Police Commission Minutes

Rochester Police Commission

Rochester, NH 03867

Lucien G. Levesque, Chairman

Bruce E. Lindsay, Commissioner

Derek J. Peters, Commissioner

MINUTES OF THE POLICE COMMISSION MEETING

            The Rochester Police Commission held their regular monthly meeting at City Hall, Council Chambers on Wednesday, February 4, 2015. Present at this meeting was Comm. Levesque, Comm. Lindsay, Comm. Peters, Chief Allen, Capt. Boudreau, Attorney Grossman, and Secretary Warburton as well as members of the Department and the media.

               The meeting was called to order at 7:00 P.M.

               A. Pledge. All participated in the Pledge of Allegiance. 

               B. Prayer. Comm. Levesque led the opening prayer.             

            C. Roll Call. The clerk called the roll marking all Commissioner’s present.  

2.        PUBLIC COMMENT: 

          There was no public comment.

          Comm. Levesque noted that every public meeting of the Commission is open. If you have concerns, compliments or questions the Commission would like to hear from you. Please come join us the first Wednesday of each month.

3.        ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES:  

A.  January 7, 2015 regular meeting

B. January 15, 2015 Special meeting 

Comm. Peters MOVED to accept the minutes of the January 7, 2015 regular meeting and the January 15, 2015 special meeting. SECOND by Comm. Lindsay and PASSED unanimously.

4.        OLD AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS:                        

            A.  Bullet Resistant Vest Bid. Chief Allen said that the bids we received far exceeded what we had planned. Therefore, we rebid the vests. Galls was the lowest of the three at $638.00 per vest. We are recommending to the Commission and finance department to award the bid to Galls.

            Comm. Levesque inquired how long they have been in business.

            Chief Allen said they have been in business for a number of years. Comm. Peters added they specialize in public safety equipment needs.

            Comm. Peters asked how many vests we would buy?

            Chief Allen said it depends. The manufacturer recommends a shelf life of five years. But the shelf life doesn’t mean it won’t function. Personally, I have the original vest I was issued when I was hired. When officers put in for the replacement vest, we replace them. The bullet resistant vest grant program which we take part in pays for one-half of the vests.

5.        NEW BUSINESS:

            A. Community Outreach.

            Comm. Levesque said that as noted at the last meeting we would be presenting a couple of community outreach programs that the Police Department does at each meeting. Tonight we have Ms. Nicole Rodler to talk about Diversion and Teen Night programs.

            1. Diversion. Nicole Rodler said her position oversees the juvenile court diversion and teen drug court.  Diversion gives you a second chance. It is one step before the legal system and is an educational restorative justice program. Rochester has been at the forefront having this program since 1980 and is the second oldest program in the State. It has been run through the Police Department since 2005 (previously was through the recreation department) and it is a common thread within the prosecution division of the Department.

            We run three programs; Teen Drug Court is a collaborative effort with the Police Department and School District. The Juvenile Firesetters Program is a prevention and intervention program with the Police Department and the Fire Department, and we have the standard Juvenile Delinquency Program to divert youth before they step into the court system.

            Some people are confused as to what diversion is. Diversion is not just a slap on the hand. It’s a legal process, known as restorative justice. It's making individuals who commit the charge accountable by a process; they repair harm to either the victim or community, they are involved in the community and the third piece is the education piece and skill development so it is restorative all the way around to teach them to make better choices for them and the community.

            In Rochester, we use juries. They are volunteer community members on the adult side for juvenile delinquency, and we use a peer jury for Teen Drug Court.  

            Misdemeanor offenses can be anything from the possession of drugs or alcohol, sexting, willful concealment, or arson to name a few. It's any first offense of a misdemeanor level charge. There is an intake process where we learn about the individual, the family,  and strengths so we can draw up a contract, not a sentence, that is appropriate for the offense being processed outside of the court.

            Participants have to obey home and school rules, they may have to do community service, an apology letter, do education specific to the charged offense, curfew, drug testing, mediation or research on how this choice may affect the future, i.e., will they be able to get into college and counseling. Sometimes there is a restitution component. Victims are usually surprised to see restitution. But it’s an important piece.

            There is a confidentiality piece to this. All jurors are sworn to confidentiality which is important to the strength and confidence and effectiveness of the program.

            In 2011, NH found this model should be replicated and mandated, and wrote into statute that all first offenders be given an option to go through diversion if its available in your community, or to be referred to a community resource. Ms. Rodler stated she chairs the statewide diversion committee and it was important to set a standard that would be upheld. All diversion programs must meet a rigorous accreditation process. Rochester has met this successfully the past three rounds.

