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FUND RAISER IN HONOR
OF PHOENIX POLICE OFFICER TOM RABJOHN
 On Sat,
October 3, Officer Tom Rabjohn of the Phoenix Police
Department (500 Pct) was killed in action while on duty with
his military unit in Afghanistan. In honor of Officer Tom
Rabjohn's commitment to America, the Phoenix Law Enforcement
Association (PLEA), and the Phoenix Police Department, PLEA
is inviting the public and Officers to join fellow PLEA
members at the PLEA office and grill (1102 W. Adams St.) for
lunch/dinner in honor of Officer Tom Rabjohn. Donations will
be accepted in order to raise funds to assist the Rabjohn
family. This fundraiser/cookout will be on Tuesday October
20, 2009. The grill will be serving burgers and hotdogs from
11:00 am to 2:00 pm, 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, and 11:00 pm to
1:00 am. PLEA encourages all to come out and show their
support for the Rabjohn family.
WE NEED
EVERYONE'S SUPPORT!!!
We have several people working
hard to organize a rally at the State Capitol this week on
Wed. the 21st at 1000 hours. This is in support of stopping
sanctuary policies in AZ. This will give us a
State Law to arrest and charge individuals who are here in
AZ illegally. We hope to have 300 LEO's there as well as
lots of elected officials who support this initiative
(HB2280, see link below). We need to get as many of you and
your friends and family as possible to show up and lend
their support. We are trying to send a strong message to
those elected officials and government appointees, as well
as the 'open border crowd' that the people have voted
overwhelmingly, over and over again, that they want our
immigration laws enforced. This rally will eliminate the
excuse by city officials who say "law enforcement does not
support enforcing immigration laws"....I believe most of us
do. Let's get out there and show our support. Organizers
have made up 200-300 yellow t-shirts for LEO's to wear
that say 'Sanctuary Policies' with a red circle and line
through it. If you can't make it ask your friends and
family members to show up in large numbers. This is a hot
topic right now with the 287(g) contract being terminated
for patrol deputies.
PLEASE forward this to your co-workers and any LEO's you
have on your e-mail list.
Please click here to see HB2280
Aug. 31st, 2009
Keeping Our Members Updated
The D.L.E.A. board members have worked closely with the
Maricopa County Association of Detention Officers (MCADO),
and others, over the past several weeks trying to develop a
resolution that we feel would be fair and reasonable for all
Sheriff’s Office employees. Throughout the process we have
spoken with numerous deputies and detention officers to get
a consensus on how the current proposal will affect morale
in unfairly mandating furlough days for some employees and
not others. The consensus is that most are willing to make
the sacrifice, because of the current revenue shortfall and
tough economic times, and take furlough hours, but would
like it to be done fairly.
As most of us know, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors
agreed to let the Sheriff’s Office furlough employees as
opposed to laying off employees when told by County
Management to make cuts. I feel I can speak for the board
members when I say I will be the first to step up and take
furlough days to save a new employees job. It’s a sacrifice
most of us are willing to make. As we have met with
personnel from the Sheriff’s Office administration we have
been made aware of the “battle” taking place between the
Sheriff’s Office and the Board of Supervisors. As this
battle ensues, we, as deputies and detention officers, as
well as civilian employees, get caught up in the middle and
feel the affects.
With the information we obtained, DLEA and MCADO began to
prepare ourselves to approach the B.O.S. reference $196
million that the Maricopa County government has in surplus.
The furlough days were only expected to save the county $6-7
million. Needless to say your elected representative on the
Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has decided to put
their priorities above that of public safety. This will not
only put deputies and detention officers at risk on the
streets and the jails, but the tax payer and voters of
Maricopa County. When we are all asked to be fiscally
responsible in this tough time, who is going to hold the
Board of Supervisors and County Management to the same
standard?
It is time to get involved. We need you, as members, to
contact your representative at the Board of Supervisors and
tell them this is unacceptable! We demand fiscal
responsibility and accountability. We need to recruit our
fellow deputies, your squad members and co-workers, to join
our association so we can speak with a loud voice and make
ourselves heard. This is an issue that will affect all of
us. With the economy not expected to improve over the next
few years, those not affected by the current proposal of
furlough days this year very well may be the ones furloughed
next year. Let’s stand together and hold our county
government accountable.
We sent out a press release on August 31st and will keep you
updated as to our progress. If you have any questions, feel
free to contact your DLEA board members.
Sean Pearce
Vice President, Deputies Law Enforcement Association |
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The Maricopa
County Association of Detention Officers (MCADO) and the
Deputies Law Enforcement Association (DLEA) has acquired the
recently released fiscal year 2009 expenditure variance
numbers for Maricopa County. This report has revealed that
the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has carried over a
surplus of $196 million to the new fiscal year, which began
July 1st. In recent months, the Board of Supervisors and
County management have imposed reductions in amounts ranging
from 18% to 33% to appropriations and personnel in
departments throughout the County, in an effort to cover a
reported $76 million revenue shortfall. As a result, all
County services, especially public safety, have experienced
a decrease in the level of service provided to taxpayers.
Deputies and detention officers employed by the Maricopa
County Sheriff’s Office agreed to take 56 furlough hours, in
an attempt to assist the Sheriff’s Office in meeting its
fiscal responsibility. This reduction in force would have
significantly jeopardized officer and public safety.
Even though this $196 million surplus exists, the County
does not plan to restore public safety and other services to
taxpayers. Instead, the County will reportedly use the
surplus as a down payment on a self-insured employee benefit
program. The County is expected to report that this is a
one-time windfall; however, a review of the year-end
variances for the last three years will reveal a large
carryover sum for each of those three years, and during each
of those years, County management continued to impose
funding and personnel cuts to departments throughout the
County. |
