A barroom full of nonsense
Here are just a few of the completely nonsensical arguments laid out in todays Telegram and Gazette by Worcester Police Chief Gary Gemme regarding the cities new and ‘improved’ police detail policy for drinking establishments.
A bar or club may pay a couple of hundred dollars for one police officer to work a detail for four hours, but the city can face hundreds of thousands of dollars in liability if the officer has to use force to subdue an unruly patron and/or is injured while doing so, the chief said yesterday. The new policy should address that issue as well, he said.
So the obvious and immediate result of this policy will be either rebate checks to city taxpayers or increased funding to other city services? I can’t wait to see the savings during next years budget hearings.
“Think about it from this perspective; an officer is hired for $200 and the bar gets the officer, but the city has the liability if the officer is sued or if the officer is injured,” Chief Gemme said. “There is much more liability for the city than there is on the bar owner.”
This is similar to the broken logic the city of Worcester is using to attack street vendors. Somehow in the Chiefs mind the city is under attack by businesses and law enforcement officers should never worry about having to subdue or arrest an individual. Isn’t that a rather basic component of the job description?
The chief said yesterday that when his department noticed a spike in assaults and other crime around bars in May, June and July, and when he found officers had to strike people with their batons while at bar details in the first weekends of July — a new policy was needed for safety reasons. He did that while the policy announced yesterday was still being crafted.
“We looked at the data and what was taking place and we knew we had to make a decision,” he said. “The decision behind the two police officers working the bar details together was for officer safety first and foremost.”
‘We must do something. This is something. Therefore, we must do it.’
This is a city built on a foundation of logical fallacies. Worthy of note, this is the same broken logic being used to justify putting the military on the street in Italy, today.
Chief Gemme said since Jan. 1, four out of the nine times an officer had to strike someone with a service baton it was at a bar or alcohol-serving establishment. In July, officers on two different occasions had to defend themselves with their baton and accidentally struck a person on the head during a struggle. Striking someone in the head is not authorized, but it occurred during the struggle, he said.
So now simply by an officer yelling “I COST THIS BAR 1/25th MORE THAN PREVIOUSLY, CITIZEN” all training issues involving use of force will be rectified. Color me unimpressed.
Since 2006, the city has paid out $300,000 in settlements because of incidents that were directly or indirectly related to bar details. Chief Gemme said one of the problems was the bar details did not have any supervision.
“I felt we were completely vulnerable in terms of bar details because of lack of supervision,” he said. “This policy will now allow us to address our supervision and police officer safety.”
On more than one occasion I’ve made snarky admittedly churlish comments about oversight for the overseers. Apparently they were neither snarky or churlish, but in the eyes of the City Administration spot on. Unless my public school reading comprehension skills are on the fritz again, Chief Gemme is telling the city of Worcester his officers can not be trusted to make good, rational decisions under stress. I didn’t say it, the Cheif did.
Think about that next time you interact with the police in our city.
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13 Responses to “A barroom full of nonsense”
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Me first! Me first!
Ahem, testing 1,2,3… any one out there?
So does this mean the city will be releasing copies of all the “excessive force” complaints and lawsuits now?
I think not trusting Worcester police to be competent as a whole was blantantly obvious the time I was pulled over on Chandler St with three other people in my car around 8:30pm one Friday evening. The officer told me he pulled us over because he thought my car might have been stolen.
Didn’t ask for ID or anything. He just saw that the four of us were all white and let us go. It must have been my baseball hat that initially threw him off…
Hey where’s Paulie?
He shoulda been all over this thread.
Na… he’s a law-and-order type of citizen/guy and adores Gemme.
Will
Thanks for adding nothing to the conversation except a cheap shot
Buckley, you are lucky he didn’t realize you we’re trolling for male prostitutes.
“were”, holy Freudian slip.
John, before you posted, did you take a second to think what you were doing? Na… of course not.
None the less. A great post man!
Found this on the T&G today:
The recent e-mail contest between City Councilor Michael J. Germain and Police Chief Gary J. Gemme, while seemingly childish, should cause Worcester taxpayers some concern. This newest action displays the chief’s arrogant, stubborn resistance to all legal authority except his own.
The closing of the Paris Cinema for code violations was delayed so that the raid, arrest and photos of the patrons appeared on the front page of the Telegram & Gazette. He rejected and appealed a court decision to reinstate a gun owner’s license to carry. Lawyers 1, taxpayers 0. He tried to revoke licenses of the Boston Gun Range, the city’s licensing board’s responsibility. The range appealed. Lawyers 1, taxpayers 0. The court said that police records are public property. The chief appealed twice. Lawyers: 2, taxpayers 0. The T&G was then charged $1 a page for copies. Park Print, Staples and Curry are cheaper. The chief stated in a T&G interview that he has the authority to override a governor’s pardon and a city councilor has no authority over him or his department. What stupor makes legislative, judicial and executive power incomprehensible to him?
But fear not, the chief’s priorities are firmly fixed. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in out-of-court settlements; cops lying under oath and taking inappropriate overtime; double-paid detail requirements. Bruised ego: hi-ho, e-mail away.
That rosy glow from 9-11 Lincoln Square is from the angry, embarrassed faces of the honest, hardworking and victimized good city cops.
MICHAEL J. SWETT
Worcester
The guy has balls eh? Betcha his car gets towed today.
Will;
I have been relaxing in the law and order - Catskill Moutnains with the ole lady..you had bettah watch it Wee Will I may come ovah and piss in yer new beer batch..one time in mi life I wasn’t such a law and order type of cat from Somerville..today I’m just lookin for some peace in the hood so I can plant my wildflowers, watch em’ grow and drink some good beer..the local coppers have treated me alright as Joe Private citizen..from a event business perspective we have had some disagreements and I have challeneged them on it and more than most have in the last 50 years (see last years WOMAG)-unfortunately not as successfully as I would like:>)…I’m a glass half filled kinda guy Wee Will:>)
BTW Wee Will..I have physically rolled in the dirt with more banditoes in my neighborhood then most, have physically defended my property more than most and can say fairly honestly that if it wasn’t for the coppers in this city I may have a few punture wounds more than I had when I got to this fair city:>) My hood has changed dramatically law and order wise since Chief Gemme came on board and I am not embarrrassed or ashamed to give credit where credit is due in my own less than humble opine:>)
If ya need help with cleaning up the trash, I can get my big sisters to help out.
And just to show ya I’m a good guy and respect ya. I’m gonna make a batch of beer for you - Paulie’s Porter. And I’ll pass on the aforementioned contribution.
Hail Gemme!
if she has a truck would you ask her to bring it along..there is a lot of it down here:>)
No beef here chief..I can bang with the best of em”
Hmmmm Paulie’s Portah..I like beer