YOUNGSTOWN Police chief makes plans for one cop in cruisers

The union president says this change is a big safety concern.
By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Come early spring, Police Chief Robert E. Bush Jr. wants one cop per cruiser, not two.
"With budget concerns and manpower numbers not growing, it's a way to continue to do things better with fewer people," Bush said Thursday. "The intent is all one-man cars. There's a lot of planning to do to get to that position."
As it stands, all cruisers out during the day shift have one officer only. The afternoon and night shift have two two-man cruisers north of the Mahoning River and two two-man cruisers south of the river, with one-man units on the East and West sides of town, he said.
Bush said the switch to all one-man units will improve efficiency because 80 percent of the calls for service are to take reports. "Why have two officers take a burglary report or missing person's report?"
For serious calls, two or more cruisers are sent, and that won't change, the chief said.
"Rest assured, when in-progress calls come in, the dispatcher knows what to do," Bush said. "The dispatcher can pull cars from anywhere to respond."
Ready to discuss it
Patrolman Kevin Bokesch, president of Youngstown Police Association, said Thursday that he has a meeting scheduled with Bush for next week to discuss a number of issues and one-man cars is one of them. The union president said he wants to hear Bush's reasoning and will comment further after the meeting.
Bokesch said the union believes the switch presents a big safety concern, especially after Patrolman Michael T. Hartzell, who was working alone, was shot to death in his cruiser last year. He said the outcry then was "Why does Youngstown have one-man cars?"
Bush said the safety of his men and women officers is paramount, and he won't put them in jeopardy. He said not a day goes by that he doesn't think about losing Hartzell, but he added that Hartzell would have been killed even if three officers had been in the car because the shooter didn't want to be caught and sent back to prison.
New cars delivered
This week, nine new cars were delivered to the Youngstown Police Department, eight of which will be outfitted with sirens, overhead lights, radios and onboard computers. The ninth car will be used by officers who must travel out of the area on police business.
Bush said once the new cruisers are ready, he'd like to put his one-officer-per-cruiser plan in action. He said an officer working alone works smarter.
Beat configurations won't change. More cars covering the beats will mean faster response to report calls and, when an officer has to assist another officer on a serious call, that will happen faster, too, he said.
Bush said he's had discussions with the law department to make sure the change is in compliance with the union contract. He should have an answer soon.
meade@vindy.com