[Grovenet] Policing in the Grove

[Katie Allnutt]

Richard,
   I'm not sure that my comments will be helpful in the sense that  
you are asking. Policing is one of those things where people really  
don't think much about their officers until something goes wrong.   
Then they want and need full services that may or may not have been  
put in place because up until then they have been ignoring you.
    I have been fortunate in that my family has not been touched by  
the meth epidemic but I know there are many houses and neighbors here  
in FG that have been. Obviously the new law that takes the active  
ingredients off the store shelves has helped but it still seems to  
lead to many property crimes and the heartbreaking abandonment of  
small children (or not so small children) by parents who are  
addicted.  This is probably an area that will require constant  
attention.
    For me personally, I am beginning to pay a lot of attention to  
the safety issues surrounding teen age drivers, since my teens are in  
that age bracket.  Traffic enforcement is a good thing. If my kid is  
in a car not wearing a seat belt whether they are a driver or a  
passenger I would be happy for the car to be pulled over and  
ticketed.  The same for speeding, running red lights, driving the  
wrong way on our one way streets. (My wisdom as a parent was  
reinforced when my teen ager was getting driving hours here in FG and  
sure enough when she was driving, somebody turned onto Pacific going  
the wrong way headed right for us. Fortunately, it was a few blocks  
ahead and they recognized their mistake soon enough to turn into a  
nearby parking lot, but it did reinforce in her mind that these  
things, while rare, do happen and your job is to watch out for the  
unexpected. Parents are right sometimes.)
   If I had one suggestion that I think would improve police services  
here in FG would be for there to be an easily identified non  
emergency phone number for people to call 24 hrs for things that are  
suspicious but not emergencies. The office # is only answered during  
working hours and some circumstances do not require a 911 call.  I  
think you could get some valuable information about problems before  
they grow into problems if there was a way  for people to report  
things that they would like to tell you without having to use 911.  I  
know that is expensive but it would be another avenue for keeping a  
pulse on the community.
   I don't have any major gripes or problems with the police. In all  
my interactions here in FG they have always been helpful and  
professional.

Katie



On Mar 8, 2008, at 3:59 PM, R Goerling wrote:

> Hello all- I’ve been following discussion threads for the last few  
> weeks
> and thought I’d  introduce myself and, hopefully, initiate a  
> discussion to
> gain some insight to what members of Grove-Net consider important  
> issues for
> their police agencies.
>
> I have recently applied for consideration for the Chief of Police  
> position
> with the Forest Grove Police Department.  Please feel free to visit my
> website at www.rgoerling.com for more information about me, my  
> background,
> the value I believe I bring to our community public safety efforts  
> and my
> policing philosophies.
>
> As I further explore what our community stakeholders think about  
> police
> services, I would love to know what each of you think with regard  
> to the
> questions below.
>
> 1. What are some critical issues facing public safety in Washington  
> County,
> specifically (or not) Forest Grove?
> 2. What is your police department doing well?
> 3. What can your police department do better?
>
> Thank you for reading my post.  I appreciate your time and look  
> forward to
> learning from this group.
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Richard Goerling
>
>
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