Police Commission

POLICE COMMISSION MINUTES-DRAFT July 26, 2023 PRESENT: Chairman Jim Sponaugle, Commissioner Liz Starr, Commissioner Michael Whitlock, Commissioner Cheryl Michales, Chief Paul Sandy, Deputy Chief David Guerrera and Tracey Hatfield. Commissioner Trish Hansen was excused. Also present, Kevin Smith from the Cortland Voice. CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Police Commission was held on Wednesday, July 26, 2023 in the Main Conference Room at the Youth Bureau. Chairman Sponaugle called the meeting to order at 11:06 a.m. A. MINUTES – On the motion of Comm. Whitlock, second by Comm. Michales the Commission approved the minutes of the June meeting. B. BILLS –The Commission reviewed the June bills totaling $19,108.05 and were approved on the motion of Comm. Starr, second by Comm. Michales. C. REPORTS –The June reports as approved on the motion of Comm. Michales second by Comm. Starr were highlighted as follows: 1. Invoice list for month – Brief discussion of prisoner meals. By getting our prisoner meals from CCJ, we are saving the City a significant amount of money. 2. Year-To-Date Budget – Brief discussion of some of the overages in certain budget lines. School guard uniform budget was cut by the City at budget time, therefore there is not enough money in that budget line to cover what we are contractually obligated to pay. The vehicle budget line is also short; the cost to outfit new vehicles was significantly higher than expected. Also, it doesn’t appear that the unspent 2022 funds came over into the 2023 budget as expected. We have Finance looking into this. 3. Training Report –Nothing to report. Training has been taking place, but Officer Hines has been involved in most of the training, either as an instructor or attendee, and has not had the opportunity to update the training log. 4. Vehicle Maintenance – Car 14 and Car 21 had multiple issues this month. Car 17 (K9) needed a new compressor for the AC. 5. Overtime/Sick Time Comparison –Brief discussion of sick time and overtime. 1|Page  6. Overtime Breakdown– Short shift still way down now. 7. Other Activities Report –Domestics, mental health, and narcan calls are down significantly this month. 8. Animal Report –Using Country Acres vs. SPCA is still a huge savings compared to what the City was paying the SPCA yearly. The City is looking at hiring a part-time animal control officer. This person would help transport the animals and handle the paperwork involved with the animal calls we receive. 9. Detective Bureau Cases –High activity. Drug Task Force is extremely busy. Pistol permits were down this month. 10. Officers Injury Report – Minor injury for one of the cadets at the Police Academy. Another officer was assaulted at the hospital by a patient. 11. Officers Activities Report – Over 1500 calls this month. Officers participated in several different trainings throughout the month. 12. Parking Ticket Report – Numbers way down due to the heavy construction all over the City. 13. Bike Patrol Report –24 hours logged on the bikes this month. 14. Arrest Breakdown –Slightly down this month. OLD BUSINESS A. DRONES • We received a $4,000 donation from the Rotary to help offset the drone cost for the Police Department. • The total cost of the drone is $10,000. We are sharing it with the Fire Department and they are paying half of the costs associated with the purchase. • The drone and additional batteries have been ordered. • Two of our officers are licensed to operate the drone and they will have ongoing monthly training. B. PARKING-PASSPORT • Possible Go-live August 1 for parking permits. • Consumers can get an app on their phone which can be used to purchase parking. • The LPR readers in the cars will work with the parking software. The LPR’s will pick up any non-permitted cars. 2|Page C. ACADEMY UPDATE • Two of the recruits have graduated from the Syracuse Academy • One recruit was Valedictorian, Class Speaker, and won the Defensive Tactics Award • The second recruit had the highest score for EVOC (Emergency Vehicle Operation and Control) Training • Both will be in Field Training through October • Recruit in Broome Academy doing well, will be done mid-September D. CCDTF VEHICLE-UNDERCOVER • We sold the undercover drug vehicle, our DTF Detective is currently using Sgt. Johnson’s vehicle • We are looking for another undercover DTF vehicle • There are currently 10 cars and 3 motorcycles in the impound lot we will be auctioning to help cover the cost of a new DTF vehicle NEW BUSINESS A. RETIREMENTS • We recently had 2 Sergeants retire • We have two more possible retirements in 2024 B. CIVIL SERVICE EXAM • The Lt. Exam will be posted this week, test will possibly be in the Fall • Waiting for results of the Sgt. Exam from earlier in the year. We need to promote two to fill current vacancies • The Patrol Officer Exam is scheduled for September. We are hoping for a good turnout. Sign up cutoff is August 24. C. TRAINING • We have several officers in Firearms training now • Officer Hines has received his Certification as a Master Trainer D. NEW LOCKERS • We have purchased 30 new lockers this year for the Men’s Locker Room • We may purchase 12 more before the end of the year to replace the 10 old lockers that still remain in the locker room • We have been painting the walls as the old lockers are removed • We plan to refinish the benches before the project is complete 3|Page E. DIGITAL PARKING • Officers are all trained in the new parking software • Permit parking will be set up in the new system before we start electronic ticketing F. PERSONNEL ISSUE UPDATE • Discussed during Executive Session OTHER BUSINESS A. COMMENDATION, APPRECIATION, and CORRESPONDENCE REPORT – Nothing to add. B. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS – Nothing to add. ADJOURNMENT At the request of Chief Sandy, a motion was made by Comm. Michales, second by Comm. Whitlock to go into Executive Session at 12:12 p.m. to discuss Personnel matters. With no further business to discuss, the Commission came out of Executive Session on the motion of Comm. Starr, second by Comm. Michales at 1:08 p.m. The meeting was adjourned at 1:10 p.m. on the motion of Comm. Starr, second by Comm. Michales. Respectfully submitted, Tracey Hatfield Sr. Account Clerk 4|Page