TKC BREAKING AND EXCLUSIVE NEWS!!! BEHIND THE SCENES: KCPD RETIREMENT PARTY CONTROVERSY REVEALED!!!
Thanks to some of the VERY BEST TKC TIPSTERS today we learn of a CONTROVERSIAL retirement party that reveals increasing tension within Kansas City's Police Department.
To wit . . .
TAKE A LOOK AT THIS E-MAIL CIRCULATING AMONG THE KCPD THAT POINTS TO A RATHER CONTROVERSIAL RETIREMENT PARTY!!!
In the media, most public officials will not discuss personnel matters but that doesn't mean it's not an important topic.
This e-mail confirms what we've heard about the new process of appointing KCPD Captains and an upcoming move away from the standardized testing system that was in place.
Now we've shortened some names to keep it legal but we all know what's being discussed and it doesn't impact this powerful testimony.
Check it:
CHIEF PUSHES OUT ANOTHER COMMANDER
"I don't know if you were thinking about it or not, but Kevin's retirement ceremony is Friday at 1000 hours at the academy. Even if you don't know Kevin, it would be appreciated if you could come and show your support. It would be nice for as many people as possible to show up to celebrate Kevin's 40+ years with the KCPD.
"Kevin was scheduled to retire December 6th, but THE CHIEF decided to show Kevin his appreciation by trying to "demote or fire" him before he could leave on his own. The chief requested memorandums from all commanders and supervisors demanding what they intend to do about morale on the police department. Apparently Kevin's respectful response incensed the chief (as did memos from others) and Kevin, along with 5 or 6 other commanders, have been marked for demotion or termination. Impossible you say? After Kevin's chain of command refused to write him up, the chief had him transferred under his own chain of command effective 09-16-2012, making demotion a real possibility.
"Kevin moved his retirement up to 09-15-2012. The chief, being the chief, moved the transfer up to 09-02-2012 and needless to say, Kevin took some vacation time his last two weeks. Kevin, as always, has taken the high road and will not discuss the matter until after he is gone. He has been devastated by all of this. He has given his life to the department and after 40 + years, he has to go out like this. I have been working to get as many people as possible to attend his ceremony and to show their support and appreciation for his years of dedication, honesty and integrity to the Kansas City Missouri Police Department and what he represents."
#############
Posts
73 Comments:
Go get pics and wear your party hat TKC.
This must all be Louie Wrights fault I bet.
Wrong organization dumbass. Please wake up @9:18.
Leadership in KCPD being duplicitous and dishonest? Petty grudges in Kc's finest? Well I never!
*clutches pearls*
It gets worse every day. The best we can do is bring these things to light... tie Forte' to the Mayor. They are on the same page. Let them both fall.
Tony's become such a pansy since Louie spanked him it's ridiculous.
Like you couldn't tell the letter is about Chief Forte?
Grow the fuck up.
Do not allow Chief Forte to move away from standardized tests.
Protect the KCPD.
If you want to know why the department is falling apart. Just look at the Chief. We are losing too many good people.
that is "diversity" for you.
I don't see how this will improve morale.
TKC is like a text version of The Wire for Kansas City LOLOL
To all KCPD members, this is a great example of what the executives of the department think of you and your service. You'll be given a ring (if you make it that far)then screwed with until you leave so they can promote their buddies or push their agendas. Especially if you have the courage to stand for something and point out the bullshit that comes from the 5th floor. This is not the first time veterans have been screwed with. I recall two with 29 years service sent to dogwatch for pissing off one colonel or another. Good luck Kevin, you deserved better. To the Chief; what in the hell happened to you and exactly when did you turn into one of those vindictive commanders we all complained about? It appears you're not listening to anyone but know this; you're going down the same path as other unsuccessful chiefs.Just examine their history, compare it to your current situation,and you will know that is true. It's not too late to turn back.
This email is full of lies! The chief can not dictate when you can and cant retire. If Cpt M wanted to retire in Dec then he could have. He has to retire! Per policy he can only serve 32 years.
My God, if the dept is so bad then leave.....cry cry cry
Chief Forte needs to do what the JaxCo Parks Department did when it was clear that through mismanagement they could not even keep the fish alive in the lakes: hire a public relations firm and bury the firm in public money.