            So you may ask is it effective, in the long run? In 2013, we had three of 29 cases reoffend. That’s a 90-95% success rate. Nationally the rate is about 85%.

            2. Teen Night. Ms. Rodler said this is our Department’s greatest community policing tool. This was launched in 2009/10 when we saw there was a need based on community crime stats and calls for service. The Police Department, Recreation Department and Bridging the Gaps created this program that is now five years strong and continues to grow and thrive. We run the program from October to May.

            We started off doing it every weekend, and quickly realized we would burn out too fast. It was bumped back to once a month. From the first year to the second year our numbers of unduplicated registrations doubled. We expanded the program into the cafeteria space and offer music and arts and crafts. In 2012/13 we had 2200 unduplicated registrations. In 2014/15 to date we’ve had 492 unduplicated registrations. The highest recorded attended event was 370 youth.

            We’ve been creative in bringing in staff. This is our second year with the Youth Wildcat Mentors from UNH. Each Teen Night we have 20 or more adult mentors for these youth, who are some of our most underserved, they may not otherwise have access to this. We also have police officers that stop by every month which is a big hit with the kids to interact and see these officers in a different light.

            We were also fortunate to obtain a one-year grant from the NHDHHS (New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services) that pays for food for 300 plus kids each month and brings in a DJ and a LADAC (licensed drug and alcohol counselor) to each event. It was getting hard to ask the community to pony up the funds every month. For the future, we are looking to have the community embrace it a little more and have additional successful years.  

B.  Awards and Recognitions

            1. Support Employee of the Year.  Chief Allen said that Nicole Rodler was selected as the support employee of the year. She is our juvenile diversion coordinator and has been with the Department for five years. Her position is an important part of the mission of the Department and the service we provide to the youth and families in the community. Her dedication and compassion in working with them is truly special. Her work has helped promote positive youth development and reduced juvenile crime and recidivism in our community.

            In addition to her role in Rochester, Nicole serves as the Chairperson of the statewide Diversion Program network. She is also involved in a statewide advisory board dealing with racial and ethnic diversity issues in the State. She is involved in many other programs in the community including Rochester Teen Night, Bridging the Gaps, National Night Out and the Rochester Police Benevolent Association. She exemplifies what true leadership is about by always putting others before herself. The City is fortunate to have someone like Nicole working for us.

            C.  Monthly Reports

            1. Operations. Capt. Boudreau noted that five of the 6 wards were scheduled to meet this period. Ward 6 was canceled due to weather. Turnout was decent at the meetings and several topics were discussed with elected officials as well as representatives from various departments.

            The year end comp stat shows a 5% decrease in property crime for 2014. Property crime was down in all categories except for shoplifting and vandalism. Our case closure rate increased over 2013. We did see a slight increase in violent crime. Most of those were targeted, not random and we continue to focus on impacting those crimes.

            Chief Allen wished to highlight some of our successes in our year end comp stat report. As noted there has been a decrease in property crime and a slight increase in violent crime. But the results are because of the hard work the men and women of the Department are doing in terms of looking at the data that we monitor on a weekly basis and targeting the resources to attack the issues that are relevant. This is why we get the results we do. These are not things that happen randomly. It is the hard work of the officers and specialists, followed by the support unit. Our service demands are up, calls for service are up significantly in priority two and three calls. Even with that our results are positive in most categories. We are still focused and making an impact in the community and I commend everyone on the job they are doing. They are the ones making the Department successful.

            Comm. Peters asked for the viewing audience for a description of the priority call system.         

          Chief Allen gave examples of the call priority system. The full description is as follows:

Priority 1 Call: Serious to Critical calls for service. Priority to Immediate response or officer initiated. Is almost always a two officer response.  Some examples include; burglary alarm, robbery, domestic violence, motor vehicle accident, medical aid, 911 hang-up, wanted person and assaults.

Priority 2 Call: Timely to Serious calls for service. Short delay to Priority response or Officer initiated. Is often a two officer response. Some examples include; motor vehicle complaints, thefts, welfare checks, juvenile matters, criminal mischief /threatening, missing persons, harassment and suspicious activity.

Priority 3 Call: Non-threatening to Service calls: Wait for affected zone car response or officer initiated. Is almost always a single officer response. Some examples include; property lost or found, motorist assist, extra patrol, animal matters, police information, abandoned auto, and littering.

