Posted on Friday, 2nd July 2010 by Roland_Melnick
Reality is that the city was locked into this radio system before Ed Flynn was a twinkle in Tom Barrett’s eye. Granted, Flynn has done nothing to make this situation better except lobby for a band-aid that hasn’t worked. The real blame here lies with Mayor Tom Barrett who has been in charge during this whole debacle.
As for Flynn and Murphy claiming this is a politically timed criticism by CRG; before buying that argument I would ask “what timing would you have preferred Chief?” This radio system didn’t go 100% online (meaning 100% deployed) until the middle of 2009. That was the benchmark where we were told all the problems would be solved. “Sound quality and transmission issues are largely due to having the old and new radio systems tied together during the transition period.” Only the same issues have continued. As time has worn on, the new system has proven to be riddled with serious safety issues as apparently documented by MPD’s own internal reporting. Any earlier and CRG’s criticism would have been premature. Any later and the question would be “if this is so critical, why wait so long to make a stink about it?”
Barrett, and his Chief yes-man have proven their unwillingness to substantively deal with this issue. I applaud CRG for bringing pressure to bear on this issue. Our public safety people deserve better.
Police leaders blamed for problems with radio system
Project has cost $18 million since 2003
By Ryan Haggerty of the Journal Sentinel
Posted: July 1, 2010
The controversy over the Milwaukee Police Department’s digital radio system reached a new level of intensity Thursday at City Hall, where members of a local watchdog group, police and fire union officials and Ald. Bob Donovan accused the department’s leadership of failing to adequately address the system’s problems.
The accusations prompted Police Chief Edward A. Flynn and Ald. Michael Murphy to question the motives of the watchdog group, Citizens for Responsible Government, which released nearly 250 Police Department reports Thursday that document problems officers have experienced with the new radios. Flynn and Murphy also outlined the recent steps the department has taken to improve the system.
Murphy said he believes the watchdog group, which describes itself as fiscally conservative, is trying to blame Mayor Tom Barrett for the radio system’s problems in advance of this fall’s gubernatorial election.
Barrett, a Democrat, is running for governor against Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker and former U.S. Rep. Mark Neumann, both Republicans.
Barrett’s chief of staff, Patrick Curley, said in a statement that the accusations are “irresponsible and reprehensible.”
Christopher A. Kliesmet, spokesman for Citizens for Responsible Government, said the group is motivated by concerns about officer and public safety, not politics. The reports were obtained through an open records request, he said.
“It’s as political as they want to make it,” Kliesmet said in an interview.
The reports were filed by officers who have experienced problems with the radios and detail incidents that occurred as recently as May.
The digital radio system, known as OpenSky, has cost about $18 million since 2003 and became fully operational in February. It was initially expected to cost about $14.9 million and be operational by May 2005, according to city officials.
The system has been plagued with problems from the start, including dead spots and faulty equipment, police officers and city officials have said.
Last year, two officers told the Journal Sentinel that problems with the radio system delayed their arrival at a house where another officer had been shot Sept. 30. The officers said they had to follow another officer to the scene because they repeatedly could not hear their dispatcher broadcasting the house’s address in the minutes after the shooting.
Flynn, who became Milwaukee’s police chief in 2008, said Thursday that the department has made more progress on the radio system in the last 18 months than in the previous six years. He issued a memo in February urging officers to continue filing the reports documenting problems they encounter with the radios.
“I’m certainly not going to accept as valid criticism the implication that we don’t care about the safety of our officers, that we are concealing some mystical truth or that we have been anything but open with our officers and open with the community and open with the political establishment about the progress that has been made,” Flynn said.
The Milwaukee Fire Department and other city agencies are supposed to join the Police Department in using OpenSky, which cannot be monitored by radio scanners, preventing the public from listening to broadcasts.
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9 Responses to “From JSOnline.com: Police leaders blamed for problems with radio system”
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July 2nd, 2010 at 11:51 am
So are they saying that the radios work fine?
What about all those officers who use it every day and say that they don’t?
July 2nd, 2010 at 9:43 pm
Someone watch this video and remind me who has been mayor for those past six years when “not much had gotten done.”
July 3rd, 2010 at 6:08 am
Mrs. Hegerty has got to be bristling with that statement, but the statement reminds me of the Marxist-in-Chief and his never ending “I inherited this problem”. The “better part of 6 years”, when “not much has gotten done” includes the last 2 years during which you have been here Chief Flynn.
July 6th, 2010 at 8:59 pm
This July 1st Press Release from the Office of Mayor Barrett’s Chief of Staff, Patrick Curley, and posted on the website of Fox6Now.com is clearly a Saul Alinsky example of Curley’s attempt to smear Bob Donovan and to distract from the real issue at hand: http://www.fox6now.com/media/acrobat/2010-07/54703031.pdf
Check out who the contact person is at the top of the page.
July 7th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
Maybe if we had more aldermen like Donovan speaking up, crime wouldn’t have scared away businesses and consumers.
July 7th, 2010 at 12:26 pm
Does all this chatter from Mayor Tom’s mouthpiece mean that Mayor Tom will finally be available to take questions?
July 7th, 2010 at 12:48 pm
It is a DAMN shame that other aldermen are not standing with Bob Donovan on this issue. Just like in the MPD Command Staff - too many big egos and little care for working as a team to accomplish the objective that Flynn so often likes to tout: Reducing crime; fear; and disorder. To all you coppers and firefighters who visit here, just remember to thank Bob Donovan for his efforts on your behalf. Call or e-mail him or just tell him thanks when you happen to see him. Same for the guys from CRG - Chris Kleismet and Orville Seymer. If you’re so inclined, contributions would be a good way to let them all know you appreciate their help and to also help them to continue to help you.
July 7th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Just emailed Donovan letting him know that the coppers on the street including myself appreciate all the efforts being made on our behalf. I also let him know it is interesting Flynn and the Mayor seem to be more interested in throwing mud at their critics than addressing the problems of the radio system. I hear a lot of excuses, but have not seen any improvements or solutions. As far as the radio consoles the chief secured for free, it sounds like a great deal until you realize they are still sitting in boxes waiting to be installed. Maybe that will happen in another six years. It will give the next chief something to do.
July 7th, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Bob Donovan was interviewed this morning on Charlie Sykes’ radio program. A link to the podcast is included here. It is a whole segment of the program and is worth listening to all of it, however the Donovan interview comes about halfway through.
http://www.620wtmj.com/podcasts/charlie_sykes_podcast/97957614.html?video=pop&t=a