Mayor Tony Mack today released a document today called the “2012 Comprehensive Crime Initiative,” intended as a response to the current wave of violent crime plaguing the state’s Capital City.
This “Initiative” is really not worth much at all, being almost exclusively a cut-and-paste job, as the Mayor himself states that it was “compiled after reviewing some of the most successful practices from urban and metropolitan cities (sic.) throughout the United States, like Washington, DC; Los Angeles, California; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania… This is merely an overview of successful community policing initatives, and it is a working document and will be updated accordingly.”
Then, why did the Mayor waste everyone’s time and effort today? As so often with this guy, I don’t know. This can’t be both a “Comprehensive Initiative” AND a working document. The word “comprehensive” indicates something that has been extensively planned, carefully written, and reviewed by all interested and involved parties.
Clearly, this has not happened here.
According to an account published online this afternoon by Alex Zdan of the Times, the contents of this “Initiative” seems to have taken the Trenton Police Department by surprise. According to Zdan,
Capt. Fred Reister, the senior police officer at the press conference, said most of Mack’s plans are doable, but refused to say whether the department had been consulted beforehand.
“Some of the things we’ve started, but other things are new,” he said as he walked out of City Hall.
Reister and the other officers who attended were seen poring over the four-page document the mayor’s office handed out just as the press conference began.
The Mayor’s document itself seems to confirm this. At least, I think so. When talking about all the great strategies he borrowed from DC, LA and Philly, the Mayor says
“Additional crime strategies used by the Trenton Police Department cannot be included because it will interfere with their ability to successfully implement their policing strategies.”
I think that means that what Trenton Police are doing right now can’t be done in the future because it will interfere with what the police in DC, LA and Philly are doing, and that should be done here because…
OK, I give up. I have no bloody idea what he means here!
This plan was obviously written by the Mayor, with input from city spokesperson Lauren Ira, and perhaps other inner circle members such as Anthony Roberts.
There was no input from the Trenton Police Department. And there was also no input from anyone from Mercer County. One would think that six scant days after Mercer Prosecutor Joe Bocchini and Sheriff Jack Kemler announced with Trenton’s Acting Police Director Armitage that officers and deputies from the County would be working closely with the City PD, that the Mayor would include those gentlemen in his presentation today. One would be wrong.
This “Comprehensive Initiative” mentions “Mayor” 14 times, just one fewer time than the word “Police.” The Words “County” and “State” appear only once each.
So much for “Comprehensive.”
This plan is not worthy of the name. Cutting and pasting phrases and buzzwords from other cities, while pointedly rejecting any evaluation of the initiatives and strategies being currently employed by our own police officers is a joke.
Once again, Tony Mack has proved himself without a plan and without a clue. This performance this afternoon is yet another embarrassment in a long portfolio of Tony Mack fuck-ups.
The most effective action he can take to allow to fight crime in this town is to stay the hell out of things. Let our Police continue to pursue cooperation with the County, continue the conversation with the State about how they may be able to help, and work on a strategy that works for Trenton, right now.
UPDATE: Thanks to reader Diana L, who sent this link to what counts as a REAL Comprehensive Plan, from Philadelphia. Prepared and written by the Philly Police, with an introductory letter by Mayor Michael Nutter in which he states that he asked his Police to prepare a comprehensive plan when he took office 3 1/2 years before the August 2011 date of this report.
“Comprehensive” means well thought out. It means researched. It means discussed and carefully written.
Mr. Mack, this is Comprehensive.
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