Maricopa Police Department marks three years of service

[Maricopa360]

[Fritzydoodle]

And not to burst that good bubble...but how many of those officers/command staff been in the news during those three years in ways less than exemplary?  It seems a higher percentage than other departments.

[mallardisme]

MPD has been a good move for the citizens of Maricopa., overall.

Fritzy, your question is dead on with my comments on preception.

I would not like to go back to PCSO. However, MPD really needs to rethink their public perception as they move forward, in order tobe effective.

[mallardisme]

BTW, I am glad Sam rewrote the first paragraph on that release. What was sent was pretty bad. (IMHO)

"On July 1, 2007, the Maricopa Police Department began providing service to the of Maricopa with 12 officers. Today, the department as grown to 55 sworn officers, six professional support staff and 23 active police volunteers"

It hurts my head. I am sure it was proofread by many before it went out, but wow, it sure made Maricopa look like a bunch of dumb hicks.

I guess thay forgot whom they serve?

[Tigg]

BTW, I am glad Sam rewrote the first paragraph on that release. What was sent was pretty bad. (IMHO)

"On July 1, 2007, the Maricopa Police Department began providing service to the of Maricopa with 12 officers. Today, the department as grown to 55 sworn officers, six professional support staff and 23 active police volunteers"

It hurts my head. I am sure it was proofread by many before it went out, but wow, it sure made Maricopa look like a bunch of dumb hicks.

I guess thay forgot whom they serve?

Where's Sam's rewrite, because the first post has the same horrid 1st paragraph you posted.  "the of Maricopa". . . they need someone to learn to proofread!

[mallardisme]

Word of the day "Citizens"... It is the Citizens of Maricopa. That was the answer.

I'll go with public officials for $1000, Alex.

[Tigg]

And not to burst that good bubble...but how many of those officers/command staff been in the news during those three years in ways less than exemplary?  It seems a higher percentage than other departments.

I agree.  I'm sure they do more good than bad, however I've heard of a heck of a lot of bad.  Between bad conduct by officers, stupid choices, lack of notifying the public when armed suspects are running around loose. . . they are seriously in need of some good PR.  We all know that the bad makes the news, but they send out their own press releases. . . they should be sending out some that will notify the public of things we really do need to know and should be sending out some about the good they are doing if they don't want us to only hear the negative.

[mallardisme]

I agree Tigg. A few years back, an officer made a traffic stop. The officer found out that a child in the back seat was choking to death. The officer worked on the child and saved his life! Several members of the media put in requests for interviews with the officer. They were ignored.

There are many similar stories out here. It is a real shame that we don't get to hear them. All we get is COMPA issues, Cops stealing things out of suspect's vehicles, PD insignias used to sell dogs and cops sending shots of their junk to underage girls.

Our PD is a lot better than this. I would be happy to show the other side. Unfortunatly, I don't get the chance to. The above issues are the result of a minority, not the PD in general. However, that is all the community sees.

I would love to show the department in action, as I do with MFD quite often. We pay these folks. We do get our money's worth, we just don't get a chance to realize the benefits of our funding. The down side of that will be during buget cut meetings.

[Tigg]

Exactly.  MFD also knows how to keep the news about themselves good - avoid doing stupid poop on a regular basis and let the good you do be seen.

I remember only one really negative story on the fire department, and that was before they were MFD, if I rememeber correctly.  They got a lot of bad press over that one incident and they learned their lesson - behave yourselves, both on and off duty, and let the press give you props when you do something great.

MFD is happy to show off their wins and tries to avoid stupid behavior. . . MPD really should learn a thing or two from them on how to create and maintain a positive reputation!

[mallardisme]

MFD has had their share of bad issues. One involved PD and FD people, another involved a 'personal' incident that ended with the removal of a high ranking official.

However, as you said, their 'wins' are what is seen more often. Why? Comminication, pure and simple.

Perception..

I am actually drafting a letter to address this issue. I don't like to point out problems without offering a solution. In this case, there are many solid solutions. There are 2 that I am looking at. We shall see. This won't be offered or happen overnight.

[Maricopa4ever]

Three years of corruption and complacency, I am so proud. 

[Fat Girl]

Three years of corruption and complacency, I am so proud.  

and they announced that this year the department will be publishing a calendar. Titled "Junk in the Trunk", the calendar will feature risque cell phone pictures of various officer's genitalia....

[KendoPt4]

Three years of corruption and complacency, I am so proud.  

and they announced that this year the department will be publishing a calendar. Titled "Junk in the Trunk", the calendar will feature risque cell phone pictures of various officer's genitalia....

I figured with a name like that it would be pictures of other poeple's stuff sitting a cop car's trunk.