Sausage and The Law Ch. 01

"Amen." Cindy said, then added: "As to the rest of it, the University Bulldogs beat the living shit out of Northwestern in the Gator Bowl, which was attended by a grand total of three thousand people through the turnstiles. And Coach Thrasher might've made those inflammatory comments about Climate Change being a fraud to lay grounds to be bought out of his contract, or to sue if they fire him..."

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"Hello and welcome to Fox University Sunrise!" said the athletic blonde Catrina Pierce at 8:00am sharp, Monday, January 3d, from the KFXU studios. "Happy New Year to everyone! I'm Catrina Pierce, and with me is Lisa Fillmore. Priya Ajmani is on assignment, covering the opening of the State Legislature in Midtown. Hello, Lisa."

"Hello, Catrina. Hello and happy New Year to everyone." said the not-so-athletic, indeed willowy blonde Lisa Fillmore. "Here's what's in the news. The State Legislature opens today with a host of challenges that must be met by the end of March, when the session must end. Fortunately, the State Budget is not a do-or-die issue, allowing the elected Legislators to work on other things."

Catrina: "Let's go to our colleague Priya Ajmani, who is at the State Capitol right now. Good morning, Priya!"

The feed switched to the gorgeous Indian reporterette, who happily said "Good morning, Catrina and Lisa! Good morning, everyone!" She began her report: "Governor Sharon Marshall is setting the priorities she would like to see tackled this year. Among them are issues related to the State Bureau of Investigation and its mission; the University and University Hospital, and the new problems between them; and possibly the re-writing of the State Constitution. Governor Marshall will lay out her agenda during her 'State of the State' address to the Legislature on Wednesday morning."

Priya: "However, Lieutenant Governor Corey Coons, a Democrat overseeing the majority-Republican State Senate, has a different agenda. He is one of the Legislators pushing hard for what is being termed (air quotes) 'redistricting', but in reality is a redrawing of political lines, including possibly creating new counties and merging or dissolving others."

Priya: "Lieutenant Governor Coons is also demanding, on behalf of the Legislative Black Caucus, that what he terms as the inequities of the structure of the Town & County Council be addressed as part of the redistricting, and that no other legislation will get through the State Senate until those issues are resolved. In comments he gave me and others on the record, he said he would welcome the USDOJ Civil Rights Division coming in to help resolve that issue, and that the State Legislature was ready to assist the Federal Government in that endeavor. Back to you, ladies!"

"Thank you, Priya!" said Catrina Pierce as the feed came back to her and Lisa sitting on the couch in the KFXU studios, their lovely legs being shown off. "And now let's check in with Fox Eight Sports, and Nick Eastwood. Nick, is it true that Coach Thrasher could be fired?"

"Hello, Catrina. Hello, Lisa." said the handsome blonde ex-football player, who was rumored to have fathered Amber Harris's first child, as the feed switched to him with the Athletic Department offices behind him. "Fox Eight Sports has learned that relations between Coach Thrasher and University President Jerry Moore have grown increasingly strained over political issues, and that Athletic Director Miles Messervy and the Athletic Board are more than deeply concerned after our Bulldogs lost games this year to our biggest rivals, the Wildcats and the State Tech Engineers..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

*click!*

I expertly used the remote to turn off the television monitor in my office, then turned to face My Three Angels on the other side of my desk. As usual, Cindy Ross was in the near-side 'hot chair', Teresa Croyle in the far-side 'hot chair', and Tanya P. Muscone parked in her wheelchair in the center, between the other two.

"O-kayyyyy." I said. "What are we doing to protect and serve the Citizens this fine new year?"

Tanya said "Now that it's a new year and we can spend the money, we're going to begin construction on Interrogation Room 3 on the other side of the building. If all goes well, Lord willin' and the Creek don't rise, it'll be done in three months."

"Great!" I said. "Who did we contract with to do it?"

Cindy said "You remember George, who rebuilt your Cabin, and who built Teresa's house and my house? He's doing it."

"He won the bid?" I asked, referring to the requirement that works like this had to be put up for bids. "He's not the most expensive contractor out there, but he's nowhere near the cheapest."

Cindy said "There are exceptions to the low-bid process. One is a need for security. Because they are installing cameras and audio-visual wiring and recording equipment which will be used as evidence, we claimed that we have to have a trusted contractor. George is only using employees that have passed background checks that are just about the equivalent of security clearance checks, and his bid was very reasonable."

