Robert Sanchez, Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO)
Nearly a quarter of Denver’s police force is eligible to retire, a prospect that will cost the department some of its most veteran street cops and detectives.
Those officers account for at least 8,500 years of law enforcement experience. By the end of 2002 alone, 81 officers and supervisors will retire.
“This is kind of frightening,” said Police Chief Gerry Whitman. “You look at our numbers and it really starts to become a challenge figuring out how to replace so many seasoned men and women.”
To keep its ranks full, the city is preparing to step up hiring and raid smaller metro-area departments for talent. City officials think the lure of good pay and the excitement of big-city law enforcement will prove too hard for career-minded cops to pass up.
“It’s no surprise,” Whitman said. "(Other departments) know we’re coming.”
As of Friday, 348 of Denver’s 1,449 sworn officers and supervisors have 25 years’ experience - the minimum to retire with 50 percent of their salary - according to the department’s figures.
Of those eligible for retirement, 240 will leave within the next five years. Just about half of the 348 already have retirement dates set within the next three years, the department said.
The situation in Denver is typical. Large police departments across the country are facing the departure of officers who were part of the rapid law enforcement expansion during the late 1960s and 1970s.
For example, Cleveland, which has 1,900 officers, has lost an average of 100 officers annually during the past few years.
Denver’s biggest hiring binge came between 1968 and 1973, when 833 officers were brought on board to keep pace with growth.
Detective David Metzler is one of just three 1968 Denver Police Academy graduates still on the force. Metzler’s class had 38 graduates, he said.
“It’s emptying out,” he said. “It’s all some people want to talk about: ‘Who is going next?’ ”
This year at least 20 officers have invited him to retirement parties. Next fall, he’ll be sending out the invitations himself.
“The pull to get out starts getting pretty strong,” said Metzler, who worked vice and burglary and is now an assistant to a deputy chief. “The time comes when you just have to move on.”
Retirement is an attractive proposition, in part, because of the benefits. Officers who stay 25 years get at least 50 percent of their salary for life. That figure shoots up to 74 percent at the 31st year.
Add in the department’s Deferred Retirement Option Program - which allows police to collect their pensions and put that money into an investment fund while they work - and some officers could enjoy retirement on nearly a full salary.
“It’s hard to leave, but I think it’s also pretty hard for these guys to pass up all the benefits they get,” said Detective Cleo Wilson, who retired this spring after 26 years on the job. “You look around and wonder, ‘How will (Denver) ever replace these kinds of people?’ ”
Denver and most other large departments are constantly recruiting, including from other, smaller police forces. This month, Denver got a boost from voters for its recruitment efforts.
The city charter, Denver’s governing document, once limited hiring other departments’ officers to 25 percent of the total brought into the ranks in any one year. It was put in the charter in 1993, but few people, including Whitman, know why.
This month the city’s voters removed that cap, opening the gates for recruiting more men and women already in uniform.
“We haven’t had this leeway before, so it’s nice that we can finally go out and look for some people who want a lateral move to a bigger place,” Whitman said.
An officer with a minimum five years’ experience will earn $57,828 in Denver next year, the department said. The pay in most departments throughout the state is lower, with some five-year officers making less than $40,000 a year.
“All this puts us in a really tough spot,” said Englewood police investigator Ted Atkinson, who helps recruit future officers. “There’s really no boundary or limit (to raiding), and it’s not like we’re going to hold it against them.”
“The bottom line is that we know we’re going to lose some people,” he said. “It’s part of the job.”
Said Parker Chief Tom Cornelius: “The math is pretty basic. If they take experienced officers, then we’re left with fewer people to do the work.
“I’d like to think that we’ve attracted a different type of officer out here who likes the smaller-town feel, rather than Denver,” said Cornelius, whose town has about 23,500 residents and a police force of roughly 40. “I really hope we don’t lose any of our guys to them.”
Particularly because the pool of applicants is drying up.
The Denver Regional Council of Governments, which tests recruits for 27 departments in the metro area, had 1,785 candidates in 1993; this year it’s between 200 and 300.
“People just don’t want to be police officers anymore,” said Suzi Walker, who heads DRCOG’s police-recruitment program. “They figure, ‘Why do I want to be shot at when I can get a nice job behind a desk making a lot more money?’ ”
Keeping experienced officers from leaving will be the biggest challenge for smaller forces as chiefs figure out ways to fend off Denver’s advances in coming years.
“Bottom line is that you’ve got to pay well and treat your officers with respect,” said Westminster Police Chief Dan Montgomery. “If you don’t do those things, it’s a sure bet that your guys are going to leave.”
It’s a bet Whitman is willing to make.
“We think we have the best police department in the state and we know people want to work here,” he said. “All we have to do is go out there and be ourselves. They’ll want to come.”
INFOBOX:
Off the street -- Dwindling force
Denver officers are retiring in droves:
180 -- Number of mandatory retirements from 2003 to 2005
240 -- Number of the 348 eligible officers expected to retire in the next five years
Fewer recruits:
It’s getting hard to replace those retirees:
1,785 -- Number of candidates for metro-area police departments in 1993.
200 to 300 -- Number of candidates this year.