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SB Police Officers Speak Back
updated: Oct 26, 2011, 8:50 PM

Source: SB Police Officers Association

In Dale Francisco's Oct 22nd op-ed piece, published online by Edhat, Mr. Francisco wrote that the SBPOA claims, "[Santa Barbara] is less safe today, that the number of officers on the street has been reduced, and that therefore the citizens of Santa Barbara should vote for the Union's chosen slate of candidates."

The Santa Barbara Police Officer's Association (SBPOA) agrees 100%. While we don't always see eye to eye with Mr. Francisco, it appears that we both understand the POA's message very clearly: the message that Iya Falcone, Debra Schwartz and Sharon Byrne are the three candidates that can reverse the disturbing trend of years past, a trend that has reduced staffing at the Police Department to startling lows, and has left Santa Barbara underpatrolled and underserved.

Mr. Francisco's piece then goes on to attack the "Union leadership" and to make misleading assertions about our pay and benefits and about police department staffing. These statements are typical election time rhetoric, intended to only tell part of the story and to confuse the facts. Only one assertion deserves to be refuted: Mr. Francisco is quoted as saying, "The current incumbent councilmembers were successful in increasing the number of budgeted police officers …" That may be - they replaced two sworn officer positions with non-sworn, less expensive employees, and then increased our total number of sworn officers by ONE. This was after 8-10 years of steadily reducing staffing. So it's ten steps backwards and one step … well, you get the idea. And this "increase" in police department staffing happened at a very convenient time: right before the election, when incumbents could say they "increased" the police department staffing level … and not actually be lying. More campaign half truths.

The bottom line is this: the Santa Barbara Police Officer's Association consists of your rank-and-file public safety employees, from officers to support staff, dispatchers and parking enforcement units. An attack on our "Union leadership" is an attack on the same men & women who patrol your streets at 3 am, who want to go home safely to their families at night, and who take pride in delivering some of the best public safety service in California.

We are also proud to have the Santa Barbara Firefighter's Association join us in our support of Iya Falcone, Debra Schwartz and Sharon Byrne. This is the first time in as long as any of us can remember that ALL your local public safety employees have joined together in support of the same slate of candidates. That should speak volumes about which candidates are best for public safety. To learn more about the Santa Barbara Police Officers Association go to www.sbcops.com.