I will tell you who is fucking us over is the FOP! They have held up our pay raises due to their awesome idea to sue the city bc health insurance. Fuck, I will pay five dollars more for a prescription to get a raise!
For those of you that shape your world view with nothing but local dead tree media, allow me to explain to you what is going on here. The chief is confronted with the reality of the times. Public employee pensions are draining the resources of state and local governments faster than they can realistically extract the money from the productive sector. Historically low rates of return on investment are not helping matters. The chief has his orders to reduce pension costs and the only tool he has for this task is to see that officers leave the force at the lowest possible grade level and with the least amount of accrued overtime. All issues of fairness aside, the KCPD and virtually every other public employer in the country is up against this all to familiar scenario. The turnip known as the taxpayer is running out of blood to pay for all of this.
Is this the beginning of what Local Control of police promises? It smells of Political Disaster and Intervention for the department. Be mindful of what you ask for future of our sophisticated and professional Board of Police Commissioners - locally recommended by State Senators and appointed by the Governor and the Mayor with an Automatic Reservation at the table - Five (5) successfully proven members.
This is a shame. Corwin wasn't that great and the new guy doesn't seem much better.
This is precisely what happens when a NIGGER is placed in charge of anything. Suddenly, it all gets tribal and petty. Forty years of service doesn't mean a thing to the jungle bunnies.
Chump Forte is not a leader, hell he's not even a supervisor. He is well aware of his lack of leadership ability, which is why he rarely shows his face to the rank and file. His insecurity regarding his ability to lead his troops along with his inability to come up with constructive ways to stem the tide of violence in this city is why he lashes out at those around him. It's the "I've had a bad day so I'll go home and kick the dog" syndrome. The dog is getting pretty tired of getting kicked and I imagine that pretty soon it will bite Chump Forte in his ass.
11:17
Well done sir.
Tony, nice catch, I love it when you dig up the shit.
11:09 am you have be the stupidest dumbest MF I have seen in all my lifetime.
Blaming your employee representative agency for your management fuckin' you over (listen...you pea brain... your bosses are screwing you not your employee agency. Only difference is that make you think it is the FOP and your are so abysmally uckin stupid you buy the guy hitting you is not the guy actually hitting you. Got it? Good god how could a KC police officer be that mentally bankrupt.) is like getting mad at your roof because the rain fell in your yard.
Shit, local control or state control can not help an officer as stupid as you are.
Please blame the victim the next time you catch a criminal. I am just aghast at your display of phenomenal ignorance.
Are you sure you are not the garage sweeper guy on the department?
Even the garage sweeper is smarter than that.
I am not posting to defend 11:09 but I am not sure how 1:00 or anyone else could possibly defend the FOP. Can someone please explain to me exactly what they do for us and where all of the money they get from us goes?? Besides softball trips and other bs! Do they do anything for us at all?? Seriously?? An extra Q day, wow, big deal. They had a chance to make a difference a few years ago after getting all of our signatures and then they agree to a “meet and confer” agreement at the last minute. What a joke. Since the meet and confer agreement we have seen pay steps frozen for four years, our health insurance is gone, our pensions will be next, morale is horrible, discipline remains unfair and inconsistent, and they still haven’t even fixed the residency requirements that they have been talking about for years!! We have officers who have been working for over five years and have seen one step increase putting them around $40,000 a year. Then there are other officers who have ten plus years and are still in the lower $50s.
The leaders of the FOP are just as bad as the chief and other command staff that everyone complains about. They are all the same. We have no leadership at all on this dept or in this city! They are all selfish and don’t give a shit about anyone below them. And if you don’t think the chief and the leaders of the FOP are tied together and taking care of each other then you are badly mistaken. As many of you probably saw a recent facebook post from an FOP leader who badmouthed anyone that comments on this blog and then strongly defended the chief and “referred to him as a “good guy.” After reading that comment it was all I needed to confirm what I already believed about the chief and the leaders of the FOP.
It is so unfortunate because there are so many outstanding individuals on this department and such a small number of leaders who actually try to make a difference and do the right thing. We have so many excellent members who have been pushed out or are leaving on their own and nobody cares. I used to be so proud to be a member of this department and now I am completely embarrassed of what it has become!
