So Pendergrass is advertising for a new police chief. Current chief Rob Russell has been demoted following allegations from city whistleblowers of wrong-doing.
Russell has long been a part of “the family” in Pendergrass. He was very vocal on the whistleblowers’ tapes about how his officers should always think of “the family” first.
Now, it looks like Russell has become a red-headed stepchild in “the family.” His power — if you can assume there is such a thing as “power” in tiny Pendergrass — has been cut by half. (Which makes one wonder; if the city had to fire four people to cut expenses, as the mayor claimed three weeks ago, how can it now afford to create this new position and also pay for the other new cop who was hired back this week as part of a legal settlement? Are they printing money in Pendergrass?)
Clipping Russell’s wings as a cop is a good thing; if POST ever does an investigation into him, he’d probably lose his certification anyway. (Reports indicate the entire department is out of POST compliance today.)
But who should replace Russell? According to the city’s advertising, they want a hot-shot cop to run the city’s department. Alas, the city’s solicitation for a new top-cop is incomplete. Here’s what Pendergrass’ help wanted ad should really say:
Wanted, an enforcer and fundraiser-in-chief. Must agree to bow to the religion of “the family;” butt-kissing a must. The right candidate will have no regard for civil rights, legal restraints or the judicial process. He (and it must be a “he” since a “she” wouldn’t fit into the sexist tone of the city) must make sure city officers are trolling Hwy. 129 and stopping as many Hispanic drivers as possible. (Except for those driving Mercedes; don’t stop Mercedes people because they complain too much.) Community policing — checking neighborhoods and stores — is forbidden because that doesn’t bring in revenue. And if Pendergrass does have a legitimate “crime” that requires investigation, your department is to ignore it and let the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office investigate so your cops can stay on the road writing tickets for the city bank account. In other words, you won’t be operating a real police department, just a little pretend department.
A new Pendergrass police chief must also be able to pull tickets out of the pile for friends of “the family.” There are just certain people whose pedigree is so uppity they shouldn’t get a ticket from Pendergrass.
In addition to running a small police force, a new chief will also have to be able to turn his head and keep quiet about financial abuses in city government. If the mayor wants to give away a city lawn mower, that’s OK. If the city administrator wants to buy a pair of $90 sandals on the city credit card, that’s considered a legitimate city expense. If the city wants to cheat on its SPLOST money, you aren’t to say anything. No questions are to be asked. Everything is for “the family” and is perfectly OK to do.
Finally, as Pendergrass’ police chief, you must have the ability to lie with a straight face. You should have the ability to deny anything and never admit to the truth, even when the truth is recorded on tape and you stand a chance of getting caught. If you do get caught, you should have the ability to continue to lie about it with an air of fake sincerity similar to a 3-year-old who gets caught with his hand in the cookie jar. For all of this, you will immediately receive the state’s worst police chief award, which currently hangs in city hall anyway.
If you meet all of these qualifications, please contact the grand master of “the family” in Pendergrass who will be happy to enslave, manipulate and control you for as long as your dignity can take such a beating. (Pendergrass is not an equal opportunity employer; if you don’t give your soul to “the family,” we won’t hire you.)
Mike Buffington is editor of The Jackson Herald. He can be reached at mike@mainstreetnews.com.
My question is will you and the public give the next Chief a chance? Or will he be doomed from the start? I would think with the news media and the forums he want have a chance. Just my thoughts.
I am not up to date on your involvement with Jefferson but I applaud you for doing what's right. We all make mistakes, but it's what we learn from them that matters. I hope Pendergrass learns something!
Why don't we get rid of ALL of the "city police" in Jackson County and get some additional deputies and let Stan cover the entire county. He is seriously short handed for a county this size and his over-worked force is doing more with less than any of the PDs are!
When Stan Evans was first elected, I certainly wasn't a big fan, but I've seen the change in the department over the years and, even with way too few deputies, somehow he has managed to get more law enforcement presence every where I've been in the county.
It just seems like common sense that if you have someone who is doing the job RIGHT, you should cut some of those "professionals" who aren't getting the job done and push some of that money into a department that IS working. But I guess that would require some common SENSE instead of political pressure, wouldn't it?
If you want to see that a county wide "police force" does work, take a drive down to Athens. If they can do it, why can't we?
Just my opinion.
Sorry you didn't get the Chief's job you so very much have coveted to prolong your "law enforcement" career! May you forever be banned from any type of police job!
:)
XXOO