Every weekend, New Hartford police officers can be seen patrolling heavily
populated buildings throughout the town, including a mall, theater and
hospital.
But the town isn’t footing the bill for this security. Instead,
the Police Department contracts out its officers to patrol private entities — a
practice that brings in nearly $60,000 a year.
New Hartford Police Chief
Ray Philo believes the custom enables him to provide better protection in
privately operated locations that are open to the public, and he pointed out
that departments across the state are doing the same thing.
“They are
asking for an extra dimension of policing we can’t give them with normal
patrol,” Philo said. “We are not giving police protection to Marquee (Cinemas),
we are giving protection to the public.”
However, the state Attorney
General’s Office and a local citizens group have raised questions about the
legality of the agreements.
“Police protection is owed to the public at
large,” a March 26, 1988 Attorney General’s Office opinion states. “Like any
governmental function, police protection may not be provided by contract to
private parties.”
Since 1993, New Hartford police have provided weekend
evening patrols at Sangertown Square and Faxton-St. Luke’s Healthcare’s St.
Luke’s campus. The department also has offered the service for other events that
take place within the town borders.
But it was the contract the
department signed in December 2008 with West Virginia-based Marquee Cinemas
that’s brought the practice into the spotlight.
Though a New Hartford
police officer has been stationed at the theater at The Orchard shopping center
every Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening for almost a year, the issue never was
brought to the Town Board for a vote.
Legality of
contracts
Though its opinions are not binding, the Attorney
General’s Office has been clear in its objection to police departments’
contracts with private entities.
An opinion dated June 14, 1974, said the
practice goes against the state Constitution.
“I know of no statutory
authority allowing a town to provide police services on contract for private
persons or organizations,” the opinion states.
Officials from the
Attorney General’s Office provided the opinions last week but did not comment on
the issue.
Murray Jaros, special counsel to the state Association of
Towns, said towns could make their own rules about such situations.
“No
state agency has any true jurisdiction over this situation because it is a
matter within the local government’s discretion to decide what services it is
going to provide,” he said.
New Hartford Town Attorney Gerald Green did
not return calls about the issue.
Town Supervisor-elect Patrick Tyksinski
said the town had allowed the police to provide such services for a long time,
and town attorneys had examined the issue.
“At least from that
standpoint, it passed the litmus test,” he said. He will review the Attorney
General’s Office opinions, he said.
The Oneida County Sheriff’s Office
and the Whitestown Police Department also sometimes contract out police patrols,
but have different practices from New Hartford police. The Utica Police
Department, however, recently ceased doing work for private entities because of
concerns about liability.
The section of the town code that addresses
the Sangertown and St. Luke’s contracts states that “the rendering of such
services by the town of New Hartford police is within the purview of the police
protection rendered to the town of New Hartford.”
The code, however,
does not elaborate on what guidelines should exist if the department provides
the service to entities other than Sangertown or St. Luke’s.
‘Can of worms’?
St. Luke’s and Sangertown each
reimburse the town $33 an hour for patrols. Marquee’s rate is the amount of the
officer’s pay — including overtime — plus $20 per night for the car, Philo said.
The department doesn’t make a profit from the fees, he said.
But
to Catherine Lawrence, co-founder of Concerned Citizens for Honest and Open
Government, these contracts are an issue of fairness — she pointed out smaller
businesses also might be vulnerable but unable to afford the added
protection.
“I just think it opens a real can of worms,” Lawrence said.
“Is that the business they want to be in? To rent a police car for anyone who
wants it for the night?”
Private security guards generally can’t make
arrests, nor do they carry guns, so having officers on patrol enhances public
safety, Philo said.
The St. Luke’s campus has its own 24-hour security
guards, but also has a New Hartford police officer stationed there at busy times
such as weekend evenings, hospital officials said in a statement.
“There
are many stresses and challenges for patients and their families in a health
care setting,” said Robert Sylvester, director of Safety and Emergency
Preparedness for the healthcare provider. “Many times, the simple presence of an
officer will help to maintain a calmer atmosphere.”
St. Luke’s is
expected to pay the town about $23,000 for that police presence in 2010, the
town budget shows.
A spokesman for Sangertown did not return calls. The
mall is expected to pay the town $14,560 next year for
police.
Marquee agreement
Lawrence said she had
concerns about the lack of transparency involving the Marquee agreement.
The contract, signed in December 2008 by Lt. Timothy O’Neill, puts an
officer at the multiplex cinema from 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. every Friday, Saturday
and Sunday evening.
But it never was approved by the Town
Board.
Town officials said they were researching the legality of the
agreement, and Town Supervisor Earle Reed said he couldn’t comment further on
the issue.
Rich Woodland said guidelines are needed to outline how to
handle similar situations in the future.
“We should have procedures in
place and have good accountability for all department heads to know exactly when
they need to approach the board for board approvals that way there is no
misunderstands and everyone is on the same page,” Woodland said.
Philo
said he didn’t think it was necessary for him to bring the contract, which has
brought the town about $13,500 since it was established, to the board because he
believed the situation was temporary.
Marquee entered into similar
arrangements at its locations nationwide after a robbery-murder at one of their
cinemas last year, Philo said.
Marquee Cinemas did not return repeated
phone calls.
Tyksinski said the board and supervisor should be involved
in these agreements.
“I think the Town Board needs to know what the
situation is and whether they want to commit those resources to that sort of
function,” he said.
Board member Christine Krupa agreed.
“Any
contract that expends town funds must be approved by the Town Board and signed
by either the town supervisor or, in his absence, the deputy town supervisor,”
she said.
Board member David Reynolds said he believes the practice
makes sense as long as town costs are covered.
Other
concerns
Lawrence and Krupa expressed concern that the officers’
overtime pay would cost the town in the long run, with issues such as retirement
costs.
Employee pensions are based on earnings, and if police are racking
up overtime, it could come back to bite taxpayers, Lawrence and Krupa
reasoned.
Philo, however, called those contentions “ridiculous.”
He said officers who did the contractual services usually are newer to
the department. Pensions are based on an officer’s three highest-paid years, and
a young officer’s salary wouldn’t come close to what an officer might make after
20 years of service, Philo said.
He also said he rotates the officers on
those patrols, so no one is getting all the overtime. Also, the work always is
done as overtime and does not take away from normal town patrols, Philo
said
Philo stressed that the practice of having the town Police
Department patrol private entities protects the public while saving tax
dollars.
“This is problem-solving policing,” he said. “It’s providing
policing and offsetting some of the cost from the
taxpayers.”
