Officer Investigated for Warning Citizen About Bad Part of Town

[Ben]

From the mayor:

Mayor Bill Foster acknowledged the incident and said he holds SPPD to the highest standard.

"I always want to know my officers are representing this city in a very positive light," Foster said.

So, don't warn a father about a bad area of the city, where the daughter was already robbed, because it makes the city look bad? I think they need some new management down St Pete's way.

http://www.wtsp.com/news/topstories/article/199296/250/Officer-investigated-for-speaking-his-mind-on-St-Pete-crime

[vaskidmark]

If the cop can document that the area is dangerous, he will prevail in any ation he wants to take against the city.  Further, he can solicit non-cop citizens to join him in seeking redress from the city's "policy, practice and custom" of refusing to alert citizens to known dangers.

In other words, management has inserted their member in the wringer and seem to be looking for the repeat button.

Wonder how much the tickets to watch tthe show are goning to cost.

stay safe.

[Hawkmoon]

I saw an article on this, and I resolved to write a letter to both the idiot mayor and the chief of police.

The mayor's statement sounds like he's demanding that police officers transfer to the Ministry of Disinformation Propaganda.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

a good warning can save lives
i got outa my cab in charm city to ask a baltimore cabbie for directions.  older black man looked at me in horror. "boy!  what you doing outa your cab?!"  i then noticed the bulletproof glass barrier in his

[dogmush]

This is pretty close to my stomping grounds.

The LEO is right.  You don't want to wander around down there at night. Or in the day for that matter. I used to have to drive through that 'hood to get to work, and have had my truck shot at doing so.  That place is a shithole.

[Jamisjockey]

Protect: fail
Serve: fail.
The citizens need to petition to remove the chief.
Or the mayor.

[Fly320s]

If I had any kind of computer skills, I'd write a smart phone app that displays bad neighborhoods on a map.

[Ben]

If I had any kind of computer skills, I'd write a smart phone app that displays bad neighborhoods on a map.

I'd buy that in a heartbeat. The only time I was ever in fear of my life was my first time going to coast guard island in Alameda and taking a wrong turn. I honestly thought I might be carjacked or shot at any minute.

[Tallpine]

If I had any kind of computer skills, I'd write a smart phone app that displays bad neighborhoods on a map.

Wouldn't it be simpler just to display the good neighborhoods on the map ?   

[wmenorr67]

Wouldn't it be simpler just to display the good neighborhoods on the map ?   

In some towns and cities yes.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

you can walk 6 blocks from the white house and its not good after midnite  12 blocks? and its not safe for me

[stevelyn]

If the cop can document that the area is dangerous, he will prevail in any ation he wants to take against the city.  Further, he can solicit non-cop citizens to join him in seeking redress from the city's "policy, practice and custom" of refusing to alert citizens to known dangers.

In other words, management has inserted their member in the wringer and seem to be looking for the repeat button.

Wonder how much the tickets to watch tthe show are goning to cost.

stay safe.

A look through dispatch records will tell everything that needs to be known.

[Ben]

you can walk 6 blocks from the white house and its not good after midnite  12 blocks? and its not safe for me

Heh, that's one of the other places where I apparently put my life at risk but didn't know it. It was early in my career, when they had just started making me go to DC and I wasn't familiar with it. I was staying at the Mayflower, and was supposed to meet some colleagues for drinks. I can't even remember where it was anymore, but it seems like somewhere off 11th or 9th or something. I was walking, and took a wrong turn down one of those streets. I saw it was a pretty seedy location, but thought nothing of it.

After I'd reoriented myself and finally got to the bar, they asked what took so long. After I explained my route they looked at me like I was crazy. :)

Oh well, live and learn.

[roo_ster]

I'd buy that in a heartbeat. The only time I was ever in fear of my life was my first time going to coast guard island in Alameda and taking a wrong turn. I honestly thought I might be carjacked or shot at any minute.

