke with expect to only have 200 officers patrolling the streets in the near future - a dangerous level for citizens' and officers' safety.

The layoffs would result in dismantling all units. It would also send all officers to road patrol, meaning school resource officers, the gang unit and over half of the detective unit would be gone.

 The 25-year police veteran said fugitives and felons are well aware of what's going on.

"The gang element and the criminal element are getting a little bolder because they know there's not enough officers out there," he said.

Chief Navarre met with officers Tuesday at roll call.  FOX Toledo obtained notes taken at that meeting where Chief Navarre was quoted saying "I believes Carty is at war with the unions and if blood gets spilled he doesn't care."

Also according to the meeting notes, the chief is looking to use grant money allocated for police cars to retain 40 officers until November and hope that the stimulus grant money comes by then to keep them employed. But that has to get approved through Mayor Finkbeiner.

The mayor's office and Chief Navarre refused comment.

If the cuts are a public safety concern to you, Toledo residents can call your councilman or attend Tuesday's 1 p.m. council meeting in the first-floor council chambers inside One Government Center downtown.