The last thing the Chattanooga Police Department needs is a cadre of “armed” volunteers placed in the community as reserve officers. How will this plan address the problem between the department and the communities in which there is lack of trust? If these volunteers are strategically added to strengthen the “police state” in certain neighborhoods, that plan will widen the gap between trust and mistrust, and is not a strategy for successful community policing. There is a fear that someone akin to George Zimmerman will seek this opportunity to engage in activities to “stand your ground,” while killing unarmed citizens in targeted neighborhoods.
Recently, I can recall two specific incidents in which police department volunteers and guns were not a good combination. Just this month, a 73-year-old police academy volunteer lost her life while role-playing at an academy in Florida. She was accidentally killed by gunfire from a police officer. In April of 2015, an unpaid reserve deputy in Oklahoma shot and killed an unarmed man. The reserve officer stated that he thought he was using his taser and that he inadvertently shot and killed the citizen. The outcome is that Eric Courtney Harris is still dead, whether inadvertently or not. I’m sure you are aware of those incidents, which received national attention. From what I read of the chief’s plan, when these persons are out in the community, there will be little to no distinctions between them and “regular” officers, except the reserve officers will receive no compensation.
I can understand Chief Fletcher’s desire to develop strategies to increase the workforce, while being fiscally responsible. I looked at the Volunteers in Police Services Program (VIPS) at the Dallas, Tex., Police Department. They have several positions for volunteers, which include working as a data analyst, public affairs photographer, crime lab receptionist and assisting with fingerprinting, just to name a few. Of course, there are requirements and training for their volunteers, but I saw nothing that required the volunteers to be armed. Perhaps, Chief Fletcher should think about placing his six potential volunteers in administrative support roles, as he mentioned as a possibility for the future. Volunteers could be recruited now to train with those unarmed employees who anticipate retiring soon. There are all types of roles in which volunteers could be helpful to the department. In Illinois, I served as a police department volunteer. My role was to present workshops for persons who were court-mandated to complete parenting classes. I have offered to continue volunteering for the Chattanooga Police Department to conduct sensitivity training at the academy, but have not been allowed to do so. In fact, I mentioned this to Mayor Andy Berke after church last Sunday.
In the announcement of the chief’s plan, it was mentioned that there would be special training for those armed volunteers. I know that in the past there was a need of special and enhanced training for persons already serving as officers, who had completed a lot more training than what is proposed for these armed volunteers. I would imagine that community events, such as Riverbend, consume a lot of departmental resources. Considering the tourist explosion downtown, there is probably more expectation for policing in those areas. Was the increased demand for policing of downtown activities the initial reason for this plan? Were other alternatives considered to safeguard tourists that would not cause a strain on the police workforce?
The idea of creating a volunteer workforce for the department is a good one. The idea of putting volunteers in the streets, armed and in uniform, especially in communities already struggling with justice issues, is a bad plan. Chattanooga is a unique community, which has received a lot of positive accolades from some who were born here, and those who visit or have little history of the city’s dynamics. As one who has lived years of its history, I fear the consequences of such a plan, especially at this time when there is a fragile relationship between the police department and citizens who feel oppressed.
Dr. Loretta P. Prater, Mother of Homicide Victim Leslie Vaughn Prater
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I'm with Dr. Prater. Chattanooga already has had far too many hotheaded cops on the force always spoiling for a fight, and a few sexual predators who used their positions with threats to force citizens into 'compliance'. Now they're wanting to add hotheaded reserve cops to the mix, creating the perfect storm where more tragedy is bound to take place.
I recall attending some of those community meetings in years gone by that sent chills down my spine, with what some cops attending actually advising citizens on what to do and how to get away with it if they shot someone outside their house. Informing and encouraging citizens "they could get away with things they, the cops, couldn't." I stopped going to those meetings and haven't been to one since.
Chattanooga has already had problems in the past with reserve cops. Isn't that why the city abolished the program in the first place? The danger and liability became too great?
I think Chief Fletcher is a decent and honorable chief. However, I don't think he fully understands the history of Chattanooga and why this decision is a making for a great disaster that will only further divide and not unite citizens, communities and the police.
