MEMORANDUM
August 13, 2007
To: David Corliss, City Manager
From: W. Ronald Olin, Chief of Police
Ref.: Summer Safety Initiative
The staff of the Lawrence Police Department has had continuous discussions concerning trends that we are seeing in the downtown area and throughout the City. We have tried to determine alternative or innovative police strategies to address issues associated with the criminal behaviors of customers going to and from or in entertainment venues. Some acts are quality of life issues such as noise, litter, and minor crime, and others have included violence such as assaults, batteries, aggravated incidents such as reports of “shots fired”, and even a tragic murder after a concert downtown. Officers have been directed to increase their vigilance and enforcement activities. Nonetheless, officers continue to report observing offenses such as urinating in public or major crimes such as illegal weapons possession and violence on a routine basis.
During our discussions, staff decided that it would be of value to try to increase the number of police officers assigned downtown and throughout the city to focus on criminal conduct in and around entertainment venues in the City. We concluded that such an increase might assist us in understanding the dynamics at work in the entertainment scene, and give us a better understanding what, if any, remedies might be available for our use. Throughout our numerous briefings to you, you suggested new police responses, and when approached with the concept, authorized funding for our program.
There were several challenges related to the implementation of the program that we labeled the Summer Safety Initiative (SSI). The first step was to identify a supervisor and personnel to staff the assignment. Drawing personnel from regularly assigned duties is normally permitted only for the investigation of the most serious offenses, e.g., a major case investigation, complex tactical operation or homicide. Any reassignment of resources decreases patrol staffing levels which are already stretched during normal shifts as police respond to calls-for-service and self initiated activities. We noted that while such an increase in personnel toward a specific goal is not feasible throughout the year, we could utilize personnel such as the School Resource Officers (SRO) while school was not in session. The SROs could be supplemented by patrol officers and detectives who were asked to volunteer for the special assignment. We chose the time period from June 29 to August 4, 2007, six weekends, the maximum duration of time we believed we were capable of staffing.
The final team selected was comprised of School Resource Officers, Patrol Officers, and Detectives. The team was led by Sergeant Dan Ward, our special projects supervisor. A decision was made in the initial planning stages to maintain the same personnel during each of the weekends. The same team working together we believed would create an environment to better understand any subtle trends that might be seen from our physical presence and enforcement activities. Unfortunately, we were not able to assign the same personnel as the result of vacations, training, sick time, and other obstacles. In all, 17 officers were utilized to provide the 10 officers necessary to maintain the SSI. On some days, the altered assignments left regular patrol shifts short or office assignments unmanned. The SSI was an interesting demonstration of the limits of our personnel in addressing extraordinary assignments with our current authorized strength.
Additional assistance was received from outside law enforcement agencies. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office offered assistance to the initiative. Another agency agreed to supplement our resources with a captain and three additional officers who might not be recognized as law enforcement officers in our community. The Department of Revenue, Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control also agreed to participate in the SSI. We sincerely appreciate the participation and enthusiasm of the members of these organizations.
The SSI began assignments each Friday and Saturday during early evening hours downtown. The officers attempted to increase dramatically our visible presence to the public. The officers used traditional vehicle patrol sparingly, focusing as much as possible on bicycle and foot patrol. Officers were encouraged to make as many positive contacts with citizens as possible and address any violations of law they observed. When entertainment venues began to get busy, the officers began conducting bar checks. This formula was utilized for each of the 12 days the initiative was undertaken.
The results are of interest in our analyses of the issues facing the City of Lawrence and the Lawrence Police Department. Our first observation is that there were always violations waiting to be discovered. During the SSI’s 96 hour deployment, officers made arrests or wrote Notices to Appear on 226 occasions. The enforcement actions ranged in seriousness from smoking in a public place to possession of crack with the intent to sell or aggravated battery. There were 207 traffic enforcement actions taken during the same time period; and 169 bar checks conducted in 55 establishments throughout the City. The street information developed from the numerous contacts conducted during this effort remains under study.
The cost of the Summer Safety Initiative was significant. Only three officers received overtime for activities associated with the SSI because of altered work schedules. The total cost for the program, not including outside agencies, was $33,447.
Officers noted several interesting observations at the conclusion of the SSI. First, during the early hours each evening downtown, the officers received many comments concerning how happy the citizens were to see foot patrol. Officers had very positive contacts during these hours. No comments were made to any of our personnel about any additional police presence while performing bar checks and other enforcement efforts later in the evenings. The additional personnel aided in officers’ safety issues in that regularly assigned personnel knew that they had additional resources in the event of a major or catastrophic incident. Midnight shift officers noted that they were able to handle other important cases because of the supplemental patrol.
There was no violent street crime reported during the SSI. This may be coincidental, but it is a fact. It was expressed by some of those arrested for possession of firearms near drinking establishments that the bond and court fines were not a deterrent. Comments were made about the cost of fines being the same as costs of a night’s cover charge into a club.
One entertainment venue asked for suggestions on improving client safety and security. Team members worked with the management to make several changes in club policy. This collaboration was welcomed by both parties and the resulting changes appear to have made a difference in neighborhood complaints around the establishment.
The number of enforcement actions for minors in possession of alcohol (MIP) decreased after the first weekend of the SSI. This may have been the result of the increased scrutiny doormen gave identification. However, the number of MIP observed by officers did not decrease in the neighborhoods outside establishments. The number of violations noted and enforced suggests that MIP continue unabated.
During the SSI, officers were able to observe both open drug use and gang activity. This creates a dilemma for officers in that enforcement strategies in large group settings are notoriously difficult to remedy without large numbers of police personnel or the voluntary compliance of offenders when arrested.
During many of the contacts and enforcement activities officers took the time to inquire from the patrons of establishments their reasons for coming to Lawrence. On the occasions that the individual responded to officers’ questions, the response was often the same. In most of the contacts officers reported that the individual responded that he/she came to Lawrence because, “I like it here”, and “it’s safe here”. It may be of note that patrons complained that in Kansas City and Topeka one must be 21 years old to enter an establishment. In Lawrence, one could gain entry under age and that was another compelling reason to come to the City for entertainment.
The staff of the Lawrence Police Department is currently engaged in further discussions concerning the lessons learned from the SSI. We will make additional reports to you as we continue deliberations. Thank you for your support in making this endeavor possible.
W. Ronald Olin
Chief of Police