Police Chief Brian James at the City Council work session on Tuesday, March 23, discussed the staffing issues and the problems recruiting new officers.
James said that from the last Police Academy class the department had 11 graduates in the training program. For the Police Department to get back up to full force, James said they needed to have 40 people in the next Police Academy class and continue to have 40 in the next several classes.
When asked about the difficulties in recruiting new police officers, James said, “The pay is probably the most glaring thing that jumps out.”
He said, “If you’re 23 years old, you’re going to look at what the pay is.”
James said that recruits are choosing to work at a nearby departments that pay more, but close enough that they can still hang out in Greensboro.
James said that the pay had “fallen behind.” In other words, nearby cities and counties have given their law enforcement officers raises while Greensboro has not.
James bears no responsibility for police salaries. He has only been chief since Feb. 1, 2020, and the chief doesn’t have the authority to set salaries, that is the role of the City Council.
The current City Council was elected in 2017 and is completely responsible for the Greensboro city budget, including police salaries in 2018, 2019 and 2020.
Mayor Nancy Vaughan agrees that the Greensboro Police Department salaries are lower than they should be, as do other city councilmembers. At a recent meeting Vaughan went over the starting salaries at other police departments in the state, noting how low Greensboro’s salaries are by comparison. What Vaughan and nobody on the City Council has admitted is that it is the fault of the City Council that Greensboro police salaries are no longer competitive.
Vaughan has been mayor since 2013. Councilmember Yvonne Johnson has been on the City Council all but two years since 1993. City Councilmembers Marikay Abuzuaiter and Nancy Hoffmann were first elected in 2011.
But the entire City Council has been in office since 2017, and anytime during the past four years the City Council could have raised police salaries.
And it’s not like the City Council doesn’t like to spend money. So far the council has spent nearly $900,000 on the Cure Violence program run by Councilmember Johnson and the mental health team to accompany police officers on calls, has a cost of $500,000 a year.
It also raised the minimum wage for all city employees to $15 an hour and it created a brand new department, Creative Greensboro, in 2019.
The fact that the city set a new record for homicides in 2019 did not get the City Council to take action to make police salaries competitive, nor did having seven murders in seven days in July 2020. James held a press conference requesting help from the community, but the City Council took no action.
The City Council did hold a work session on violent crime on Dec. 7, 2020, after the city had already had 57 homicides in the year, but as a result of that work session no action was taken.
Now with the Police Department down 72 police officers and the city on course to have over 100 homicides in 2021, the City Council held another work session on the Police Department and discussed the salary issue.
Plenty of money for empty performance arts boondoggle, manu new parking decks in an increasingly derelict downtown, cpuncilmembers nonprofits, buying sonic weapons, and funding a grenadier team.
By the way when was the last time Greensboro PD used their LRAD to stop a murder? Oh wait, it’s just in case folks assemble and address our grievances against spendthrift political class that neglect basic issues such as police staffing in dangerous times.
The biggest things that have fallen behind are the morals and priorities of the city council.
In that photo, Michelle Kennedy is kid-shielding or she’s too chintzy to get a sitter.
Either way, it’s a bad look.
Ms. Kennedy intentionally is using the child as a prop.
What’s a bad look about someone holding a kid exactly?
Oh, it’s not a look men would ever have to be criticized for. That’s it.
Would you really bring your kid to a work meeting? Even at a kid friendly business, a child is a major distraction at a meeting. It is in no way professional or appropriate.
Says the patriarch…. seems like you are distracted by the kid, not that the kid is actually distracting. Maybe just focus on your work and don’t determine what is “appropriate” based on your standards of having the money/spouse/other support for child care while you do your big important man job.
Quack quack Donald.
I never said I was a man, a patriarch, or even employed. Way to stereotype all based off of a screen name.
The problem is that Ms. Kennedy is using her child as a visual aid.
Gender has nothing to do with this. I don’t know the members by sight, and my impression as I looked at the photo was; the person in the black suit holding the child was a young guy with really good hair. and then my mind went to, as P. Arbuckle stated, “he” must have some serious child care/baby mama issues and I am sure “his” co-members were more than a little annoyed. Gender was NOT the issue. I thought Ms Kennedy was a Mr.
