Police Commission

LACONIA POLICE COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 18, 2020 3:00 P.M. 11/18/2020 - Minutes 1. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Whittum called the meeting to Order on the above date at 3:02 pm. 2. SALUTE TO THE FLAG Chairman Whittum lead the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. RECORDING SECRETARY Executive Assistant Lori Marsh. 4. ROLL CALL 4.a. Chairman Whittum recognized Commissioners present - Chairman Whittum, Commissioner Mello and Commissioner Davis. 4.b. Chairman Whittum recognized Staff present - Chief Matthew Canfield. 4.c. Chairman Whittum recognized a quorum has been established and there are three Commission members present. 5. PERSONNEL MATTERS 5.A. Swearing in of Commissioner Frank R. Mello, Jr. City Clerk Cheryl Hebert conducted the swearing in of Police Commissioner Frank R. Mello, Jr. 5.B. Commendations & Awards No discussion. 5.C. Resignations/Retirement No discussion. 5.D. Promotions/Classification Change No discussion. 6. COMMAND STAFF REPORTS 6.A. Chief - Support Division Chief Canfield advised we have been working on the budget preparations for submittal in the early part of December. He indicated we are also instituting a new program obtained through non-capital expenditure this year for installing the ProQA program for our dispatch center. He advised this is a pretty labor intensive and comprehensive program that will be installed in dispatch with the purpose of standardizing the way calls are taken. He advised instead of dispatchers having to come up with the questions and knowledge on their own, it will  prompt them and should expedite getting calls out to the officers in the field. He advised that as the dispatcher is taking the information, they can be typing it into the computer and it will get pushed out through the in-car computers, getting the information out to the officers faster and in a more complete and more thorough manner. He advised this will not only increase response time, but will also increase officer safety, as they will have more knowledge of the call. Chief Canfield thanked Councilor Cheney for helping us obtain this program, as he was very familiar with the program after having run it with the State 911 Center and we are proud to now have it coming here in Laconia. Chief Canfield advised we are completing the preparation of the three new vehicles that were obtained for the fleet and we are in the process of equipping those and getting them onto the road. Chairman Whittum inquired if the dispatch program is similar to that of 911. Councilor Cheney advised it is the same company, which is utilized all over the world. He indicated he is so glad that Chief Canfield sought out this software. He advised that having used it for 22 years through the 911 version, he can assure the Police Commission that Chief Canfield made a great choice. He advised the improvement in dispatch function will be obvious in a short period of time. He indicated the company has spent decades designing the system and he can't say enough that he is thrilled to Chief Canfield made this decision. 6.A.i. Orders & Bulletins 6.B. Chief - Operations Division Chief Canfield advised we are working through the in-house for new recruits, as we have a couple of officers returning from the Academy very shortly in December. He also advised they have also been working on some sort of pseudo holiday parade instead of the traditional parade, which involves some type of car parade. He advised they have also been working on implementation of the new scheduling software, which should modify the patrol schedule and give the ability to push that out to out to phones and employees will be able to access the schedule electronically and be able to submit leave requests electronically, which will eventually integrate with payroll system. He advise the current system is through Microsoft Excel, which is very antiquated. 6.B.i. Hirings 6.B.ii. Swearing in of Patrol Officer Maria R. Zelez Lt. Chris Noyes introduced Officer Maria Zelez. He advised Officer Zelez comes to us from Connecticut, where she grew up. He advised she attended Southern New Hampshire University and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Justice Services with a focus on police work. Lt. Noyes indicated we met Officer Zelez during her sophomore year through a recruitment job fair and she is currently in her second week of in-house training. City Clerk Cheryl Hebert conducted the swearing in of Officer Maria R. Zelez. 7. COMMISSION ACTION 7.A. Acceptance of minutes from previous meeting On a Motion by Commissioner Mello, seconded by Chairman Whittum, and passed unanimously, the meeting minutes of October 14, 2020 were accepted as distributed with no further discussion. 