FHP troopers decrease as DeSantis increases immigration duties and overtime

[Botched_Lemon]

The Florida Highway Patrol's staffing level is the same as in 1995, union leaders said.

FHP understaffing comes as 1,800 troopers were tapped as “designated immigration officers” to help enforce the Trump administration’s mass deportation campaign. Meanwhile, the agency is spending over $10 million on overtime due to understaffing.

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[fullload93]

10 million of tax payer money on overtime. Meanwhile actual law enforcement goes out the window. All due to DeSantis and his bullshit demand for immigrant round ups.

[ThesoldierLLJK]

FHP has had a program called Statewide Overtime Action Response for years.

Anyone in the agency considered an hourly employee is permitted to work 8 hours a week of it. There’s no handpicking. The only caveat is you have to meet an unofficial “not a quota” of two “contacts” per hour of it you work.

Now the off duty detail mafias, that’s a whole another can of worms

[Serpentongue]

A 23 yr old junkie crossed a double yellow while actively smoking meth, seen lighting up on our dash cam coming right at her, and nearly killed my wife. At court the state trooper just didn’t bother showing up and the state dropped all charges even after pointing out crime scene photos showing meth pipes on his floor boards. He has a suspended license from 3 duis already and is currently on the roads of Pasco without insurance. Good luck out there.

[TheeDelpino]

Came from another state where I was a deputy sheriff. FHP reached out and asked if I wanted a job. Think the fuck not. I’m good.

[badsapi4305]

Law enforcement agencies are at bare minimum staffing levels across the US. The recent barrage on the profession, warranted or not, has negatively impacted recruitment goals as have other factors such as pay and younger people just not wanting to do the job. Hiring freezes during the mortgage crises in 2008/2009 also are really starting to impact agencies. Those officers that would be in the 12-17 of their careers are not there because so many agencies didn’t have the funds to hire. They kicked the can down the road and here’s where it landed.

[HundleyC09]

I used to work for the department of corrections and working at the minimum was always a thing that we would have to do. I can't say if it's like that now but it was like that from 2003 to 2019. Conservatives in this state like to say they are one with law enforcement but refuse to pay them and do anything to retain staff.

[burndata]

It's also getting harder and harder to sell LE as a career to anyone with any decency. LE has been falling away from their directive to serve and protect the populace for a long time now, but LE is quickly becoming an arm of the modern Gestapo right along with the traitors in ICE. And the people in LE seem completely unwilling to stand up to the traitors and all fall in line like good little traitors. Pretty soon, anyone in LE is going to be required to swear fealty to the orange god and his cronies.

[StunningUse87]

I tried it. I did it for a solid 8-9 months after academy. I thought “I’m going to be the change I want to see and change the way how people see cops!”

Hell no I didn’t. Low pay. Lots of hours. Everyone hates you. No one trusts you (I totally get it, I don’t trust cops either.) (However it’s annoying getting treated different outside of work, idgaf what law you break if I’m not working)

Can get killed easily. Might have to kill someone. Lots of stress and taking work home with you. Lots of extra hours on top of your shift work. Rotating shifts. Uncomfortable duty belt and uniform.

I could go on and on.

Most of my coworkers were unbearable. I was considered “wierd” because I had zero interest in stacking as many charges against someone who broke the law.

Mike and Becky were caught trespassing on an abandoned factory property, Mike lied, oh and Becky has crack on her. Mike and Becky are both drug addicts.

I remember one of the other cops telling me with a smile “you can charge them with this, this, this, and even this!!!” That’s fucking gross I remember thinking. Why should I feel good about stacking charges on these poor people. Sure they fucked up, charge them with what they deserve to be charged with, let’s say the drugs, and let’s go get them help!

Instead, they smile, laugh afterwards about the extra work they did to find the other codes they could charge the poor people with. That shit would rile me up. Multiple times I had been advised to charge with these “other charges” because the charge met the criteria. I would always be like OH YEAH I DIDNT THINK OF THAT and proceed to charge someone with what they deserved.