            Comm. Peters asked how we are doing on response times?

            Chief Allen said that he doesn’t have the specific numbers tonight, but he will have them for next month. Getting these officers back to patrol is going to make an impact. Unfilled positions, officers in training and maintaining desired staffing levels all have an impact on response times. Our high priority calls are still getting addressed timely. It’s the lower priorities that get impacted by not having staffing where it should be.

            Comm. Levesque said that when we talk about response times, we need the vehicles to get there. How are the vehicles working.

            Chief Allen said the all-wheel drive vehicles are working very well, much better than the rear wheel drive cars we have now. This is an asset and improvement during the winter months. We will continue to purchase all-wheel drive vehicles.

           Comm. Lindsay noted that we are averaging close to 50,000 calls annually. It was interesting to him as the Commissioner for Wards 5/6 that Ward 6, the smallest geographically, has the highest number of calls for service; about 5,000 more per year. He said people that live in certain parts may not realize this. This is the kind of information that Councilors need to look at. What can we do to impact this?

          Chief Allen said that is why we show these graphs. We look at this weekly. We don’t just look at numbers, we look at underlying causes.

          That’s where the crime analyst comes in.

          Chief Allen said the crime analyst produces this report. She looks at, interprets and distributes this information so we can turn that into actionable data to impact the end of year results. That’s the process we use in deploying the resources we have into those areas to impact and reduce the issues.

         The Communications Center has two new specialists on board and in training. We hope to have one of them released by the next shift rotation. We have one new specialist starting on Monday.

          Community Engagement Officer Hayes continues her excellent work with our face book page. We have more than 10,000 likes and are now averaging 100,000 hits per month. This is an excellent way to interact with the community to share important tips, crime fighting, notices, and to receive information. Eight of the thirteen persons of interest posted this month were identified.

          The numbers were down a little for Teen night in January. It was a school vacation week and it snowed. Holy Rosary Credit Union donated $500.00 to the Teen Night Program to help with expenses. The grant for the program expires this month. We have asked for funding in our budget to sustain the program. Donations and grants won’t last forever.

           Comm. Levesque said any organization that wishes to make a donation please contact the police department. It’s a good program to support.

            The new prosecutor Joe Plaia started on Monday February 2, 2015. He is taking part in some in house training and learning our process. We anticipate putting the two officers back to patrol at the shift rotation on February 22, 2015.

            2. Administration. Chief Allen said he and the Deputy Chief met with the City Manager to go over our FY16 budget proposal. It was a good meeting. Our submission was within the parameters set and we are optimistic as some of the things we requested through issues and options have his support. We are looking forward to the deliberative process and presenting to the Council.

          In FY 15 we are projecting to be in the black at the end of the year. We do have some trouble lines and we update the Council on our expenses every month. We always struggle with over time as that line doesn’t get the funding that is requested and we cover that overage through other lines. We pay out accumulated comp time at the end of each year and it comes from other lines. We are trying to get that included in the overtime budget.

          The dispatch budget overtime is also in trouble due to the vacancies, but overall, the bottom line is in the black.

          Comm. Peters said you have two in training and two still to hire in the Center?

          Chief Allen said yes. One position is filled effective Monday and we are waiting for further tests on the final candidate. If all goes well, we will be up to full staff in the center.

          We still have one open patrol position. We had a PT test last week and after they go through oral boards they will be invited to an interview before the Commission. There were no certified officers.  We do advertise but have had few inquires. The next full time academy is in May and it will be 16 weeks.  

          Officer Marvin has been released from in house training to field training. The three at the academy are finishing their fourth week.

          Technology update; the tablets purchased through grant funds are moving forward. The IT department is working on configuring them and we will roll them out in a couple of cars to work out kinks and make sure they work the way we intended. Then we will roll them out to the whole fleet. Chief Allen said this is cutting edge. He is not aware of any other NH Department using this technology in the way we plan to use it. Laptops in the cars get the data they need, but these devices as all in one for photo, audio and video work that can be downloaded to their report is a neat process and it will eliminate some equipment that we spend thousands of dollars on. The lap tops with all associated hardware, video cameras, digital cameras, tape recorders will be replaced by a few hundred dollar tablet that also does GPS. So we eliminate a $2,000.00 bill that we pay annually and replace it with software for a few hundred dollars. There will be significant cost savings in the long term as well as increased efficiency within the cruiser.

          Comm. Levesque asked what we would do with the equipment we are cycling out. Is it still functioning?

