The Harris County Deputies Organization
Local No. 154, AFL-CIO H International Union of Police Associations
The Harris County Deputies Organization Local No. 154, AFL-CIO H International Union of Police Associations
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LETTERS
Fellow HCDO
& MASO Members, The below
article was forwarded to the Houston Chronicle as a response to numerous
articles and news stories regarding jail overcrowding and Inmates sleeping on
the floor. While I realize that there are many issues facing our agency with
reference to the current conditions of our jail facilities, “mainly Staffing
Shortages and Overcrowding,’ the issue of inmates sleeping on the floor is not
in my opinion news worthy priority. Therefore, I have written the below response
to the Chronicle’s Viewpoint Section in an attempt to demonstrate the views of
many of our fellow officers and citizens. I don’t think they will print it but
at least you the membership can read it in our publication. August 5, 2005 To:
Viewpoints
C/O Houston Chronicle
P.O. Box 4260
Houston, Texas 77210 Ref:
Let them sleep on the floor! In Saturdays
July 30th, 2005 issue of the Houston Chronicle, Reporter B. Murphy reported that
the Harris County Jail System was overcrowded causing half the inmates to sleep
on the floor. As an employee group leader, I say let them sleep on the floor,
they earned it. Mr. Murphy should ask the thousands of Harris County Citizens
who are yearly victims of Robbery, Burglary, Sexual Assault, Auto and Identity
Theft and other heinous crimes, if they feel sympathy for theses poor innocent
inmates. Let them sleep on the floor! I say, there is no harm they get (3) meals
a day, they get medical care and above all they are not subject to inclement
weather as our military troops fighting in foreign lands and the hundreds of
homeless people living in our city streets. A law-abiding society requires! No
it demands! Those individuals who violate the law suffer the consequences.
Harris County Jail Inmates are not the victims, the citizens victimized by these
inmates are, so let them sleep on the floor. Mr. Humberto
Rios Barrera President,
Mexican American Sheriff’s Organization 2537 Priest Houston, Texas
77093
Harris County
Sheriff’s Office: The Way It Is, a Commentary on the Crisis Within Deputies have
lost confidence in the command staff. It’s as if they’re a bunch of adult
animals eating their young during a drought. However, they’re not eating the
weak, they’re eating the strong. When any hypersensitive members of the
command staff perceive your actions to be offensive, they will dine on your
career for their own gratification. Punishment is
imposed maliciously against deputies. Why? Over the years it seems that command
staff persistently bears grudges. They are unforgiving of insults, injuries,
slights or prejudice. They may perceive an attack on their character or
reputation. All of which will elevate you to the top of command staff’s food
chain. Deputies’
question the command staff’s morality, ethics and their pervasive pattern of
arbitrary and excessively harsh punishment. They use the disciplinary process as
an advantage to effect obvious economic necessity. Deputies reluctantly are
forced to submit to a plea to avoid disciplinary probation. When you’re
out there conducting your mandatory three traffic stop minimum. Keep this in
mind. Especially if you’re at the top of the food chain. The harder you work,
the more arrest you make, the more citations you write, the more contacts you
have, the greater your chances of getting involved into a situation where your
be eaten. As your well know, there has always been a correlation between
the amount of complaints one receives. The disciplinary
process is woefully inadequate and requires immediate change. Of course, we can
continue to close our eyes and hope for the best. There’s no way to predict
whether the command staff will ever implement an impartial disciplinary process
that would guarantee fair and equal treatment. If there continues to be
inconsistencies with respect to the disciplinary process, they will continue to
significantly hurt morale and reduce productivity. Ultimately, affecting the
level of service provided to the public, and therefore will become matters of
public concern. First, let’s
take a moment to acknowledge there must be accountability. With that in mind,
let’s also admit there are hypocrites at the helm. I see a double standard
that exists, which is counterproductive. They’ve undermined their own
authority, due to selective or arbitrary enforcement. When the command staff
fails to enforce a particular policy violation or any wrongdoing against an
individual or individuals enough times, that failure to take appropriate action
will erode the credibility of the entire disciplinary process. Sound familiar?
My detractors will say they acted on high principle. I’d like to see the
command staff point their high-powered perceptual hypersensitivity at
themselves, with the same severity and lack of empathy they’ve shown to
deputies. I recommend and
would encourage deputies to contact the news media anytime those individuals
within the command staff are involved in anything that maybe inappropriate.
Fortunately, deputies have an opportunity to convey one of the most important
messages to the command staff. If their wrong, it may come with a price tag. I
would also recommend deputies puck up a collective bargaining petition at e
Union Hall. Name with held
for reasons mentioned in this article. Fix the Jail I’m responding
to the editorial in the July 19, 2005, Houston Chronicle. Overcrowding
invites disease, inhumane conditions and expensive litigation. This statement
represents just the proverbial tip of the iceberg. The consensus seems to
indicate deputies are doing their job. To their credit, the state report noted
that the facilities were generally clean and in good condition. The problem is a
shortage of qualified personnel. The administration must accept responsibility.
They’re responsible for evaluating and carrying out change sometimes over the
objections of entrenched bureaucracies that cannot see beyond their own limited
interests. I realize there are complexities that become and issue but they
should have been addressed at the highest level. We are taught that you have to
be prepared for anything a readiness that borders on paranoia. We must adapt
quickly to new situations, because one moment you might be in the calmest of
situation, and excrement hit the fan the next. Obviously there
are no substitutes for technical competence. I can see a manager with excellent
interpersonal skill would have been crucial in gaining trust and building a team
of deputies who understood the importance of finding qualified applicants. This
manger would have to explain the big picture, provide context, perspective,
regarding standards and priorities. This manager would have to set a high
ethical tone; encourage useful feedback, which generates enthusiasm. The point
behind such action you ate able to establish a team that is motivate, clear of
its priorities, innovate and zealous. This was
apparently not the case. The individuals responsible have poor organizational
skills. Their incompetence has compromised the Sheriff’s Office work force,
inmates and the community at large. Ultimately the Sheriff and his managers are
responsible for this oversight. Name withheld
upon request |
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