Read it again 10:49, you completely misunderstood what occurred. Try that before saying the email is full of lies. You made yourself look kind of, um, ignorant?
11:17 you really believe that this is to protect the pension system? That he has been directed to demote as many people prior to retiring to lower costs? The commander already qualified for his pension at his highest two years.
This is turning out exactly like our current presidential administration. If you don't worship the man, you are the enemy. Several commanders have turned out not to be suck asses to Forte. While those commanders aren't actively trying to undermine Forte, they have either been vocal in their disagreement with Forte's bullshit programs and with Forte repeatedly shitting on the department as a whole or they have been passive aggressive in their resistance. So now they made the enemy list. Get ready, the backlash is coming. Obama and Forte are proof positive that Affirmative Action is a failure. Instead of picking the best person for the job they were picked becaue of their skin color. What a joke they both turned out to be.
Could every one here just please return to your midnight basketball assignments or your hotspots? Those programs have stopped at least 10,000 murders and helped prosecute over 100,000 urinating in public offenders.
And that was just last month.
Sounds like Brad Lemon actually does read this blog!!
You forgot to mention that he defended Forte after he accepted that ridiculous raise!
Great point 4:01!!!!!!
Whats the beef. The chief is just operating like the other City departments. Put some ass in charge and the next thing you know you got all his buddies and relatives filling positions and those who stand in the way are gone. Whats new about the chief? Hell people it IS Kansas City.
Stay Tuned, Sports Fans! When Chump Forte' gets his way and is allowed to promote Captains instead of them having to get ranked by a process, #1 will be Sgt. Stroke who was going to retire a year ago, but decided to hang around because Forte' promised her a tune-up. Seriously, if you can't do the "full and unrestricted duties of a police officer," why are you allowed to hang around?
RETROACTIVE RAISE!
Let's keep the focus on honoring Capt. Murdock for his 10 years of work over the past 40 years. Those who think he didn't get to retire when he wanted, you have to go back a few decades to identify who was around when he really retired.
Sgt. Stroke....The black female sergeant who uses a walker. Waiting for the bump to Captain. She is worthless now so it makes sense to give her a promotion and a pay raise. Then, when she does retire, she'll retire at captains pay and the taxpayers get shafted again.
Sgt. Stroke....The black female sergeant who uses a walker. Waiting for the bump to Captain. She is worthless now so it makes sense to give her a promotion and a pay raise. Then, when she does retire, she'll retire at captains pay and the taxpayers get shafted again.
Those of you bashing the FOP need to wake up, then grow up. If you think you can just demand this and demand that and its laid in your lap, you're sadly mistaken. The health care lawsuit didn't stop anyone from getting a pay raise. The pay raise tied to health care was given May 1st. The FOP leadership is doing everything possible to get additional pay increases while negotiating from a weak statutory position. Every bit of leverage that can be applied is being applied to get that done. If any of you think you can do better, show up at a meeting and offer your suggestions on how to get that done. If you actually take the time to sit down and come up with something tangible, you'll see how complex the issues are.
11:17..Capt. Murdock topped out on pension when he hit his 30 yr anniversary. He has deferred taking any pension payments for two years, he actually is an asset to the pension system in that he has been eligible to collect for seven years and not drawn anything! Your cost savings idea about getting rid of the more tenured officers is full of water. The members who stay for more than 25 years actually may be the best assets for the department and the pension system.
This email is just another sad attempt from Ritter's cronies to bash the Chief. Terry, your guy lost...get over it. Forte didn't take him down, he did it to himself. He demonstrated his true character when he burglarized Forte's office on a Sunday when he thought he was alone and got caught. That's it, game over. You took your best shot last week and it didn't work, so just go away. Cy is not coming back, Jan is not coming back, and Dale certainly isn't coming back. That stellar group you put together is old news. GO AWAY!!!
The real issue is that Forte is fucking with Kevin. Kevin is a low key, low profile guy but he is white. Kevin certainly isn't an over-achiever but that sure as hell doesn't give him cause to screw with him. If it did, Forte would have to fire every one he's promoted and himself.