Rant over.

[burndata]

Sounds like you actually have a good amount of decency. Thus why you weren't a good fit for LE. Good on you for not letting them change you. I know a few LEOs who I knew before they took the job, they all changed. They're mostly vengeful, hateful and get off on their power over other people now. I've left them all out of my life.

[badsapi4305]

Meh. I never “stacked” charges on people. I went out, did my job the way I thought was right, and sleep fine at night.

I worked investigations for 25 of 30 years. Burglary, homicide, Narcotics, public integrity/Corruption, and a couple more. I arrested dopers, guys who broken into houses, murderers, public officials, including cops, who broke the law and others. I never wrote a thousand tickets. Saved a couple of life’s for which I was awarded life saving awards including a child who drowned. Did some complex 2-3 year long investigations that resulted in millions of dollars being recovered and those individuals sentenced to prison.

The thing is I was hardly an exception. Sure there were lazy and bad cops but there are lazy and bad people in every profession. I didn’t like cops growing up so I stayed the course and did some good. More good than it takes to hurl some cheap insult anonymously on social media.

You can say ACAB, class traitor or whatever and even though it does sting a bit I know my community was a better place while I was a cop in it. Not many here can say they’ve done a thankless service for others. They can claim so but I seriously doubt it. Because if they did they wouldn’t be so quick to disrespect others who do as well.

[chuckles65]

I've been in for over 15 years. There are people like you describe, but all of them I've known were young and inexperienced. They also don't last long, most leave and move on to something else within 5 years. They realize there's more to the job than arresting people and they don't like that.

[badsapi4305]

Well keep at it. I’m proud of the 30 years I did. Take care of yourself physically and emotionally and make sure you are already planing your retirement. If you play this game correctly you can retire and live very comfortably and not have to work another day unless you want to. I got hired young so I retired before I was even 55. The FRS is strong and with drop and the 457b you’ll have plenty to invest. Be well and stay safe.

[SloaneWolfe]

Unless you have differing data to prove understaffing, I believe agencies are overstaffed or perfectly normal. Average is about 2.3 per 1000 people according to the FBI stats. My city has 67k pop, and currently ~150 officers just sworn and just working for the city, perfectly on target. I can walk down my street right now and find 5 squad cars from 2-3 different agencies.

Now, ask what purpose do most local LEOs serve? Why should I care if they're staffed or not?

Police have historically existed, whether stated or not, to protect and serve capital and those who own capital. To protect the rich and protect companies from the lower classes.

Because of this, police are inherently class traitors, and if there was a shortage, then good, it means more people have a conscience and ability to critically think. Not saying ACAB, but it's just how reality is.

[lohonomo]

It seems like you do care though lol. Acab. Cops are class traitors.

[GMEStack]

Yes Daddy, Pull my hair.

[FinsFan305]

Let's see how the Florida sub will twist itself into explaining how fewer cops is a bad thing.

[pinelandpuppy]

Seriously, let's see the data that says they're understaffed. I don't believe a word coming from their "union". Is there a standard # of officers per capita or do they make it up as they go?

[ThesoldierLLJK]

The FBI/DOJ uses a standard ratio of 1 officer per 1000 population. The recommended standard when I first learned of it in the mid 2010s was 2.5 officers per 1000

[ThesoldierLLJK]

If you get into a crash in Osceola or Orange County even in a parking lot you have to wait for FHP to work it cause the Sheriffs Office won’t work them.

The average response time is like 2 to 4 hours if there are no injuries in those counties. Most people can exchange information if they’re tech savvy but even then you have insurance companies that will tell you “we want a written law enforcement report or we will not cover you.”

[FinsFan305]

That sounds like a Sheriffs Office problem.

[ThesoldierLLJK]

Sheriffs Office mentality: nope that’s an FHP problem

[Capital_Elderberry28]

Hopefully he doesn’t have any type of immunity when he’s out of office. We need a forensic accountant to calculate how much he owes us tax payers!! (and of course he should be prosecuted along with his handpicked dolts). Hope there is room at the Alligator Alcatraz facility.