"Cool beans." I said. "And George does good work. Hell, The Cabin withstood the Swamp Frogs trying as hard as they could to destroy it." (Author's note: 'No Way Out', Ch. 02-03.) "So. Who's in charge of the project?"

"I guess I am." Tanya said. "We don't have a Captain of Physical Properties anymore, since Captain Abram went to the Sheriff's Department." (Author's note: 'The Nuclear Option'; 'One Night In Bangkok', Ch. 03 for the Captain Abram story.)

"Oh yeah." I said. "He retired, didn't he?"

Cindy said "Yes. I chased him out of the TCPD, and the Sheriff transferred him to the Sheriff's Department to oversee the re-constitution of the EMS Department. And I'll be the first to admit that he did a good job with that. And then, wouldn't you know it, I ended up in the Sheriff's Department and over him again. The Sheriff granted him early retirement with a full pension, which didn't hurt my feelings a bit."

I nodded. "And we've never filled that Captain of Physical Properties slot. That's your lane, Tanya, and I don't want to stray into it, but this might be an excellent test for someone you may be thinking of putting into that slot. Any ideas?"

Tanya said "It's kind of a funny thing, and a paradox: the Captain of Physical Properties would very likely be considered the stepping stone that leads to the Chief Deputy position, since the requirements of maintaining the Police O.I.L. (Official Inventory List) is a lot of what the Deputy Chief is responsible for. I know I'm an exception, having come from the Detective ranks, as did Cindy, but Physical Properties is the route to a star on one's shoulder."

Tanya: "But the paradox is that the position is considered to be the lowest of the Captain positions. I had been eyeing DeLong and Carter, but you promoted them to the 2nd Precinct leadership slots, and even Lieutenant Carter doesn't seem to be interested in the Physical Properties slot. Neither is Jerome Davis."

"No, Davis is off limits." I replied. "He did well in MCD, and he's doing very, very well as 1st Precinct Lieutenant. And while it is a dunnnn deal that Teresa will succeed me as Police Commander... oh, sorry to ruin the surprise, Iron Wolf..." Cindy and Tanya laughed at that statement of the obvious as Teresa gave me her 'inscrutable' look that even I had never figured out.

I continued on: "Jerome Davis is going to have the inside track to Commander of Operations and possibly the Police Commander slot, maybe even Police Chief after Teresa retires from it."

Teresa said "I might be Police Commander while you're Police Chief, but I won't be Police Chief, especially if you retire from the position."

"That's not what Carole says." Cindy replied. "She says you are going to be Police Chief."

"True that." I said in agreement.

Tanya said "No disrespect to Teresa, but Carole also says I'm going to be awarded the Medal of Valor. I'm not putting myself down when I say this, but look at me; I'm in a wheelchair. There is no way I'm going to be able to do what the three of you did, what Brooks and Randolph did, and what Roy Easley did."

"Time will tell. On all of it." I replied. "In the here and now, though, Tanya, here's some ideas for you to consider regarding the Captain of Physical Properties slot. I have four, count them four recently-promoted Lieutenants in MCD and Intel. And that's about one or two too many. If we (air quotes) 'suggested' to them that handling this I-3 project could be a stepping stone to Captain's bars that they might otherwise never get, you may have your next overworked, under-ranked person for that position."

Teresa said "With respect, Don, I'd be shocked if any of them took it. Let me put it this way: would you have taken the Physical Properties job when you were a Supervisor and then a Lieutenant in MCD? I know I would not have given up the MCD Lieutenant slot to be Captain of Physical Properties, nor Personnel & Records nor Public Relations. I was happier as a Detective, and don't tell me you would've even dreamed of giving up being a Detective for that."

"Hell, Teresa," Cindy said, "Don refused the Police Chief's chair to stay where he is, so he could keep playing Detective."

"That is true." I said. "But also because I didn't think I was ready to be Chief at that time. Having said all that, your point is well-taken, Teresa. But it wouldn't hurt to ask them and see."

Teresa said "Sir, I do have another suggestion, but just as a possibility to keep in our back pockets. 1st Precinct Captain Hugh Hewitt."

Tanya seemed shocked. She said "That really would be the equivalent of a demotion. Why would he take that?"

"Yeah, whassup wit' Captain Hewitt?" Cindy asked, mostly out of sheer curiosity.