Forte just didn't like how Kevin responded to his demand that supervisors and commanders tell him how to fix morale.
If he really wants to fix morale, Forte needs to look in the mirror. Screwing with a well-liked guy like Kevin sure as hell won't get it done.
Hey 5:03, 2:46 is right and asks questions the FOP cant answer. What have they done? Dont make excuses about how difficult it is to do this or do that. If its to difficult for them to handle then quit taking everyones' money or let someone else do it. Or quit proclaiming chump forte as some sort of great guy. Why or how could you defend forte after all the bs he has done since taking over. No wonder so many people are quitting the FOP.
KCPD is in shambles. This memo is just another "proof" of how bad it is. I hope the BOPC is addressing this.
KCPD is in shambles. This memo is just another "proof" of how bad it is. I hope the BOPC is addressing this.
Moral at KCPD is at a all time low.
The best thing officers can do is NOTHING otherwise your head may be on the chopping block.
5:03, why dont you wake up? What is anyone demanding? Nobody is asking for a raise or take home cars or anything that is unreasonable. I am guessing that you are topped out so you probably dont care but there is a large number of us who are four steps behind. There is a big difference in a pay step and giving everyone, topped out or not, a pay raise. The only demand I would have is to get the pay steps I already worked for and earned. Until that happens, myself and several others will continue to do the absolute minimum while at work. Just look at the numbers from the e-ticketing over the past year. Blame it on the e-ticketing all you want. Granted that hasnt helped matters, but I guarantee those numbers would have been close to that even with the old system. And thats because everyone is fed up with all the bs from the command staff, no pay, etc. I am not asking for a raise, just asking that I get paid what I already worked for and earned. And until the FOP(our bargaininng reps) or the chief, or both,make that happen, you can bet this department will continue to crumble.
5:36 I agree 100%
The Chief sounds like the ED of a Homeless Shelter in KC. Her turnover rate of long time employees is amazing, entire management team gone in a year and a half.
It appears working for the police department sucks as much as working for other departments at city hall. Everyone doing minumum as our upper management SUCKS.
I love my job. See you all in the morning!
Yea 4:58 I'm sure you were a stellar performer when you weren't on your 2 hour lunch, spending a couple hours doing your PB, your 6 trips to QT, and hanging out at the station for another hour or so doing "paperwork" so you could get off on time.
5:12 you summed up well, in a moronic way, everything that is wrong with the ole kcpd, loyalty to a certain group rather than loyalty to the department as a whole. When command changes, fuck with everyone from the old regime and take care of everyone in the new regime. As a member of no regime I detest all of you clique bastards, you cause so many problems and so much harm to the department. Why don't all you fucks leave? Bring in an outside chief so we can demolish these small minded groups that make this department so dysfunctional.
The Police Chief should be incensed at the responses of his commanders and I hope he fires them. I read some of them and they were disrespectful of the Chief. The Police Chief should force these commanders out of the department. I'm sure he will. Chief Forte needs to clean house and that is exactly what hes going to do.
It's painfully obvious you didn't understand what you just read.
Just so everybody knows but the IT department has been logging all the internet activity at the pd and she is giving the 5th floor a copy of all the surfing activity. Apparently there is going to be a big shake up at the pd.
That bitch in IT is selling everyone out in the department.
Unbelievable a civilian employee in IT selling out the rank and file, screw that bitch. We all know who she is.
So does the chief get fired when the dept feels he's disrespected it, or is it just him to fire those who disrespect a single person? This power hungry comment is exactly the problem. One person above the entire force. Could you imagine how many people would be fired if we all had the ability to do so when our little feelings get hurt? He asked for honest answers, he got them, and now he's acting like a little kid who got his feelings hurt. Thank you for admitting its all a power trip.
OK first of all 505pm, some of us have shown up to the meetings and told you different ways to do things and all you do is laugh it off or just flat dismiss it. Then the e-board goes behind your back and tells their captain and major friends that "He doesn't know shit". And funny cause the very people he told that too and the people that were telling me to keep up the good work. Secondly, I thought you guys were warned about posting on tony's site. After a poll of dept members it has been found that residency is a much bigger issue than nearly anything else to dept members and the state law has been lifted thanks to St. Louis, now its your turn KCFOP to get us out of this city. Can't do it can ya, cause then any political clout you have is then gone. It's counter-intuitive for the FOP to claim they are working on residence cause it takes all credibility away from them with the City Council. Keep spreading the lies and messages of dispair FOP, we look forward to hearing them. I'd be willing to give them city control of everything except control our pension if we could live outside the city.
