Your Stories: Take Home RPD Cars

Concerned Councilwoman

Councilwoman Carolee Conklin expressed her concern over what the emailer alleged and she said she’s personally forwarded it to the appropriate city leaders and is still awaiting a reply from some of them.

"I consider that my prime function on city council as the chair of the finance committee is guarding taxpayer's money,” Conklin said.  "Public employees and elected officials have got to be held to a very high standard, we have to follow carefully the Code of Ethics that's in the City Charter and those that do not should be dealt with forthwith.”

Conklin acknowledges what Rochester Police Chief James Sheppard also confirmed; that no specific written policy defining “use” or “abuse” of a city take home vehicle has been drafted by RPD.  Yet Conklin believes the City Charter is fairly clear on the matter.

"Most code of behavior is pretty much covered here, whether how you maintain your property, how you maintain your job I think it's fairly clear,” Conklin said.

Police Chief Responds

Rochester Police Chief James Sheppard accepts some responsibility for what the emailer alleges as he feels he can better communicate to his officer what is expected of them if they’re given the use of a take home police car.

“It's an area that we have to articulate to our people what our expectations are and then hold them to that,” Chief Sheppard said while also acknowledging the fine line between “use” and “abuse” when it comes to these vehicles.

"The expectation is you make yourself available to me when I need you,” Sheppard explained.  “Obviously if the circumstances that you're engaged in are going to put you in a position where you can't respond to me quickly, you use that take home car so that when I need you, you come.  If it's a matter of you just going to take care of your personal business and you've got an option of taking your personal car or taking that car, take your personal car.”

City Spokesman Gary Walker explained that the take home vehicles issue was part of the latest contract negotiations with the Locust Club.  The officer’s union and city consider it a “negotiated perk” and Walker claims the city asked for some giveback there but it was not part of the final agreement reached last year.

Chief Sheppard and Walker both stated that specifics to the allegations made against Captain McMullen in this case would be handled through the department’s Internal Affairs division pursuant to the procedures laid out in the city’s contract with the officer’s union.

Union President Weighs In

Locust Club President Mike Mazzeo called this email’s claims “ridiculous” and he believes he has an idea who is behind the email and if he’s correct about that he thinks this is a “personal vendetta” against a well-respected officer in the union.

“There simply is no widespread abuse of police take home vehicles,” Mazzeo said in a phone conversation Friday afternoon.  “They are a tool…and the City gets more value in return for what they’re paying for.”

Mazzeo said these officers are expected to be available 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week and to suggest that they should go home to change cars and drive back out to “pick up a quart of milk on their way home from work” is unreasonable.  Mazzeo also believes the city has acknowledged that there are “better ways to cut costs” than to trim the use or number of take home police vehicles.

He added that he feels city leaders should concern themselves with finding ways to support these police officers at a time when violence in the city remains a significant community issue.

13WHAM has attempted to contact the emailer for response and requested they be identified but we have not heard back.  The email header lists the sender as a “John Smith”.