Thank you,
The Santa Barbara Police Officers Association

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 226683	2011-10-26 08:59 PM
I would prefer to hear a POA statement on Friday's beating than an attack on an elected official who won't accept your money.
SHAKEY	2011-10-26 09:00 PM
I guess they do read the Scanner Report !!
COMMENT 226698P	2011-10-26 09:43 PM
Not that I want to support another blog over this one, but today the SB View posted a video of Dale, by Larry Nimmer. In that video Dale gives his side of this story. In my opinion the POA is out of touch. (and yes, I voted for Dale even though I think he is crazy about MM dispensaries and gay marriage.)
COMMENT 226714P	2011-10-26 11:15 PM
Really. The fact of the matter is that while police pay is higher than it ever has been, the police union claims that crime is also higher. To the law abiding folks that are paying the bill, it sounds like we are not getting our money's worth. As far as union leadership is concerned, it wasn't too long ago that the then union president was involved in a sex discrimination lawsuit with two fellow officers? That episode cost the city over 2 million dollars-a case that could have been settled for a fraction of that cost. Now, add to that the three quarters of a million dollars stolen by a police parking enforcement manager. How many more police could that almost 3 million dollars put on the street? Yes, quite a few. And did the POA actually ask any probing questions of the candidates they endorsed? Probably not, otherwise they would have spotted Schwartz's glaring finacial problems and inablity to manage her own money eventhough she calls herself a management expert. Add to that the constant barrage of charges of police misconduct that we have had to witness. More than ever, we need independant politicians that are not endorsed or funded by the police so that the faith in our police department can be restored.
YIN YANG	2011-10-27 02:30 AM
Me too, 683. Glad I haven't voted yet. Though it won't change my vote -- I'd only skip voting... Dang. I have some calls to make & letters to write. Though I do agree releasing the video would only poison the jury pool. This case might require a change of venue. But mostly, SBPD & City admin & Council should INSIST on an investigation by another governing/investigative body.
COMMENT 226724P	2011-10-27 05:32 AM
The conclusion therefore is to vote for a candidate who is neither Dale Francisco nor endorsed by the Police union, and is smart and can speak coherently. Only one choice left.
ROGER DODGER	2011-10-27 06:04 AM
Santa Barbara has turned into Pottersville Good Luck managing that! And Good Luck keeping it crime free! Get smart about crime and protect yourself. I'm really not sure I'm going to vote, I voted for Dale before. I'm kind of a bleeding heart liberal in some respects. Having grown up in a family with politicans in it I know most of them are crooks..Someone who claims to be an expert at managing money is managing someone elses money..I might vote for her 3 times...^^^^^^
COMMENT 226739	2011-10-27 06:57 AM
Where did you get $750K from 226714P? Flores took only $100K. Quit lying to make your point less moot.
COMMENT 226752P	2011-10-27 07:22 AM
@739. The $750,000 comes from using the keyword "Flores" and searching the Edhat site. The search box is in the upper left of the main page.
COMMENT 226761	2011-10-27 07:33 AM
What has happened is the POA negotiated a 25% salary increase (within the last 5 years) for existing sworn employees in exchange for NOT hiring more officers. Now they are pulling a switcheroo and asking for more officers with the higher pay deal!
COMMENT 226763	2011-10-27 07:35 AM
The POA complains there were 8-10 years of steadily declining police before the current council added more police. Wasn't Iya Falcone on City Council most of those years? Then, why would they endorse her? Hmm, could it be because she supported increased wages and benefits?
COMMENT 226765P	2011-10-27 07:41 AM
I will never vote for an anti-marijuana candidate that ignores the will of the city. Why is it that in general, the only people that have the guts to run for office are completely a misrepresentation of the population? These people aren't leaders, they are cheerleaders for their personal cause.
COMMENT 226812	2011-10-27 08:45 AM
226765P - I don't know about anyone else but I certainly don't want a leader that forms (and is willing to modify) his or her ideals and opinions based on public polls.
COMMENT 226834P	2011-10-27 09:05 AM
Read crime stats in Frank Mannix's article Independent Sept 29. Violent crime down 13% in the first 8 months of 2010, down 11% in 2009, property crimes up 5%, but were down 9% in 2009, so still down over almost 2 years, and officer response time down. This is with 137 officers, the lowest number since 1984. Transient-related crime is up - they're definitely spending more of the $125,000/officer pulling homeless people out of sleeping bags before dawn, and putting more effort into making them invisible. POA has been exceptionally clear on the fact that they're entitled to all tax $$, and no one else is. This isn't law enforcement, and it's sure not public safety. It's PR to support GREED by POA. No votes for candidates supported by POA. Our crime stats aren't correct because POA's discriminatory enforcement extends to discriminatory crime reporting. Complaints against friends of POA not only aren't investigated, they're not entered into SBPD's record of complaints filed with SBPD - they just don't exist. This is a constant error in crime stats, though, and doesn't affect recorded crime trends. SBPD is getting sicker by the day.
COMMENT 226843	2011-10-27 09:18 AM
I would like to see my union (SEIU local 620), Police and Fire unions endorse candidates that they like. WITHOUT sending a check to butter up the endorsement. I do not like the idea of buying "Friends on Council." It is a corrupt action and I expect better of my union. You (unions) have a great responsibility to advocate and organize instead of corrupting our local officials with cash donations. -Employee of the City of Santa Barbara
COMMENT 226915	2011-10-27 10:47 AM
I think it's tacky for conservative politicians to take on specific trade unions over their failure to endorse their campaigns. Wasn't it enough that corporations are now declared citizens and can contribute (buy policy influence) to their heart's (do corps have hearts too?) content?
COMMENT 226933	2011-10-27 11:31 AM
Why is it that it's always the Police and the Fire Fighters who endorse candidates? Why not the Acupuncturists? Beauty Salons? Cake bakers? Dentists? Electricians? Farmers? Gynec-ologists? Hardwood floor companies? IHop Employees? Insurance salespersons? Jack's of all trades? Keepers of Bees? Lingerie store owners? Mechanics? Newborn care givers? Opticians? Pharmacists? Queens? Registered... Why is it always the Police and the Fire Fighters?
COMMENT 226956	2011-10-27 12:30 PM
Lots of talk about money and political preferences here. Reality is there are less police on the street and it is a problem in certain areas around town. It's not good. I'm glad something was said - not very concerned about who said it.
AQUAHOLIC	2011-10-27 12:51 PM
@933...any of those professions you mentioned are free to endorse whomever they like, and may do so publicly. Police and Firefighters are Public Servants who are sworn to protect life and property, they exist to provide you with a safe community. Aren't you interested in which candidates they believe will best serve that end?... I know I am.
COMMENT 226973	2011-10-27 01:25 PM
No. I don't trust their opinion on how we will be best served in the end. I've lost faith in our public servants. I don't trust them. If I am driving, I turn to get away from them if I see them in my rear view mirror. They can always find something wrong if they look hard enough. I don't think their endorsements are anything more than how it will benefit them personally in the paycheck. The smack-down at Gelson's doesn't help me to respect their endorsement.
COMMENT 227015	2011-10-27 02:56 PM
The stats show that crime is down overall over the past 2 yrs. Especially violent crime. So tell me again why we need more cops? You can't blame the cops for banding together to try to get more $ for the work that they do. We would all probably do it if we thought we could. Unfortunately the City will never be able to pay them enough so that they can buy a house and raise a family in SB. A lot of them live in Sta Maria and Ventura because of this. And the out of control medical costs will make pensions that include this benefit too expensive also. But when you need to call a cop, none of those things are a concern. You just want them to show up. That is why they are so powerful.

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