Former Austin police officer rips new chief, pens scathing letter rejecting offer to return
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A former Austin, Texas officer who left the police force while the city was trying to exonerate the police sent a damning letter to the department declining their offer to reinstate him.
“I am personally offended by your offer,” the former official wrote in a letter Fox News received in response to the city’s offer of $ 5,000 plus return service benefits. “I didn’t leave APD for money. I suspect my colleagues didn’t either. No amount of money could bring me back. The chief’s offer shows how little contact he has with his officers. What we long for is leadership, a thing that has been consistently withheld. “
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The former officer, who identified himself as a military veteran, further stated in the letter that a failed leadership was the reason for the decision to leave the department.
“The working environment at APD is one of the most dangerous in the country,” wrote the former official. “Not because of the dangers that every officer faces on the street, but because of the senior executives who have no formal training to become professional development managers, you don’t value every officer as a person, shift all responsibility to the patrolman level and hold on to them they firmly set unrealistic expectations. “
The former officer wrote that he or she had tabled a proposal to reform the promotion system in the department, but it was ignored.
The former officer objected to the department’s decision to appoint Joseph Chacon as the new chief of police.
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“Chief Chacon’s installation is the biggest mistake the city of Austin could make during this monumental leadership crisis,” the letter said. “He grew up in this failed promotion system and has fostered a toxic leadership environment throughout his career.”
The letter ends with the former officer saying that he or she cannot “in good conscience” return to the department to serve under Chacon and that the “real victims” are the Austin citizens.
“God help them,” ends the letter.
Austin City Council member Mackenzie Kelly, a former volunteer firefighter, told Fox News that she believes the $ 5,000 payment offer will create an even wider gap.
“I understand the intent and spirit of the police chief’s letter recently encouraging separated officers to return with a financial incentive, but the bigger problem here is that officials who have remained loyal to the city have not been given a financial incentive to stay . “Kelly, who was one of only two votes against confirming Chacon as the new boss, said.” Unequal pay creates a wider gap in the moral issues that are brewing in the department.
Austin Police Association president Ken Casaday told Fox News that about 30 officers received the letter from the department to return, and although one officer responded, none ultimately accepted the offer.
The letter comes after a record spike in officers leaving the police force after Austin City Council decided to cut police funding following the George Floyd riots in the summer of 2020.
In January 2021, PJ Media reported that 20 officials left the APD and eight resigned, making a total of 28 departures. In February, five more officers resigned and six retired, making a total of eleven more departures. In March, 24 more officers left the country and 20 of them left for retirement. Of the other four, three retired and one was fired.
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In November, Austin residents will vote on Prop A, which aims to return much of the lost funds to the police department.
“We are in the middle of the deepest police personnel crisis in Austin history,” Save Austin Now co-founders Matt Mackowiak and Cleo Petricek said in a statement to Fox News. “This is happening here during a historic wave of violent crime, as homicides have increased 80% from today’s record last year. Austin police morale is at an all-time low police budget cut of $ 150 million last year. ADP recently made the amazing announcement that due to the personnel crisis, they will no longer be able to respond to emergency calls unless it is a life threatening situation or the attacker is on the premises to risk their lives without the assistance they need to get the job done. Austin has to pass Prop A on November 2nd to fix this mess. “
The advocacy group founded by the liberal billionaire and financier George Soros has poured $ 500,000 into a campaign to thwart the proposal.
Proposal A, supported by Save Austin Now, would require a minimum of two Austin police officers per 1,000 residents and would provide police officers with an additional 40 hours of police training each year on topics such as gun knowledge and active rifle scenarios.
Fox News’ Jessica Chasmar contributed to this report
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/austin-police-officer-rips-chief-rejects-offer-return