Citizens urge action now on Bunkie police issues

Concern over the status of the Bunkie Police Department continues to be a major issue in the city.

The City Council hired four BPD officers at a special meeting on Feb. 14 in a move officials hope will help the situation. After that meeting, the council met with a group of about 30 concerned citizens to discuss the level of police protection in their neighborhoods.

Libby Dear, one of those in that group, told the elected officials that citizens just want them to do their job and said a recall effort might be started if they don’t do their jobs.

The council hired a full-time dispatcher, auxiliary dispatcher and two auxiliary patrolmen at the special meeting. The hirings had been presented at the Feb. 9 regular meeting, but were postponed to allow council members time to review the applications.

After that meeting adjourned, the citizens attending continued to discuss their concerns, including the frequent conflicts between the City Council and Police Chief Bobby Corner.

CITIZENS COMMENTS
Rick Rabalais said a Neighborhood Watch program has been formed in the area around St. Anthony School as a means of helping citizens protect each other.

“We are concerned about what is going on,” Rabalais told the council. “People are afraid and we are concerned about a continued downward spiral in Bunkie. We want Bunkie to be a safe place to raise our children, and grandchildren.”

Council members said those interested in a Neighborhood Watch program should contact Ron Normand at the Avoyelles Parish Sheriff’s Office. Normand oversees the APSO Neighborhood Watch program.

Cynthia Lewis, a retired teacher, asked about the possibility of crime safety courses being offered. She said more elderly citizens and single women are carrying firearms for their personal safety.

“I have been told there are no firearm safety classes to be held,” Lewis said. “We would also like to have some self-defense classes.”

Dear, the most outspoken of the group, asked for an update on two recent residential burglary cases on Cherry and Lexington streets in which women were attacked in their homes.

Corner said both cases are under investigation and an arrest had been made on the Lexington Avenue case. He gave no other details at that meeting. On Feb. 16, when asked for the name of the suspect arrested in the Lexington Street case, Corner said there has been no arrest.

Doretha Wade said she is afraid to leave her home due to the “amount of traffic” around her home. Although she understands BPD is short-handed, Wade said something must be done to get more police officers on the streets.

PAY FOR OFFICERS
There was some disagreement on what police officers are paid. Corner said the police force consists of himself and three officers. He said police officers make only 50 to 70 cents over minimum wage. There are qualified applicants, but the pay keeps them from joining the Bunkie force, Corner said. Mayor Mike Robertson said a properly certified officer starts at $10.09 an hour. In addition, the city pays 100 percent of the officer’s health insurance.

City Judge Digger Earles said he was previously told that some officers wanted a higher pay instead of the city-paid health insurance. Corner said that is no longer the case and officers would leave the city if the health insurance benefit was taken away.

Robertson said that under the city’s health insurance program, either everyone is in or they are all out. There is no option for some officers to be paid a higher hourly rate if they do not have city health insurance.

The mayor noted that there had been eight full-time officers and four dispatchers on the force prior to Corner’s election three years ago. The department’s budget is the same now as it was under Mary Fanara’s term as chief, he added. That could change in upcoming months as the city wrestles with a projected $100,000 deficit that might force budget cuts in all departments, including BPD.

Robertson said that while taxable items bought in Bunkie carry 10.5 cents of sales tax, only two cents are collected by the city to fund its operations.

He praised Corner for staying within his budget.

POSSIBLE RECALL
Dear then raised the possibility of a recall of all municipal elected officials if citizens concerns are not addressed.

She told council members that she should not have to be afraid to walk the block from her house to her cousin’s home, but she is.

“I care that you do your job,” Dear told the officials. “We can recall all our elected officials. This will be the action if nothing is done, and that is a matter of fact.”

Dear told Corner that the issues involving the department are embarrassing. She said the Lawrason Act,under which the city government operates, clearly states the council can hire and fire police employees. Corner has maintained that the council cannot interfere with the way he runs his department because he is an elected official.

At the Feb. 9 meeting, after Corner was asked why a police officer terminated January 2016 was back in uniform patrolling the city streets, Corner said the council had wrongfully terminated the officer and it was within the chief’s authority to put him back to work.

The officer is once again not working for the city.

Councilman Greg Prudhomme said the council is being incorrectly blamed for not hiring police officers.

“I will not apologize for our hiring practices,” Prudhomme said. “I will not hire an officer for Bunkie if I don’t have the background check and other information on that officer. If you want to recall me because I didn’t hire an officer without the information needed, so be it, but I will not apologize for my actions,” he added.

Councilwoman Brenda Sampson said Corner is giving the council the background checks of new hires now. He had previously refused to release that information, claiming it might become a “public record” if given to council members.

Sampson said it is a step forward in improving the relationship between the council and police chief.

“Like I stated before, I will not hire an officer or employee until we have seen the paperwork needed to hire someone for Bunkie,” Sampson said. “This is a safety issue and changes are needed for the safety of everyone.”

Leslie Mathews said there was a similar meeting a year ago concerning a lack of police protection and ordinance enforcement in the neighborhoods. Nothing has changed, she said. Vulgar language, loud music and other issues have gotten to the point that she is not sure she wants to continue living in Bunkie.

Councilman Lem Thomas created an uproar when he said Mathews’ comments were “racist.” Thomas is black and Mathews is white.

Several members in the audience, white and black, reacted by telling Thomas that race is not an issue in the matter of improving police protection.

POLICE DEPT. GRANTS
Christine Rabalais said she would serve on a committee to seek and secure grants to improve police pay.

Robertson said there are no state grants for salaries, but there are federal grants that would pay half of an officer’s salary for three years. Those grants re usually awarded to larger cities across the nation.

Earles said the city had to forfeit a $50,000 grant for the Ward 10/Bunkie City Court because BPD could not provide necessary crime statistics.

Corner started to respond by saying the requested statistics were from several years ago, during Fanara’s administration. Earles cut him off, stating the information was for one year during Corner’s term in office.

Lewis said the lack of police presence in the community has resulted in children and youth becoming emboldened and defiant. Peer pressure is leading to children throwing trash around the neighborhoods and staying out past curfew.

Lewis, who taught in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, emphasized her concern by saying, “I feel safer in Baton Rouge or New Orleans than I do in Bunkie.”

Jimmy Earles drew laughter at the end of the discussion when he told council members to buy more chairs if nothing is done, because there will be “groundswell” of residents attending the meetings.