I'd buy that.  Also, I was a "avoid city streets in bad neighborhoods" toggle in google maps.

I used to live down there and some parts of St Pete have been dangerous for decades.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

Heh, that's one of the other places where I apparently put my life at risk but didn't know it. It was early in my career, when they had just started making me go to DC and I wasn't familiar with it. I was staying at the Mayflower, and was supposed to meet some colleagues for drinks. I can't even remember where it was anymore, but it seems like somewhere off 11th or 9th or something. I was walking, and took a wrong turn down one of those streets. I saw it was a pretty seedy location, but thought nothing of it.

After I'd reoriented myself and finally got to the bar, they asked what took so long. After I explained my route they looked at me like I was crazy. :)

Oh well, live and learn.

the mayflower?  nice place!  worked there from 86 -92   lived 2 blocks east one block north  could hang head out window and see the whitehouse

[Ben]

the mayflower?  nice place!  worked there from 86 -92   lived 2 blocks east one block north  could hang head out window and see the whitehouse

I used to get the govt rate there, apparently because not many people thought they would accept it. But then more gov people started staying there and they wised up and removed it. :)

[sanglant]

Protect: fail
Serve: fail.
The citizens need to petition to remove the chief.
Or the mayor.

sorry but, that's "and the mayor" brother.

[gunsmith]

I'd buy that in a heartbeat. The only time I was ever in fear of my life was my first time going to coast guard island in Alameda and taking a wrong turn. I honestly thought I might be carjacked or shot at any minute.

you very well might have been jacked and shot, that area is freaking dangerous. its why I ccw'd as a motorcycle messenger without a CA ccw.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

I used to get the govt rate there, apparently because not many people thought they would accept it. But then more gov people started staying there and they wised up and removed it. :)

you can still get a discount but they dropped 300 mill on a renovation so its pricey now.   when congress is outa town i can get the 400 dollar room at 65 bucks

[Perd Hapley]

CSD, whose side do you take when a department is investigating an officer? 

[KD5NRH]

you can walk 6 blocks from the white house and its not good after midnite

Considering the current administration, I'm surprised there's such a good area nearby.

Any time a cop tells me about a bad neighborhood, I'm inclined to ask how he'd feel if he visited a plumber's house and was told to pee in the sink because the toilet's acting funny.

[Boomhauer]

Any time a cop tells me about a bad neighborhood, I'm inclined to ask how he'd feel if he visited a plumber's house and was told to pee in the sink because the toilet's acting funny.

Yes, because the cop who is trying to keep your ass from getting shot, robbed, or carjacked is supposed to be a one man army against the crime in that hood...especially when he's constantly thrown under the bus by his superiors when he does his job.

There are plenty of neighborhoods where nothing short carpet bombing is going to make it a good neighborhood...

[BryanP]

The story was updated sometime yesterday:

UPDATE 7/1/11: Foster says Crisco will not be disciplined and SPPD was only looking into the incident because it was brought to their attention.  A statement from SPPD said, "although no action has been taken at this time, Officer Crisco faces - at the most - a Memorandum of Counseling (not a "suspension"), which is considered an informal, instructional document...that would caution him against making comments in the future that are either factually incorrect or could otherwise be misunderstood by the general public."

[sanglant]

Avenger, we can't have an officer trying to protect citizens. might set a bad prescient.

[Ben]

The story was updated sometime yesterday:

UPDATE 7/1/11: Foster says Crisco will not be disciplined and SPPD was only looking into the incident because it was brought to their attention.  A statement from SPPD said, "although no action has been taken at this time, Officer Crisco faces - at the most - a Memorandum of Counseling (not a "suspension"), which is considered an informal, instructional document...that would caution him against making comments in the future that are either factually incorrect or could otherwise be misunderstood by the general public."

#1, I'm curious as to who "brought it to their attention"? Not that there aren't plenty of politically correct people who would, but who in this chain of events would have?

#2, "Misunderstood by the public"? Uh huh.