Hey, Officer Shit for Brains is posting again. Still hasn't sharpened his axe, or his writing skills. I wonder how excited the trailer park was when you finally found a job.
The FOP way, much like the current president, if you can't talk about the issues then you deflect by calling names, and in your case, checking grammar.
Funny how the FOP members use foul language and poor grammar.
It must be the stellar leadership.
To my brothers and sisters in blue; my KCPD family: KNOCK IT OFF! So you don't like how the Chief is running things. So you don't like your FOP representation. You know what, it's not your job to fix them! You and I signed up to serve and protect the citizens of this city. We signed up to be guardians of peace and safety. If that's NOT what you signed up for, then sign out! This is an at-will employment state and you can choose to leave or choose to stay. But if you stay, then you're obligated to serve. Period. If the Chief is exercising his discretion for who he promotes, what's that to you? That's HIS prerogative as Chief of the department. If something unjust has been done to you, then file a grievance, until then do your jobs! It is so sad to see this kind of trash about one another and about the organization that employs us. I know it’s unfair sometimes, but none of us was promised that life on this job would be fair; however, each of us did swear an oath to serve to the best of our abilities and dare I say, we even counted it a privilege to do so. C’mon guys, we’re better than this! This grumbling behavior is beneath us. But I understand; I get it. If you’re at your limit and can’t take it anymore, then go ahead and resign. I'm quite certain there are plenty of folks out there willing to put up with a whole lot for $40K per year. Think about it, commanders will come and go; Chiefs will come and go; that's the nature of the game. The next Chief is likely to be as "bad" as this one and so will the one after that. This Chief will be gone in a few of years--what then? So stop grumbling; man-up (or woman-up) and do the job you took an oath to do. None of us took this job to get rich; we did it to serve. Listen, I don't like the political environment here any more than those of you who have posted, but bellyaching about it is not going to solve anything. Stand up. Be proud of the uniform that you're wearing and the badge that goes with it. Stand strong and give your best for the ones you're protecting. There are good people in this city who are counting on us to deliver our absolute best. If you can't give that to them, if you refuse to give that to them, then turn in your badge right now; you've got no business being here. Giving our best is not about pleasing the Chief, it's about an oath that you and I swore to do what's right and best for this city; end of story. Our Code of Conduct demands that we do not bring discredit to the organization—regardless of what anyone else does and often times in spite of what others do. You are in charge of you. Period. The Chief doesn't make this a great department--WE DO! All of this complaining and grumbling only puts our organization and our reputation in the crapper. Knock off all this petty-ante griping. Hold your heads up high and make this the best goddamn police department in the nation! Change the culture--change the game!
4:27 must have a cushion job with the pd and doesn't want the applecart upset. Shove it buddy.
427 if we are unhappy and no one in the command staff will listen then we have a right to voice our concerns. For example that stupid e-ticketing system that has NEVER worked, and REGIS. Just for starters. This are real concerns and they are not being addressed. When are they going to start firing these incompetent people. They need to fire that IT buffoon who sold us the e-ticketing system. How much has that cost the city and department?
@4:27
You are right no one said it would be fair, they did say I would be making a certain amount of money by now though and guess what, I'm not. And don't get me wrong, I love this job, its the department and chief that make it damn near impossible to do the job I signed on for. In summation, 4:27 GO FUCK YOURSELF!
11:24, you are right. And anyone who took this job for the money is an idiot and Im sure most of us didnt take the job for the money. Having said that, getting this job for MOST of us was not easy and we are held to a higher standard. We are always second guessed and under the miscroscope. We deal with more shit than most people have to deal with and make several sacrafices day in and day out and we accept that as part of our job and should be compensated accordingly. Its when we are not compsentated (as in the past four years) and are asked to do more and more and continue without any support from our mayor, city council , chief, command staff, etc.. That is when we have every right to complain and demand we get fair compensation. People like you are the problem not the solution. Instead fixing it, you just say lets roll over and take it. Fuck that, we have been doing that long enough!
