To The Editor:
1 - I recently saw a note on one of our local political sites saying that the cost of our Copake Police force is $30-$40 dollars a year per person. For me, it's a misconception to describe it that way. Our Police Force costs us $100,000 per year - that's $100,000 that could go to children's programs or downtown development to name a few. It could also pay outstanding bills or simply disappear from the budget entirely. Justifying large costs by breaking them into tiny pieces is an illusion and a terrible business model - one pound of feathers weighs exactly the same as a one pound brick. If we think every $100,000 in budgeting is a "few cigarettes," we will soon give ourselves permission to spend our way into bankruptcy. I hope that those on the fence about "yes" or "no," make their decision based on more information than the cost of coffee or Marlboro's.
1 - I recently saw a note on one of our local political sites saying that the cost of our Copake Police force is $30-$40 dollars a year per person. For me, it's a misconception to describe it that way. Our Police Force costs us $100,000 per year - that's $100,000 that could go to children's programs or downtown development to name a few. It could also pay outstanding bills or simply disappear from the budget entirely. Justifying large costs by breaking them into tiny pieces is an illusion and a terrible business model - one pound of feathers weighs exactly the same as a one pound brick. If we think every $100,000 in budgeting is a "few cigarettes," we will soon give ourselves permission to spend our way into bankruptcy. I hope that those on the fence about "yes" or "no," make their decision based on more information than the cost of coffee or Marlboro's.
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2 - On October 21, I found out that a woman we contracted to sit our house and our dog while we were out of town, had been driving around town for 3 days in my car. In order to find my keys, she'd had to rifle through my house. As her actions were manifestly illegal, I called our local, Copake, Police Force, while I was still in North Carolina.
Sadly, I got an answering machine. We spend $100,000 of our tax dollars every year on our force. Couldn't we have one policeman - on a 24 hr, rotating basis - designated as the "go to" person for a citizen''s call? Even if our pay structure doesn't allow that cop to saddle up in the face of an emergency, wouldn't it help our citizens just to be able to talk to our local police and get feedback and direction? Isn't that what we all seek in a difficult moment?. It's what doctors do, why wouldn't our force do it too? Without this kind of presence and commitment to our community, the power of a local police force becomes a crap shoot - and it's one that I lost.
I did, in fact, call the Hillsdale Sherif's office next. They had an officer at my house in 15 minutes - a whole lot faster than the answering machine could have gotten there. My car and the illegal driver brazenly returned to my house several minutes after that. The presence of the Sheriff made the resolution extremely fast, simple and safe because otherwise, it would have fallen to my neighbors to enforce the law on my behalf and there's little doubt an argument and who knows what else might have followed that kind of a confrontation, so my thanks to the sheriffs for their efficiency and help.
it is now ten days later, and in spite of the tone of my voice, the explanation about the crisis and the telephone number I left on the Copake Police answering machine - I have not, to my knowledge and up to the moment of writing this -t received a phone call or follow up. Can I assume our $100,000 law enforcement agency has not yet checked its answering machine? Or did our Police decide my Copake based problem wasn't their problem? If they make the case now, that they found out from the Sheriff's department that it was resolved, why didn't I get a call from our Copake Police - whose salary is in part, paid directly with my tax dollars, to express their concern, their acknowledgement of my call and a question above all, about how things happened and how could they could help now? Perhaps as further outreach, they might have offered some cogent advice about hiring people without sufficient background checks and how I might, in fact do that job up front, next time. If anyone from the Copake Police reads this, please know that I would still like a friendly return call, if not a visit, to explain to me where they dropped the ball and what they plan to do about it.
I hope all who read this will walk in my shoes. I hope you'll take a minute and think what this Police absence and voice mail means should you ever have a problem in your home or neighborhood and not personally know one of our policemen. For me, it means the emergency number on my refrigerator is now the Hillsdale Sheriff's Department, not the Copake Police.
PS - In case the Copake force is interested, the sheriff's department sent a patrolman to my house last Saturday so I could sign a warrant for the prosecution of this individual. If I don't get my requested call back from our local force, I will publish a follow up letter so they can find out how this ( alleged) crime, committed in Copake and to a citizen of Copake was adjudicated; just in case they'd like to know.
Ian Jarvis
Copake
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