7.B. Notice of Holidays - 2021 Chief Canfield advised the proposed Notice of Holidays follows the one posted by the City for 2021. Commissioner Mello inquired if the holidays listed are just for those employees on patrol and Chief Canfield advised it covers both.  On a Motion made by Commissioner Mello, seconded by Chairman Whittum, and passed unanimously, the 2021 Notice of Holidays was accepted. 8. REVIEW OF MONTHLY ACTIVITY REPORTS 8.A. Department Monthly Highlights Chief Canfield reviewed the Monthly Activity Highlights report. Commissioner Mello noted the statistics certainly show they are doing a lot more work this year and it's good. 8.B. Criminal Investigative Unit Statistics Chief Canfield reviewed the Monthly Criminal Investigative Unit Statistics report. No further discussion. 8.C. Budget Reports Chief Canfield advised the budget is well within line. No further discussion. 8.D. Monthly Traffic Statistics Chief Canfield reviewed the Monthly Traffic Statistics report. He advised we do not track the number of parking warnings issues, but typically during the later part of October and early November, we issue a lot of parking warnings for the upcoming winter parking ban, which went into effect November 1st, especially on the overnight shifts. Chairman Whittum noted that North Main Street is usually on the upper end of the accident statistics. Chief Canfield agreed, but noted the longer roads, such as Court Street, North Main Street and Union Avenue, encompass busy areas and is why they are attributed to more accidents. 8.E. Monthly Fleet Report No discussion. 9. CHIEF'S REPORT Chief Canfield reviewed the Drug Overdose report. He advised we received a nice note to the department thanking Officer Hoffman for his interaction with some summer visitors. Commissioner Mello noted it was a very good letter. Chief Canfield advised we have completed Fall Firearms Training as of yesterday. He also advised the decision has been made to not hold the annual Christmas luncheon for retirees due to COVID, as it doesn't make sense to jeopardize the safety of those wishing to attend. He indicated we are still going with the tradition of sending out a newsletter updating retirees of the goings-on within the department throughout the year. In the hopes that COVID will go away, perhaps we could hold some type of spring BBQ in it's place. He further advised we are working on COVID restrictions within the department and are changing guidelines, whether it be State, Federal or Local. He indicated he has attended several meetings within the past week with City leaders and other departments in regards to changing protocol for how COVID is being handled in those departments. He advised we have made some changes within our department, which will be implemented next week to keep all employees safe and healthy. Chairman Whittum inquired if letters to the department could be posted on the City website with personal information redacted, as he would like the public to be able to see the good in these. Chief Canfield advised we certainly can look into that. 10. OLD BUSINESS No discussion. 11. NEW BUSINESS No discussion. 12. OTHER BUSINESS No discussion. 13. CITIZEN COMMENTS No citizen comments. 14. CONFIRMATION OF NEXT MEETING DATE The next Regular or Special Meeting date of December 16, 2020 was confirmed. 15. NON-PUBLIC SESSION (According To RSA 91-A:3,II) a) The dismissal, promotion or compensation of any public employee, or the disciplining of such employee, or the investigation of any charges against him/her, unless the employee affected (1) has the right to a meeting, and (2) request that the meeting be open, in which case the request shall be granted. On a Motion by Commissioner Davis, seconded by Commissioner Mello, and passed unanimously, in accordance with RSA 91-A:3,II(a), the Laconia Police Commission entered into Non-Public Session at 3:25 pm. At 3:36 pm, the Non-Public Session ended on a Motion by Commissioner Davis, seconded by Commissioner Mello, with a unanimous vote. Public Session reconvened at 3:36 pm. A Motion to Seal the Minutes was was made by Commissioner Davis, seconded by Commissioner Mello, and passed unanimously, as it was determined that divulgence of this information would affect adversely the reputation of any person other than a member of this Board. Roll Call Vote to Seal the Minutes: Chairman Douglas Whittum - Yes Commissioner Mello - Yes Commissioner Davis - Yes Motion passed. 16. ADJOURNMENT On a Motion by Commissioner Mello, seconded by Commissioner Davis, and passed unanimously, the meeting was adjourned at 3:37 pm.