Teresa hesitated and looked at me, and I said "You can tell them. They're the Leadership, too, and Commander Muscone is the ultimate Personnel Officer for the TCPD... after the Chief, of course."

Teresa half-turned to the others and said "On the night of that incident at the Council meeting, the first one on Commander Troy's birthday, Captain Hewitt was called, but didn't show up." (Author's note: 'No Show', Ch. 01.)

Teresa: "He said he'd been drinking wine with his dinner and that he was buzzed, and that Lieutenant Davis handled things will, and his presence would not have made a difference, which is mostly true. And he wasn't on call, so it was the right call not to try to go on duty while he was buzzed."

Teresa: "After talking to Don, I arranged for a snap drug test of 1st Precinct, and as part of that I had all the Sergeants and above given the separate test for potential alcohol abuse. I'm happy to say that everyone in the Precinct passed the drug test. But Captain Hewitt's test for alcohol raised a red flag."

"Could he have had a lot to drink the night before?" Tanya asked.

I said "The way the test works, at least as it was explained to me, is that if someone was drinking in the last 24 hours, it would show up, but it wouldn't invalidate the main test results. The test is for residual indications of chronic drinking. They are not conclusive for alcoholism, just a warning flag, like the 'Check Engine' light in your car."

Teresa nodded vigorously in agreement, then said "Captain Hewitt said he had not been drinking the night before, and his test did come back for the residuals."

I said "The Chief and I agreed to let it sit until after the Holidays, and those are now over. And the Chief and Teresa agree with me that Captain Hewitt has otherwise done well as Precinct Captain, and doesn't merit any real negative actions against him. However... we also can't take the chance that someone in a leadership post such as his can be left to wander on the path he's currently on. This might be an option for him, and for us."

Teresa said "This is a tangent to our discussion here, but with our upcoming discussions on rank structures in the Public Safety Department, I've been wondering this: the Fire Department has Superintendents, which are in charge of TCFD facilities, and their rank is the equivalent of mine."

Teresa: "And it seems the Fire Department always has higher ranks for equivalent duties; for example, our I.A. Chief is the equivalent rank to me, while the TCFD's Internal Affairs chief is the Fire Marshal... equivalent to you, Don. How is that right?"

"Yeah!" Tanya and Cindy said in unison, on purpose, amusement on their faces and in their voices. Teresa was 'not amused'.

I replied: "Our Captain of Physical Properties... and a really good Lieutenant could handle that position... is a Staff position, and the person in that post doesn't directly lead anyone, or maybe a couple of subordinate staffers. By way of contrast, Fire Department Superintendents are Installation Commanders. Firefighters are assigned to Stations, and the Superintendents are their chain-of-command bosses, like you and I are chain-of-command bosses of all our Police Officers."

Me: "As to your more general observations about unequal ranks for equivalent positions... that's going to be changing, and soooon. Sheriff Griswold is working on the structures of the Public Safety Department, and if he gets his way... and he will... those issues will be ironed out. And he wants it done before the State Legislature session ends, and the US DOJ comes in here like bats out of Hell..."

Part 2 - Ranks Have Their Privileges

9:30am, Monday, January 3rd. The Chief had gone to City Hall for 'meetings' with the Sheriff and other Chiefs. I got a call on my Police iPhone from Deputy Chief Tanya Muscone, asking me to come to the Interrogation Rooms. I hurried along the back hallway to the other end of the building., and noticed Teresa Croyle fall in behind me and walk briskly to keep up.

We saw Tanya and George the Contractor in front of the double doors of the storeroom that was going to be converted to Interrogation-3. Teresa and I said hello to George and shook his hand, then said "What's going on?"

Tanya said "My keys won't work to open this door. Not even my Building Master key." Tanya, the Chief, and I had Master keys that opened any lock within Police Headquarters proper, and theoretically any lock in any County building, excluding County Jail and the Jail sides of The Old Mill (2nd Precinct) and Police Headquarters.

I fished my keys out of my pocket and tried my Master key. It failed to unlock the door. "Hmmm." I said as I looked at the lock. "It's been recently changed. Fortunately, I have a key that works on just about any door." I took my red crowbar, which I'd brought with me, and jimmied the door open. It yielded with a *SNAP!*.

I reached inside and turned on the lights. The room was full of the SWAT Team's gear, everything except weapons. As Tanya, Teresa, and I stood in the doorway surveying the room, a voice said "Hey! What's going on here?"

