HUBBARD CITY POLICE Retirement leaves opening

The retirement will leave the force down three full-time officers.
By SHERRI L. SHAULIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
HUBBARD -- The understaffed city police department will look to add to its ranks after the retirement of a patrolman next month.
Safety Director Robert Paterniti informed council members earlier this week that officer Thomas Forgacs will retire effective Dec. 1, leaving the department even more understaffed.
"We are down three officers from what we had when I started this job three years ago," Paterniti said.
Paterniti said staffing levels dictated by a city ordinance call for a chief, four detectives and nine full-time patrol officers.
The department currently has an officer off duty with a long-term injury, and a patrol officer wasn't hired when a vacancy occurred.
Past to present
In March, when Marty Kanetsky took over as chief, the city was considering laying off another patrol officer because the budget then wouldn't support the wages and benefits.
Kanetsky said at that time the contract with the Fraternal Order of Police prohibits layoffs unless the city is broke or the position is done away with.
No layoffs in the department ever materialized, however.
Today, the lack of a full staff causes mounting overtime costs for the city and forces the department to put just two officers on the road at any one time, as opposed to the normal three and sometimes four officers.
Paterniti said city officials will review the city's budget through the end of the year in an effort to hire another officer from the part-time ranks before the end of December.
slshaulis@vindy.com