Let's see if I understand this: I post a comment calling you and the rest of the department to hold yourselves to a higher standard and your response is to dismiss what I’ve said because I might have a "cush job?" Somehow, I think even if I told you I've been working EPD WIII for the past 7 years, you would still have found a reason to dismiss my clarion call to take personal ownership. Why? I'm not trying to pick a fight with you. I hear everything you’re saying loud and clear and I think very valid points have been posted here. However, just because the points are valid, that doesn’t give any of us the right to slack on the job we swore an oath to do. It's easy to be motivated when things are going well--anyone can do that. What about now when it feels so bleak? When it seems absolutely pointless to give our all? This is when we find out who's got their heart in this and who’s in it for a paycheck. I want my pay steps and increase just as much as the next guy. They promised to pay me and I want them to make good on their promise, but that doesn’t dismiss me from doing my job. Seriously, when have two wrongs ever made a right? My point is that kind of behavior benefits nobody and gets us no closer to any resolution. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to sound more noble than I am--I love my paycheck! I wish that it was bigger, but I don’t bleed blue because of my paycheck, rather because of what we do and who we are. That’s one the thing the department can't take away from me: my drive to do my best; to leave it all on the field simply because that’s the right thing to do. Only I can take that from myself—and I hurt everyone when I do that. The department can't take that away from me because I give it willingly. When I stop doing that, it's time to hang up the badge. Truth be told, I'm nobody special. I’m just another name and number, yet I refuse to let this stuff take me off task and I can only encourage you to do the same. Life’s tough and not fair, not much you can do about that. It’s tough getting shot at, kicked, cursed at and disrespected out on the streets. It’s even tougher when internally we’re facing pay freezes, more work with fewer people, low morale, little respect and recognition and yet another administration falling short on their promises. But we’ve got to find a way to metabolize that, because that part of the game is not likely to change anytime soon. We’ve got every right to speak up when things are unjust within the organization and demand excellence from our leadership core. That’s our obligation, but that does not excuse any one of us from being personally accountable and doing what we swore to do. No one is making us do this job, remember? We can walk away from this any time we want. There’s no promise that giving our best will bring about any kind of change, but then we’ve got to ask why we’re giving our best. Is it to get something in return or because that’s the right thing to do? If that’s not enough--because that’s all we might get--then maybe it’s time to take inventory and determine if this is the right place to be. I think the world of the men and women on this department (even the ones who tell me to fuck off) and I’d put my life on the line for any one of you. I dare you to make this the best goddamn police department in the nation! If we change our culture, then we’ll change the game! The rest is up to you...
(4:27)
@5:56 - For the record, the organization that provides e-ticketing is REJIS, with a "J." I know this because I took the time to read the documentation and learned how to use it. Why? Because that’s how we issue tickets now! I’ve got no love for REJIS, I liked the old paper tickets and paper 189s, but this is how we do the job today and I owe it to myself and everyone else to do it the best that I can. You know what, it's been real frustrating going to REJIS, but what choice do I have? Cry about it and refuse to stop violators in my town, in my zone, on my watch, in my beat!? Seriously, what kind of choice is that? After a year of using it I still have problems and still get frustrated, but I'm working through it as best I can, because that's what I'm being paid to do! You're right though, it was a mess trying to switch to this new system the way we did, but what use is it trying to put the pin back in the grenade after it's already gone off? Sounds like 4:27 has drank the kool aid, and I don’t know if I agree with all of it, but you can’t argue personal accountability? This job’s a choice people, not a feeling!
@7:05> Your either a kiss ass wanna be commander, or your actually a commander pretending to be a be a "Beat Cop" hiding behind the computer to try your best effort to raise morale. Hell, your probably DC Hundley for all we know. Folks know he posts on this blog! Anyhow, REJIS and the E-Ticketing sucks ass and needs to go to the wayside..
By the way, when is the captains write up to the chief gonna be leaked to TKC? You know someone has a copy of it somewhere!!!
Post a Comment