In case you have difficulty reading the open letter authored by the Chief, here is just the text. December 19, 2014 To Whom It May Concern: The Urbana Police Department has continually strived to build a diverse, professional police department that not only reflects the community’s attitude and philosophy but fosters a community-based collaboration between the officers and the people they serve. One segment of our community that has already proven that desire to serve is military veterans, and I am requesting your organization publicly support the current hiring practices at the Urbana Police Department as they relate to recruiting military veterans. As a point of reference, in just the past three months the Urbana police have made multiple efforts at expanding the diversity of police applicants. Women in Law Enforcement, an initiative composed of local female police officers, targeted female applicants interested in pursuing a law enforcement career. The African American Law Enforcement Career Fair, hosted by area law enforcement agencies, targeted the recruitment of local and college-age African American members of our community. Although we did not specifically host a job fair within the Latino community, we continue to work with members of that segment of our population to develop and foster a strong relationship. Our specific recruiting efforts currently focus on members of the Latino community enrolled within Parkland Community College’s Law Enforcement program. As an Air Force veteran myself, I was heartbroken when some community members suggested that recruiting and hiring another key demographic, military veterans, somehow diminishes our community –oriented approach to policing. During their public speaking time on December 15, some community members requested of the Mayor and City Council that the City refrain from hiring military veterans. Despite the disagreeable nature of this request, it was made even more bizarre because it directly contradicts the hiring efforts of the federal grant funding available for police departments. Since 1994, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) has invested nearly $14 billion to add community policing officers to the nation’s communities. To date, the COPS Office has funded approximately 125,000 additional officers to more than 18,000 law enforcement agencies across the nation. Historically, the COPS Office, a component of the U.S. Department of Justice responsible for advancing the practice of community policing through grant resources, has targeted specific hiring criteria. The open solicitation for fiscal year 2014 supported the Attorney General’s commitment to hiring military veterans. The law enforcement agencies committed to hiring this target demographic were given special consideration for the funding. In addition to the federal support just described, some of our finest moments as a police agency resulted from the actions of veterans, like when — instead of pulling out his firearm — an officer chose to use his own body to shield a 3-year-old child from another individual with a gun. Recently one of our ex-military officers intervened when a citizen went into cardiac arrest, and his efforts were credited with saving that citizen’s life. Another officer — also a military veteran — ran into a burning building to evacuate its residents, a selfless act that removed eight people from a life-threatening situation. The mission of the Urbana Police Department is to enhance the quality of life. Military veterans have and can continue to help our agency accomplish this mission, and I believe we owe our veterans a great deal for their selfless sacrifice and commitment. While the need for building a diverse organization is recognized and appreciated, to specifically and intentionally exclude military veterans from that process is a travesty. Respectfully, Patrick J. Connolly Chief of Police City of Urbana, Illinois (217) 384-2331
Posted on: Fri, 19 Dec 2014 21:13:34 +0000
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