What a joke: Mayor Suggests Lowering Standards for Police Officers

[Drew27k9]

KANSAS CITY, MO. -- The Kansas City Missouri mayor is looking for creative ideas on ways to recruit more minority cops. So, Mayor Mark Funkhouser said lowering the standards to be a cop may be the solution.

Mayor Funkhouser said why not let people with a criminal record be a police officer?

Barely 11 percent of Kansas City's police officers are African American. The police chief and the mayor say that's not enough. At a town hall meeting Wednesday, Mayor Funkhouser suggested lowering standards to recruit more minority police.

"At some point we've got to, I believe, allow people who have a felony on their record to go ahead and be a police officer when they pass various hurdles," said Funkhouser.:rolleyes:

The Mayor said this is just an idea... a way to provoke debate to come up with creative ideas to hire more minority cops. But is it realistic?

Ken Christopher is a criminal justice professor with Park University. He said, "The more you can attract candidates you can reliably trust the better off you are."

Christopher said there are other ways to recruit minorities without compromising standards.

"To say you're willing to take on people who've committed felony violations is pretty much outside the mainstream about what police hiring practices are about," said Christopher.

Rich Lockhart with the KCMO Police Department said, "I think everybody shares the same concern we do and certainly we appreciate everyone helping us come up to solutions to the problem."

Right now, to be a police officer you have to meet state standards. A spokesperson with the Missouri Department of Public Safety said regardless of decisions made at the local level, you still have to be licensed by the state.

To change those requirements, means changing state law which now says you can't have a criminal history.

Another requirement is passing a written exam, something a number of candidates struggle with. That's why the police department holds tutoring sessions to help more candidates become police officers.


http://www.myfoxkc.com/myfox/pages/N...Y&pageId=3.2.1

[Valor55]

Maybe if they hire the criminals to be cops they won't be criminals anymore, voila! Crime problems solved! :rolleyes:

[basher52]

Has to be a Democrat.

[Curt581]

Want a creative idea on how to recruit more candidates?

How about increasing incentives? How about increasing police pay to a level commeasurate with the education levels you demand? Want people with bachelors degrees? Offer to pay them according to what a four year degree holder makes in the private sector.

I know, I know, it's a pretty wild idea.

But you know, it's so crazy that it just might work.

[bhanson]

Has to be a Democrat.

You're right. He is also under fire from minority groups for appointing member of the Minutemen to the Park Board and wanting to fire a black city manager who, by all accounts, is incompetent.

He flunked the class on Political Correctness and says what he thinks. Gets him in trouble a lot!

:rolleyes:

[highwayman]

Can't take the funk out of Funkhouser :D

[Titansfanmjfink]

How about we hire cops with schizophrenia and psychosis. How about this, we hire coke heads and meth addicts, they'll surely get the drugs off the streets. Sounds like a plan, send recruiting posters and videos to the prisons, now! This is why there should be a more serious pnnishment for extreme stupidity.

Here's how to get better qualified applicants: As Curt said, better pay. Better retirements. Pay based on qualifications. Incentive pay based on training and expertise. Sufficiently staff your departments. Provide current equipment. Actively recruit from the military.

There's numerous solutions to the problem, but lets take the easy way out and sacrifice the security of our society and let felons do the job. Oh you molested a 9 year old 5 years ago? You haven't done it since? Great! You're hired, you're our new school resource officer!

[viperphi]

Does that mean federal agencies should hire terrorists as long as they can jump over hurdles? "I'm arresting you for rape... I know that it is rape because that is what they charged me with... Don't worry though, after you get sentenced, you can apply to Kansas City PD like I did!"

[tre8]

That is sad that they think that lowering standards are going to attract more minorities......it suggests that minorities aren't qualified to be police officers without extra help.

[tre8]

That is sad that they think that lowering standards are going to attract more minorities......it suggests that minorities aren't qualified to be police officers without extra help.


And here those of us who are minority police officers have a hard enough time making it on the job.........this mayor is a jackass:mad:

[Puddle Pirate]

Felony conviction = no right to carry firearms ... right? Maybe they'll use a water gun :rolleyes:

[magnetfreezer]

Felony conviction = no right to carry firearms ... right? Maybe they'll use a water gun :rolleyes:

I remember hearing about the Army taking some recruits w/felony convictions - don't many of the firearms laws contain exemptions for carrying on official business (other than Lautenburg)?

[greenhead]

If I were a minority, I would be highly offended by this!

[Wolfman]

"At some point we've got to, I believe, allow people who have a felony on their record to go ahead and be a police officer when they pass various hurdles," said Funkhouser.:rolleyes:

I agree, those hurdles being:

1. Building a time machine
2. Going back in time and stopping yourself from being a law-breaking idiot.

[Question]

At first I thought this article was about increasing the eligible applicant pool to fill a shortage in staffing by allowing those with minor transgressions to be officers.

However, this is an offensive attempt to fill some sort of racial quota by allowing FELONS to be police officers.

Let's put this in perspective. Current law in most states allow for those with old misdemeanors to be hired as police officers. If you are qualified and a police department wants to hire you for your character and skills, it can in theory. But there is a major difference between having a bad driving record when you were a teenager to having robbed a bank at 18 or 21.

The mayor is hurting crime fighting because he wants to be a social engineer.