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REPORT OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT It is my great privilege to serve as this town's fourteenth Police Chief. I am truly fortunate to have become the leader of a department that is comprised of officers that are fully committed to helping the townspeople and resolving the current issues that we all face. Over the past several months, members of the police department have proudly-established a mission statement for the department. It is as follows: "The mission of the Abington Police Department is to work with all citizens to preserve life, uphold human rights, protect property and encourage individual responsibility with community involvement. All members of the department shall strive to maintain a relationship with the public, so that in reality, the police are the people and the people are the police. To accomplish these goals, we will be committed to serving every individual with respect and compassion in order to maintain one's dignity." One of the police department's top priorities is to address the substance abuse issues that plague both this town and society at large. Research has shown that over seventy percent of all crime is either directly or indirectly related to drug or alcohol abuse. While the major influence to combat both of these issues starts and ends at home, it is my belief that as a police department we must also do our share. Through both education and strict enforcement, or "zero tolerance", I am hopeful that we can significantly minimize this problem within our community. The department currently consists of twenty-eight full time police officers. This year I am requesting the funds to hire two additional police officers to get us back to staffing levels of years past. If these positions are funded, we will be able to appoint a full time Narcotics Detective and an officer to work primarily in our schools. The Narcotic Detective will be dedicated to working on drug investigations and enforcement throughout the community. Through both our intelligence and information from recent news reports, it is quite apparent that drugs such as heroine, crack, cocaine, ecstasy, oxycontin and marijuana are being distributed in both our town and surrounding communities. Since drug dealers do not work regular schedules, this officer will have a flexible schedule and will not have the responsibilities of day to day patrol functions. This officer will also have the proper training and expertise needed for this complicated and dangerous job. The School Officer would be assigned to work primarily in the school system. It is my strong belief that, like in many other communities, we need an officer that is both visible and approachable to the children on a full-time basis. This year alone we have conducted numerous investigations within our public schools involving drugs, assaults, threats, possession of dangerous weapons, sexual assaults and inappropriate Internet use. We also would like to re-institute a strong education program at all levels, utilizing our new police "mascot" (robot) in the younger grades. This robot was purchased through grant monies and will add a whole new dimension to our outreach programs. Another issue that both the police department and other town agencies must face in the near future is the continuous growth within the town. Projects such as "the Gables" on North Quincy Street and the "Woodlands" on Summer Street as well as others will continue to stretch our resources to the limit. With no easy access points to several of the condominium projects and an increased work load due to growth throughout the town, coverage will be nearly impossible without either the addition of more officers or the redeployment of officers from other areas of town. After many meetings, a lot of research, and a tremendous amount of work, the Police Station Building Committee has decided to go forward with a request to construct a new police facility this year. The current station was built in 1965 to accommodate twelve officers and, is not only antiquated, but also in dire need of major repairs. Due to lack of space, several officers have their lockers in the open garage bay; the station has no female officer accommodations or basic interview room, and is not compliant with the American with Disabilities Act. Additionally, the holding cells have been cited for various safety violations by the state, the wiring is unsafe, the station is not equipped with a civil defense office and both work and office space is almost non existent. The proposed station alleviates these and many other issues. I hope to have the new station plans available on our web site (www.abingtonpolice.org) for all to see and also plan to set up weekend tours of our current station for those citizens who are interested in seeing it first hand. I hope that you will support our request at both town meeting and ultimately at the polls. While these are some serious issues that we must face, I am confident that both members of the police department and the townspeople will rise to the challenge. In closing, I would like to once again thank the officers of the department, the various boards, and the residents of the town for their continued support. I am extremely proud of the police department and look forward to serving the townspeople as their police chief for many years to come. Respectfully submitted David G. Majenski Chief of Police |
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| Abington Massachusetts |
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