By Brian Clark, The Wichita Falls (Texas) Times Record News
Patrol was understaffed and detectives were buried under paperwork.
The solution was to start a new patrol program and to add more clerical employees.
Those were the some of the conclusions of an audit of the Wichita Falls Police Department in fall 2002.
A year later, police officials said the department has made some of the changes suggested by the audit and the results have been fairly positive.
“I think that we’re very, very, very pleased with the direction the city is going,” Chief Ken Coughlin said. “Initially, there were a lot of negative things ... on the audit.”
The department set aside some of its community policing philosophy to focus on basic policing, moving four officers from community services back to patrol.
“They scaled back community services and put them back on the streets,” Sgt. Cindy Walker said. “It’s helped with patrol understaffing.”
The department also created civilian sentinel positions to process found property, check unoccupied vehicles and write minor theft reports.
The problem officers have with the sentinel program is that it’s only part time rather than a full shift.
“By the time they get in, get their equipment and get out there, take a couple calls and write a report - they’re done,” Walker said. “It’s limited what they can do in four hours.”
Walker said other changes to patrol, including dropping funeral escort services and unlocking vehicles for citizens, have enabled officers to respond more quickly to some emergency calls.
The detective division has seen improvements, too.
“It’s been a benefit,” Lt. Richard Garza said. “Anytime you can add help it’s going to be a benefit.”
Garza, who heads the department’s criminal investigations section, said the addition of four clerical workers has relieved detectives of some research work. That’s good news for a division where caseloads can range from 14-100 cases per officer, depending on the nature of the crime.
The clerical staff keeps contact with crime victims while detectives track down and interview witnesses.
“The investigator’s still ultimately responsible for the investigation on any case, but the clerks are able to do the paperwork,” Garza said.
Clerks have simplified work for detectives by gathering information, such as the databank they created on a series of municipal hall burglaries throughout Texas.
“You don’t say, well, I think so-and-so said this - it’s there,” said Mary Schmitz, who supervises the clerks in the detective division.
The system isn’t perfect yet. Officers still face some delays in responding to calls and lunch breaks often coincide with busy periods on each shift.
That may have contributed to the wait Timothy McLean’s wife had when she called about a burglary at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
McLean was out of town when his wife found their back door was kicked in and a DVD-VCR stolen, he said. He tried to keep his wife calm while she waited for police to respond, but after two calls and an hour waiting for an officer he was frustrated.
“For me being on the phone in Weatherford and they were going to be there in a couple minutes, time passing by and they weren’t there, yeah it made me kind of mad,” he said.
But changes and streamlining recommended by the police audit have helped officers respond to problems more quickly.
Even if the department didn’t get the 20 officers they requested before the police audit, additional civilian positions have been created and city council has added six officer spots despite tough financial times.
“We have added considerably to staffing,” Coughlin said. “We’ll always be needing more officers. The city has been marvelous - even in times like this with such tight budgets they made it happen.”