Town Council Meeting

I'll be there and I will certainly express my opinion about the police department and ask about what is going on with Officer Ishmael. I like him and want him back. I would take him over all three of the current ones. They all lie and apparently have no ethics. Who needs that type of police department? We certainly don't deserve that type of quality since we pay for a police department with our taxes

I have been quiet up until now, as I have tried to keep my personal feelings aside and not invoke any harsher criticism from others. However, I can almost guarantee you that the Council will not address any of the concerns that you folks have brought up on this forum.

The personnel matters they will review in closed session and not make any public statements unless they are actually going to fire or suspend someone. This is policy and this Council has an excellent track record of pointing that out when they are trying to defend Jim Roop. With others, they often forget about that policy, but for his highness, they seem to quote it quite well.

The stuff with the K9 unit...they have already addressed in their own way. The dog is gone and gone with it are any and all records associated with it...including the proof of training or lack thereof. They said so much in response to recent FOIA request that was filed on the subject.

As for the problems with the PD officers and their past, they will stick beside Jim Roop and say he has control and responsibility in hiring/firing matters. Same goes for the inept Reserve Program. They will allow him to continue to retain substandard officers and continue to harass and remove officers who go above and beyond their duty.

Bob Weir and Pam Stutz have been adamant supporters of Jim and his PD for over 3 years. It seems that he can do any wrong in their eyes and anything anyone says about him is just retaliatory. They even have went so far as to try to accept some of the blame for his lack of abilities in management and his lack of professionalism They often would say that Town is partially responsible, since the Town never got him trained. They seem to ignore the fact that his has been the Chief for a long time and he should have all the training or pursued training on his own by now. But, Jim has managed to pull the wool over their eyes for this long, it would utterly shock me if they did anything different in dealing with him this time. Even though to most, it makes sense that leadership begins at the top...this Council doesn't see it that way.

The Town Manager is supposed to be handling all of these types of matters, but I am unsure of his qualifications. If he is duly qualified and has the ability, then I can only hope he can see through Pam/Bob/Jim/ and put things in the proper perspective and help lead this Town in a new direction. It is my hope that he makes his own decisions and does not let the folks on the Council sway him. Only time will tell, but from some of his recent comments and actions in dealing with Abdo, Ishmael, and my own FOIA requests, I can sense the influence of Bob Weir coming through.

I will most likely be in attendance tomorrow, but mostly to listen about the budget and the Council’s desire to impose a meals tax while cutting the real estate tax. Why they would want to cut the real estate tax in a downward and/or stagnant market is absurd, especially if they need money as evidenced by the desire for the new meals tax. Personally, I think they need to leave the real estate tax as it is and also impose the meals tax. Our sidewalks and crosswalks are in shambles and this Council to date has made no progress on the streetscape, the Harrover property or any other matter that was left on the table when Bryan Garcia and I left office almost a year ago. These are some of the important questions that this Council needs to address to the residents and explain their inactions.

To all, stand up and speak out. The worst that could happen is someone calls you an idiot. But a true idiot is the one who keeps silent while suffering.

JT

I seriously doubt they will listen to anyones complaints about the police department, but even if people get up and make a request to be heard it will be better than sitting still. I too agree that the sidewalks and road repairs need to be dealt with. The intersection of Jefferson and Washington is horrible and if you go through it at a normal speed you are more than likely going to break an axle.

Ps. The Police Dept. does need to be replaced and the town needs to stop being the coverup squad! That means you too Mayor! You are the one that does it the most and influences the rest of the council.

When the time came for us to speak out nobody did. I think we were all too nervous and intimidated by having the chief and his sidekick sitting in the back of the room waiting to stare at any person that was waiting to voice a complaint against them. Maybe people like myself felt the same way and are worried about being a target for later consequences from the police department. If the town wont stand up to the chief then how can we as citizens be sure that if we are harassed by them that they won't shrug us off and dismiss our complaints as well. I am sorry Officer Ishmael for not stepping up but I hope you can understand. It's a small town and I don't want my family to be a target by a corrupt police department. I can only hope that maybe we can get somebody else involved with this that look into these issues that can make a difference. Maybe the ACLU can help out.

www.manassasjm.com - then to Opinion Page

Apparently everyone can see that something needs to be done starting at the top of the Police Department EXCEPT the Mayor and the Town Council!