Brenda Washington
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Sure Loretta, let's just keep allowing the volunteer criminal go armed.
Your article reminds me why I walked out of class back when you were speaking to the police during their annual training.
Michael Burns
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Chief Fletcher is only gonna replace those trainees in desk jobs at the Amnicola headquarters so he can put the police doing the desk jobs out doing policing. There will be no guns involved with the trainees and they will have to undergo the required hours of training as any officer.
Donald Woods
Knoxville
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Dr. Prater and Brenda Washington’s air of doom and gloom as usual are factually incorrect.
If you take a look at the local area you will find that almost all the police departments, including the Sheriff’s office, have active reserve officer programs and have had for years. There have been no incidents of doom and gloom as portrayed by Dr. Prater or Brenda Washington.
Those reserve officers are trained very well and are according to Post requirements, which I am sure neither of the afore mentioned persons know anything about.
Brenda Washington’s claims that police officers advised citizens to shoot people and how to get away with it is about as far from reality as anyone could get.
Why don’t the two of you actually do something productive in helping your community instead of stirring the pot.
Mike Cox
Chattanooga
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Mike Cox is very wrong when he states that "claims that police officers advised citizens to shoot people and how to get away with it is about as far from reality as anyone could get."
Police do advise citizens to not only shoot people but to be sure they kill them. This was emphasized in in the yearly training classes that were required for permit holders in the 90's. In these classes held by the Hamilton County Sheriff's department instructors even advised to drag them back inside and to make sure they were dead so there would only be one side of the story.
I've participated in and monitored local firearms permit classes where this same advice was given. I believe this mentality and training is why police keep shooting someone who is already wounded and on the ground.
I personally heard a Knoxville detective tell a homeowner who wounded a man who broke in the house that they should have gone ahead and killed him because they would probably get sued.
Steve Campbell
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Sooooo...we need more police. Is anyone surprised? How about this solution. Hire more. And pay them and all the existing officers more. Then do it with fire and teachers as well. It would increase quality and retention and improve all three areas of public service.
"But how can we do that?" Raise taxes, if necessary. The stakes are way too high to let these professions continue to slide. If we want true accountable professionals pay them what they are worth.
Michael Lawrence
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I would like to respond to Mike Cox’s suggestion that Dr. Prater and Ms. Washington rely on factual information and that they “do something productive.” Let me share a few facts with you.
I have known Dr. Loretta Prater since 1984 and am amazed at how much she has done for the community and to promote a positive image of the police force. She has invited police officers to her classroom to discuss drug abuse and violence prevention; worked with officers on the annual Operation Prom/Graduation Committee to prevent date rape and alcohol consumption among minors; and worked closely with a police chief to begin the Drug Abuse Resistance Program (DARE). In fact, the chief labelled Dr. Prater as the department’s “Mother of DARE.” She was selected as the first Drug Free Schools coordinator for the Chattanooga City School System. While serving in that position, she worked closely with the police department.
While Dr. Prater served for several years as the dean of a College of Health and Human Services, one of the programs under her leadership was the Department of Criminal Justice and Sociology, which offered both undergraduate and graduate degrees in Criminal Justice. She also had administrative responsibility for a Regional Law Enforcement Academy. In honor of her son, who was killed by Chattanooga police officers, Dr. Prater and her husband endowed the Leslie Vaughn Prater scholarship in the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. I personally donated $600 to the scholarship fund. These are the facts.
Mr. Cox also commented that Brenda Washington’s statements about police officers who advised citizens to shoot people are “about as far from reality as anyone could get.” How can he possibly know what occurred at specific meetings that he did not attend? There’s nothing factual about that. Dr. Prater and Ms. Washington are concerned citizens who obviously care about Chattanooga, its citizens, and its police force. They are trying to avoid, rather than promote “doom and gloom” through their positive actions and heartfelt opinions.
Another person accused Dr. Prater of wanting police officers to be unarmed. That is not true. He also noted that Dr. Prater’s son was not shot. I fail to see the relevance of this comment, since his death was still the result of a homicide.
Dr. Phyllis Miller