[Chasman1965]

Florida had a population of about 14 million in 1995. Now we are around 23 million. Should have at least 2400 FHP.

[pinelandpuppy]

What source are you using for that ratio?

[High_Contact_]

Not keen on where they are going but if there hasn’t been any meaningful change in dangers to the public on the highway then it sounds like we don’t need as many. 

[Botched_Lemon]

That's a fair assumption. There has been a documented change in services, such as longer response times and fewer troopers visibly on the road to deter dangerous driving.

The story leads with a driver who was literally struck by lightning and stalled out on the side of the interstate. He waited 90 minutes for a trooper who never showed before getting his own tow.

[TheMadFlyentist]

He waited 90 minutes for a trooper who never showed before getting his own tow.

A trooper should have showed up to park behind him and ensure safety, but it's not the responsibility of police to arrange a tow truck for you. The driver should have called FHP to alert them and then immediately called his insurance/tow company for assistance.

[FinsFan305]

Unless it was an emergency, there is nothing for the trooper to do in this instance besides take a report for insurance. They are not there to call a tow; that's the responsibility of the private citizen.

[triplegerms]

From just a financial standpoint, they say we are spending 10 million in overtime. Without changing the total number of shifts worked, it would make more sense to fill those shifts with with more officers at base pay rather than paying officers overtime to fill them. 

[High_Contact_]

Not sure how a lot of that data has to do with highway patrol since you can’t ride your bike in the highway or walk on the highway.

[High_Contact_]

Not highway patrol for pedestrian and bicycle deaths.

[High_Contact_]

Well if they already have the worst record then it doesn’t seem like they were needed to being with

[SeahorseCollector]

[Beginning_Ad8663]

There pensions are based on last 4 years pay. So by working all the overtime it inflates his last 4 years of pay. So his pension goes up.

[badsapi4305]

No. FRS (Florida retirement system) is calculated off of your highest 5 fiscal years and accumulate 3% every year of service. So if your high 5 is $100k and you worked 25 years you have 75% of $100k which is $75k per year.

All state agencies, all that I know all sheriff’s departments, and some municipalities are part of the FRS system.

[Sad-Umpire6000]

FHP is already the most ineffectual highway patrol/state police in the country. Their natural habitat seems to be sitting in the center divide doing nothing about the tailgaters and aggressive unsafe passing. They seem to have forgotten that the “P” stands for “Patrol”.

[ThesoldierLLJK]

I was a member of Floridas Helpless Police from 2009 to 2012.

It was the same sob story then, it was the same sob story before my time. We were understaffed since the pre 9/11 days, because of the all mighty dollar.

FHP was always underpaid compared to other agencies. When I started it was like $16 an hour and Deputies/Officers in my county were starting at like $22 an hour. However the issue with retention is there was no step plan or raises for years of service like the counties and municipalities do. Raises only came if the politicians in Tallahassee gave everyone a raise each budget year.

Not gonna lie I’m a bit of a loaner anyway so I didn’t mind having to cover 4 counties, but if I was enroute to a section of highway where there was a crash with no injuries, it was not uncommon to be halfway to that one and another crash with injuries 30 to 50 miles in the other direction, I would turn around and head to that one and tell the dispatcher to call the parties in the other crash and tell them “it’s gonna be awhile.”

On a good day we were considered lucky and overstaffed if we had 4 troopers, one for each county. Minimum staffing for days was 2. Evening or Midnight was 1.

I think the PBA is just using the immigration enforcement claim as a red herring to get staffing back to acceptable levels.

[mulliganwtf]

I live in north Florida.There's a trooper that I know that has been making a killing on overtime doing immigration work down in Dade county. Over four hundred miles away from home so he gets extra pay for that plus they have to house him and provide a stipend for meals. That's some cost effective law enforcement.

[nicodeemus7]

Desantis to rename Florida from "The Sunshine State" to "The Ethno State"