Tanya wheeled back into the hallway, followed by Teresa, and then I went out and almost closed the door. Coming out of the SWAT Team's room on the inner side of the hall were Lieutenant Robert Kalsu and Sergeant Daniel Patrick.

"Oh, sorry sir, ma'am." Patrick quickly said.

"Can we help you with something, sir?" Kalsu asked, which was his polite way of wondering out loud what we were doing breaking into his storeroom.

"Yes, you can." Tanya said. "Why do our Master keys to this storeroom not work any more?"

Kalsu said "We've had trouble with equipment disappearing." No 'ma'am' or 'sir' attached, I noticed. And I sensed that the disrespect was towards Tanya more than towards me.

"Sir, ma'am." said Patrick, seeing my look and trying to save his teammate. "We had the locks changed out last week."

"With locks that do not conform to TCPD Headquarters regulations." Tanya fired back, having also noted the lack of respect. "Who authorized you to have these locks changed? And to non-conforming locks?"

"No one." said Kalsu. Teresa glanced over at Tanya, then at me. I glanced back, then turned to the SWAT Team members.

"We'll be correcting that as part of the construction of Interrogation-3." I said. "Now you guys need to get your gear cleaned out of this storage room and to the room in the gym assigned to you... and I'd better never be unable to unlock it with my Master key. Is that clear?"

"Sir?" asked Kalsu, "can we discuss this? Can't the third Interrogation Room be built the other way, and we keep this room like we've always had?" Teresa glanced at me again. This time, her own face was showing the beginnings of anger. Daniel Patrick had winced, but said no more.

I said "I have two answers for that, Lieutenant, and you decide which works best for you. First, that wall on the other side is the wall between the building and the gym. It's a load-bearing wall, and to breach it, build an arch, and support it correctly would cost the County's taxpayers at least five times what going the other way will."

Me: "Also to that point, your storeroom has the same dimensions as I-1 and I-2, and we know we can build an interrogation room and an anteroom to it. However, if we go the other way, we don't have that unless we once again pierce a load-bearing wall, and a brick wall at that."

Me: "And my second answer is that time-honored answer we've all heard before: 'Because I said so.' And because Commander Muscone is about to say so, since she's in charge of this building."

Sergeant Patrick took some initiative and said "Sir, where do you want us to move the stuff that's in the corner store room in the gym, so we can move our stuff into it?"

"Good question." I said. "Deputy Chief Muscone will tell you, since it's her call. Why don't y'all go reconnoiter on that right now? George, how about some coffee in my office? I'd like to discuss renovating the Lieutenant's suite of offices on the other side of the building as part of this overall project. Commander Croyle, carry on."

"Yes sir." Teresa said. "Lieutenant Kalsu, my office. Now." An asschewing was imminent...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

(Author's note: long description here of the Cop Bar. It just seemed like the right place and time to do this, so thanks in advance for bearing with it. And the new rank structure is a necessity going forward. So be a nerd like me and just enjoy it.)

1:00pm, Monday, January 3rd. The Irish Pub, a.k.a. the Cop Bar sits in the northwest part of Town, north of Town Fitness Centers (which is just north of the Fairgrounds), and south of Luigi's restaurant. The front door is at the north side of the building, and opens into a very large room full of tables and booths, all with red-and-white checkered (plaid?) plastic tablecloths, and dozens of photos on the light wood walls.

The semicircular bar is in the right rear of the big room. There is an opening to the back wall, and it leads straight back (south) to the smaller 'back room', as it's called. A small hallway to the right, going immediately behind the bar, leads to the restrooms and the kitchens. The back room has a longer, rectangular bar, and a number of tables and booths. It can be reserved for private parties.

On the left side in back of the big room is the doorway to the outside patio. The patio's (west) side and (south) back are the side wall of the main room and side of the small 'Command Room', respectively. There are weatherbeaten tables and a fire pot out on the patio, and it's fenced in with a wooden fence like on old ranches of the West. One walks along the back of the main room, next to the half-wall with fancy balsa-wood bars to get to the patio.

If one goes through the open space and left along the other side of that half-wall, one comes to the entrance of the smaller 'Command Room'. One faces left (east) when going in, and the wall to the left is against the patio, and the window in that wall looks out onto the patio, if and when it's open. The back wall to the east also has a window. The right side wall has a big fireplace and mantle, reminiscent of magnificent old homes of eras gone by. The fireplace has gas logs that warm the small room quite well in the winter.