Police union vote sends strong message
Majority of police officers have no faith in chief
FLINT (WJRT) - (09/29/06)--
By a 2-to-1 margin Flint police officers send a strong message that they
have no confidence in their chief.
The officers took the vote of no
confidence Thursday.
Of the 145 officers who voted, 100 of them said they
have no confidence in the chief. The others said they support the
leadership of Chief Gary Hagler.
Now that the vote has been taken, what does it mean for
the department?
The vote is not going to force any
change in the leadership at the Flint Police Department. - it doesn't
carry that kind of weight. The vote has sent a strong message to the
chief, the mayor and community that the police officers in the city have
no faith in Chief Hagler.
Several things led up to yesterdays vote by Police
Officers.
The union alleges that the chief treats officers
unfairly, that he fires people for the wrong reasons and that the chief
runs a biased and racist department.
Chief Hagler denies the allegations.
Another concern, according to officers and their union,
is the absence of a permanent police chief. Hagler has been serving as
acting chief for more than two years.
"Honestly, the acting part, that's only a title. That
really doesn't matter. But we need somebody who's going to stand behind
us, someone that's going to try to be proactive, if they're really serious
about cleaning up the community crime. That's all we want. We need someone
to stand behind us and he's never done that," said union president Keith
Speer.
Flint Mayor Don Williamson is the only person who can
appoint or fire a police chief.
The mayor has said regardless of the union vote, he has
full confidence in Chief Hagler. Williamson said changes will come, but
not with the chief. |