          Chief Allen replied we would still use it. We can recycle the lap tops to other personnel in the building, either detectives or school resource officers. We will recycle what we can.

          What vehicles will get tablets?

          Chief Allen said all the front line cars. Not the detective bureau. But we may move to that in the future.

          Will this replace the DVR’s (digital video recorders)?

           Chief Allen said no. These will replace the mobile data terminals. The DVR’s (digital video recorders) are part of the in car video. Those units are 9 years old. They are a computer and they fail as they get older. As we’ve been discussing, we are looking to move to body cameras in the future, but we are evaluating this technology and are at least a year out. This could develop into integrating with in car video. But we don’t want to rush purchase, potentially making a bad purchase and wasting taxpayer dollars on something that could change in a year. We put it in the CIP to get the conversation started that we will be looking at this. The cruiser cameras would have to be fully replaced. Not having a camera in the car is not an option. They are proven to improve safety as well as improve our success rate in court. We’ll get by as long as we can with what we have.

            Comm. Peters asked if we are still looking at cruiser cameras in the event we don’t like the body cameras? How many cruiser cameras are working?

            Chief Allen said any car that doesn’t have a working camera is deadlined from front line use.

          Comm. Lindsay asked if we’ve had any feedback from the company on the technology?

          Chief Allen said the interface with the in car video isn’t there yet. So waiting a year is a good thing and the company actually recommended that.

          Comm. Peters asked about grant funding.

          Chief Allen said that highway safety has grant funding for body cameras and in car video. It’s a 50% match. We’ll look at that when the time comes to decide the direction to take.

          Comm. Lindsay asked when a school day is cancelled what do the school resource officers do?

          Chief Allen said they work in the department, catch up on reports and things of that nature. The high school resource officer is full time and the middle school  resource officer is part time. Both positions are funded in the budget.

            Comm. Lindsay noted his concern with Governor and Executive Council’s decision to renew the contract with Fairpoint given the issues that we’ve had within the City and the PD, without getting a response from Fairpoint. These issues were occurring before the strike so that is not an excuse. It doesn’t make sense.

          Chief Allen said that he is not familiar with the details at the state level. He can only state that Mayor Jean drafted a letter expressing concerns over issues that affected us locally. We simply haven’t gotten the response from customer service that we should.

6.        CORRESPONDENCE:

          Comm. Lindsay said normally our correspondence is in written form, but many of the officers receive compliments during the month, so their efforts are noticed and not limited to this list. Letters received during the month include: Off. Moore is recognized for “looking beyond the traffic” discovering drugs and completing a search warrant resulting in arrest.  Off. Mundy is thanked by the Office of Victim/Witness Assistance at the Attorney General’s Office thanking him for participating in the child fatality review committee.  Off. Harding is commended by the Messinese family for his courteous handling of a traffic accident.  Specialist Bowley is thanked for excellent work with the project good morning program.  Off. Kimbrough is recognized for his positive outlook and work ethic.  Det. Rousseau is recognized for team work in assisting other officers with tasks.

7.        INFORMATION:

          No additional discussion. Commissioner Peters wished to remind the public that if there is a safety concern over the height of the snow banks you can reach out to Department of Public Works. They are doing a phenomenal job. We’ve had 48” of snow in 8 days. Folks can also consider adopting a fire hydrant and shoveling them out to help the fire department.

8.        NON-PUBLIC SESSION: (Pursuant to:  RSA 91-A:3)    

Commissioner Peters MOVED to enter a nonpublic session at 8:19 P.M. pursuant to RSA 91-A: 3, paragraph II, section A (personnel) and section E (legal.) SECOND by Comm. Lindsay. The motion PASSED by roll call vote 3 – 0 with Comm.  Peters, Comm. Lindsay and Comm. Levesque voting in the affirmative.  The non-public session closed at 8:44 P.M. on a MOTION by Comm. Peters, SECOND by Comm. Lindsay and PASSED unanimously.

9.        MISCELLANEOUS:

Comm. Peters MOVED to award merit increases on the respective anniversary dates to Off. Justin Seckendorf (3.6%) Off. Brandon Kimbrough (4.0%) Off. Matthew Flathers (4.0%) and Off. John Gantert (3.25%). Comm. Lindsay SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously.

10.     ADJOURNMENT:

Comm. Lindsay MOVED to adjourn. SECOND by Comm. Peters at 8:46 P.M.

Respectfully Submitted

Rebecca J. Warburton

Secretary