They also refuse to address GPD is one of the ONLY agencies to not have take home cars. They refuse to address their benefits suck. The reputation of the agency within law enforcement in NC stinks as a place to work.
We as voters and taxpayers need to clean house staring with inefficient mayor and the rest who have their priorities wrong. Police and protection should be # 1 priority fir our citizens. Meanwhile current city council lobbies Raleigh fir free health care fir life fir all current and former council members. A record 61 murders last year in our city and they tend to be more interested in lining their own purses. Stand up Greensboro this is still your city!
Make it 62. The baby that has been missing since December 2020 is presumed dead. On myfox8.
Lets just face it-the incompetence of our local politicians has finally come around to bite us.And, it will not change as long as these people are governing; as long as the voters keep placing them in office.We can write to the RT every day;and nothing will change.Things will probably get worse before they improve-what it will finally take to reach that improvement is hard to see.Right now it looks impossible.
Relocating is always an option,though.
When you are one of them ,you can get away with “murder”.I have asked that the people of Greensboro rise up and vote out all members of the board and the mayor.It seems they are oblivious to what’s going on in Greensboro.I guess those people magazines are more interesting than what’s happening at the city council meeting.When you are understaffed in an area of the city you make corrections and move on .People of Greensboro you are the ones to stop this stupid group referred to as city council.Get some spine and let’s vote out the Mayor and all members of the board that is up for election. Then when more come out vote them outtill all are gone.
No one but the people of Greensboro elected them
Looks like another conservative city going the way of the lefties. Term limits would help but politicians say that’s why we have elections. Hate to say it but the Baja peninsula is looking better every day.
We as voters and taxpayers need to clean house staring with inefficient mayor and the rest who have their priorities wrong. Police and protection should be # 1 priority fir our citizens. Meanwhile current city council lobbies Raleigh fir free health care fir life fir all current and former council members. A record 61 murders last year in our city and they tend to be more interested in lining their own purses. Stand up Greensboro this is still your city!
Shame on the city council’s lack. While they continue to disregard our police departments needs they spend lots of our tax payer money in ways that bring little reward. We need to support our police department and start treating them with respect and pay them accordingly. Wake up voters. This issue should be front and center
They could take that $290,000 they give two neighborhoods to fight crime to the department for officers. Let the officers fight the crime. Put the money where it should go. I still can’t believe it takes almost $300,000 for a measly 2 neighborhoods to fight crime. They must just be paying every resident not to commit a crime. You think they would give communities on the west side that much money…no way.
Problem could have been partially avoided IF the anti-police council would have used the $900 & $500k money to hire more police, re-create the gang unit and flood the high crime areas with police. Instead the council gave the money to a program that has no accountability and so far is not know to be proven.
Most of the council worry about being politically correct instead of serving the citizens of Greensboro.
Councilwoman Kennedy- conducting official city business with a child on your lap during city council work session(s) is unprofessional and disrespectful to the citizens of Greensboro. How can you attend to a child’s needs and focus fully on city government during the work session?
Sounds like we really be curing the violence huh?
The Cure Violence program doesn’t appear to be working. Any chance the tax payers will get that money back??
The Cure Violence program also sounds like one of these crap programs Hinson would have come up with, back in the day. This progam needs to be fully audited (all taxpayer funded programs should) with the results made public.
And it is never ever audited! Who knows how much goes to Mayor Pro Tem Yvonne Johnson, who runs the program. Only 2 neighborhoods get 300,000 ANNUALLY. They are not required to submit a plan of action. Nor do they have to provide any statistics. And no audit is required by the City. What a gift that is. If they gave me $300,000 every year, with no oversight, of course I’d spend it responsibly. Not.
My commitment to you is to make PUBLIC SAFETY a top priority. Unlike what you have now. Our current council is completely responsible for this. With the highest property tax rate among comparable cities there is no excuse. Most officers will remember my efforts to get compensation increased and then I had to fight to get it immediately. Tony Wilkins for Greensboro City Council 2021.
Unfortunately, the council was elected by the apparently progressive-leaning citizens of Greensboro. It does not bode well for the city’s future. Take a good look at Seattle and the results of that “progressive” agenda voted in by citizens, police have no power, 2nd highest property crime in the country (San Fransisco has the highest), burned-out buildings, business leaving, homeless drug addicts rule the streets. If the council has its way this is your future.