Councilors Express Displeasure With PD Report

March 11, 2010 by Josh Morgan

Problems between Police Chief Michael Cruess and the rank and file are related to "systemic dysfunctions" within the Cheshire Police Department and there is "no quick fix" to the issues.
That was the assessment of The International City/County Management Association (ICMA), which compiled a 16-page report and turned it over to the Town on Feb. 25, which was then released a week later to the public. Inside the report, blame is placed on the department as a whole, but no specifics are mentioned as to what caused the friction to grow in the first place.
"We wish to emphasize that the problems within this agency are significant, deeply seated and are affecting members of the department at all ranks and at all lengths of tenure," the report states. "We believe that these issues are broad based and have festered for some time, further exacerbating the situation, largely due to the intractability of parties at various ranks throughout the Department."
On page five of the report, ICMA "neither offers nor renders any opinion(s) as to the possible cause or causes of this situation," which left some Town Councilors scratching their heads.
"To be blunt, that's not an acceptable statement. That's not what I ordered," said Personnel Committee Chairman Tom Ruocco. "I wanted to know the causes. I really believed that we'd get to the bottom of what the causes were."
Ruocco believes the report is "a little thin" and said he expected more details would be presented to the Council. Looking back a few months to when the Council hired ICMA for $5,000, and now having the report, Ruocco wondered if it was worthwhile.
"I wanted this report to tell me what the problems were and looking back on it, I really think we didn't have to do this," he suggested, but then continued saying that “because of this report, we were able to have meetings and we now have this as a catalyst. If it serves the greater good, I think we probably did the right thing."
The report states that there are many factors at play in the department, including the lack of a strategic plan, a lack of proper evaluation for organizational performance, and communication problems. ICMA has offered to continue it's consultant duties to the Town, for additional fees. The last page of the report lists a pricing schedule, a total of 11 items, with an estimated cost of approximately $70,000 and a travel budget of an additional $8,000. ICMA explained that the issues do not stem from one group or one member, but from all facets of the department.
"These concerns go to the highest ranks. Even the most senior members of the agency feel that it is adrift, without focus or direction." the report reads. "In many ways it appears to us that this is a department without a plan or the internal ability to correct its present course."
Union Vice President Lt. Joe Mazzini said the report "grossly understated the problems here," and felt disappointed in the lack of detail presented in the 16-page document.
"It didn't really address the concerns the Union brought forward that ultimately lead to the vote of no confidence," Mazzini remarked. "We are disappointed in the report. We'll continue to move forward from here and see where it goes."
Democratic Councilor Justin Adinolfi did not mince words when asked about the report and the problems at the police department, saying the report was a boilerplate and "could have applied to any police department" in the country.
"I don't think it got at the fundamental or foundational issues of contention. After meeting with the Chief and some of the rank and file, the contention is what I had suspected," Adinolfi said. "I think both the Chief and the rank and file need to find a way to work better together. I want to think it's salvageable, but I'm not sure it is. If both parties aren't willing to work at this, then it won't work."
Adinolfi said that "heavy coaching" was needed to change the style of interaction between the two parties. However, if the officers or Cruess "can't wrap their heads around that, I'm not sure things will change."
"ICMA has a hammer and everything looks like a nail to them. They have a solution for everything, but I'm not certain that's what the department needs," he explained. "They need some of that, but I also think we need to address interaction between management, namely the Chief, and the rank and file."
According to ICMA, Town Manager Michael Milone used "commonly accepted, good management and conflict resolution practices," and the fact that the problems were not resolved illustrated "how challenging the issues are." After the report's public release, Milone said it was obvious there was a communication problem between Cruess and the rank and file. Additionally, Milone said a police department is a "separate culture," and admitted that it's hard "to understand" all the issues without having an intimate knowledge of law enforcement inner workings.
"We thought we were making progress but, obviously, we didn't make as much as we had hoped," Milone said. "I felt these meetings were very enlightening and insightful, and now the Council has to decide how to proceed."
Republican Councilor David Schrumm said it was good to get a third party opinion after issues had lingered for the past few years. He admitted that he had heard bits and pieces of information over that period of time, so it was beneficial to hear from a neutral party. While the public is looking for a fix to the problems, Schrumm cautioned that it could take some time.
"It didn't happen overnight and it won't be fixed overnight," Schrumm explained. "The important thing to remember is, despite the internal issues, the department is still working very hard to serve the town."
As for hiring ICMA to resolve the issues, Schrumm said he would have to "think long and hard" about spending more money. His fellow Councilors agreed, with Ruocco saying he knew that ICMA was "dangling a carrot" and he was well aware of their sales pitch in the report.
"I don't think I'd go forward with any of (the options) right now," Ruocco said. "We have this on the table and we need to look inward at this point."
Adinolfi said that, if the Town were to continue to engage ICMA, he would want to see 80 percent of the value at 20 percent of the cost. But, even then, he was unsure about continuing a relationship with ICMA.
"I think they missed the fundamental issues and I'm not even sure ICMA is the right organization to move forward with," Adinolfi said. "In their defense, there is only so much you can do with $5,000, but we paid them to get to real problems and I don't think they focused on the right things."
In the report, ICMA states its belief that a third party needs to be brought in to resolve these issues and that it is the company to do the job.
"Given the current conditions, we firmly believe that these problems can only be resolved with needed outside assistance," the report concludes. "ICMA recommends a complete change in the Department’s management operations and capabilities. We believe that this can be accomplished with ICMA’s assistance."