Eureka Police Traffic Officer Wayne Cox starts work as an investigator with the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office Tuesday. Submitted photo
EPD loses another officer
by Christine Bensen-Messinger, 2/9/2007
Almost a month after Eureka Police Traffic Sgt. Mike Hislop left the department to take a job with the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office, EPD is losing another traffic officer, Wayne Cox.
Eureka interim Police Chief Murl Harpham said he is happy for Cox, who is leaving to take a job as an investigator with the DA’s Office, but it will be another loss to the department, which is now seven officers down.
“Every time we lose somebody it affects the department and he’s been our mainstay in traffic for many years; he’s got a wealth of experience,” Harpham said. “It’s going to be a big loss. He coordinated a lot of our DUI checkpoints; he was basically the person in charge of those.”
He said Officer Greg Hill, who was previously assigned to the traffic division, but had been working regular patrol because there were not enough officers to do so, will be starting in the traffic division soon, so that the department can fulfill the requirements for its $380,000 Office of Traffic Safety grant.
“Now we’re kind of forced to put him in there,” Harpham said.
Although recruitment efforts are ongoing, with seven officers down, Harpham said the department is starting a new method of recruiting.
“Now we’re going to search for them prior to going to the academy and pay their way into the academy,” he said. “That means it will take a little longer to put them on the streets.”
But, Harpham said, it gives the department a new pool of people to recruit from.
Right now in California, he said, there are approximately 8,500 openings for police officers. This new recruiting effort will give EPD a more competitive edge.
Not only will the EPD pay for the academy tuition, he said, it will also pay the officer a small salary while he or she is in school, giving people who may want to change careers, but have a family or other restraints, the opportunity to do so.
“(It) allows people to move to a new job if (they) want to (and) those people are very attractive to us (because) they are usually a little older, more mature and have some life experience,” he said. “We need good, honest, drug-free people, and those people are difficult to find nowadays … and we refuse to lower our standards.”
With the use of overtime, Harpham said, the department is making it work, but not having enough staff makes it difficult to be proactive.
“Right now, we are basically responders; we respond to the calls that come to us,” he said. “We’d love to get back to community-oriented policing. We’d like to go out and stop stuff before it happens.”
Cox, who has been with the department for a total of 15 years and spent two years with the Department of Justice in the Bay Area, said he is looking forward to his new job.
“It’s basically 17 years in the trenches and I am looking forward to a little more standardized schedule and sanity,” he said.
Cox, who spent many years doing undercover work, said he is looking forward to getting back into it.
And, although he is leaving EPD, Cox said the legal street drag program that he started will not be leaving with him.
“Just because I am leaving, that doesn’t mean the EPD street drags (program) is going to end. … Traffic Officers Gary Whitmer and Hill will continue the street drags program that I started (and) I will serve as an adviser. I have too much personal time and effort invested to give it up.”
Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos could not be reached for comment by deadline.
Copyright (C) 2005, The Eureka Reporter. All rights reserved
1 comment:
from comments on heraldo's blog
One might look at the Big picture.
Hislop, the new Chief Investigator for the DA's Office is Jim Dawson's son-in-law. And for those who might not know Dawson is the retiring Chief Investigator.
Hislop has 20 some years as a police officer but none working investigations. He was selected over several more qualified applicants (Sr. DA's Investigators, Sheriffs Detectives, etc). To think that Dawson didn't grease the skids for Hislop is the thinking of a fool.
Cox, the new DA investigator, worked directly for Hislop up until Hislop left EPD. Both Hislop and Cox to the DA's Office within a month of each other? To think that is a coincidence is also the thinking of a fool. At least Cox had experience as an investigator, much more than his supervisor.
Gallegos tried to use his influence or position to get Dawson selected as the new EPD Chief (didn't work). And for those of you that don't know Dawson put in for the EPD Chief job. And rumor has it that Hislop and Cox were both out politicking for Dawson to get the EPD Chief job not long before Hislop was selected. I think this would qualify for a mini conspiracy.
And we can't forget that Hislop has some kind of personal fued or beef with former EPD detective Dave Paris. The same Dave Paris that was Worth Dikeman's campaign manager. Hislop and Gallegos have in common their ...... dislike for Dave Paris and the EPD.
As for begging the question "why officers are leaving EPD". You hit most of it on the head; Pay, benefits, low moral, and more. Many of the officers that left EPD in the past couple of years have left to escape the community. Eureka has changed. It is not far from a hellhole. There is a shortage of police officers state and nation wide. Why wouldn't experienced cops go where the pay and benefits are better. Where there is more support from the community, as in no Ken Millers always chipping away publicly making accusations. Not to mention one of the really big reasons, lack of cooperation and prosecution from the DA's office.
You might ask when the going away party at EPD was for Hislop? After 20 some years you'd think there would be a going away party for him? Cake and cookies at a minimum? If he was remotely respected by his peers that is.
The whole thing smells. Gag's and Miller can say that gee whiz fellas look I have EPD guys coming to work for me so that proves I don't have a hard on for EPD. Hislop, the control freak, can now use his position to retaliate against his enemies, real or preceived. Something along the lines of his new boss.
All part of the ongoing legacy of Paul Gallegos.
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