Public Safety: "Georgia’s Time-Bombs"
What is the REAL situation regarding illegal drugs in Georgia?
Following are quotes submitted directly to me in writing or from
notes from personal meetings with active officers in your Georgia
State Patrol, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Department of
Corrections and Fraternal Order of Police or as noted:
- "Atlanta is the hub for distribution of illegal drugs for the
Eastern half of the US."
- "Drugs aren’t just in our high schools. The problem
has gotten into our middle schools."
- "We encounter meth on a daily basis during routine traffic
stops. It’s almost as bad as marijuana. But, what can we do?
We have fewer GSP Troopers now than we did in
1975!"
- "We have known since 1991
that meth was coming to Georgia, but we did nothing about it. Now
we are paying for it. The GBI is in a purely reactionary
mode and you can say GSP is not far behind!"
- "The overwhelming majority of criminal cases I see are for
illegal drugs or drug related. Families- good families- have been
torn apart and ruined because of illegal drugs. I’ve seen
successful business people lose their businesses, families, homes
and lives because of drugs."
- "29 of 48 GSP Posts are shut-down between 11pm and 7am
each and every night. If you were running drugs through
or into Georgia, when would you run them?"
- "North Georgia is the epicenter of the meth problem
nationwide!" (A North Georgia DA)
- "The meth problem is growing like kudzu." (Governor Perdue)
- "Governor Perdue allocated $1 million dollars to address the
meth problem. This is just a publicity stunt. …..there are
no GBI agents working narcotics in Atlanta….. we have
lost 120 GBI agents since 9/11 and they have not been replaced."
Folks, it’s your Georgia! You either want a
governor committed to ridding Georgia of illegal drugs, or you
don’t. My goal is to rid Georgia of illegal drugs. Can it be done?
Perhaps not. But, it can’t and won’t be done until your leader:
admits it is a problem of crisis proportion and
commits to get results. I admit it’s a
problem and I commit to get the job
done!
How are we equipped to
handle a terrorist attack/natural disaster like
Katrina?
- "God help us if Atlanta is the target of a major terrorist
attack or if we experience a major natural disaster. It would be
devastating and expose our lack of preparation. With our
radios, we can’t even talk to Metro Atlanta law enforcement
agencies."
- "I hope the good Lord spares us from any catastrophic event,
but I am also realistic. In my opinion,
we would be exposed before the world as truly
unprepared. We do not have the capability to
handle anything like that. Last year when Brian Nichols went on
his murderous rampage in Fulton County we sent every trooper from
the Northern third of the state to Atlanta. But, it was
useless. We couldn’t communicate with anyone."
- "Terrorist attack? The most effective means of communication
the GSP trooper has is his personal cell phone! Georgia’s reaction
would be a joke! We’ve been promised upgrading of our radio
system- in car equipment and towers- for years. It just keeps
getting put off. Only a few of our towers have generators.
If power is out, GSP is out!"
- "We have played a shell game with the citizens of
Georgia too long. It is Georgia’s citizens that are being short
changed everyday because they are not getting the services they
deserve or pay for."
Who cares about Georgia’s Prison System? Families of the
prisoners do. Department of Corrections Workers do. Should
you?
- "What would you think if a police officer was to walk into a
neighborhood unarmed where it’s only inhabitants were violent
criminals? We do it everyday. We are Georgia’s Correctional
Officers."
- "Our prisons are a time bomb waiting to go off. Why? Shortages
of qualified people and lowering of standards for new hires. In
some prisons all you have to be is 18 years old, have a GED and
pass a drug test. Ware State Prison is 40 guards short. I know of
another prison that is 90 guards short. Somebody made the decision
to shut down 3 of the 5 security towers just to be able to have 3
more guards on shift. We drive perimeter vehicles that you can
outrun on foot. Our weapons and ammunition look like we had them
since Georgia became a state. Keep in mind, WSP has over 1,000 of
the most violent convicts in the state."
- "Our highest security prison is a population of all male
convicts. 60% of the guards are female. What are we waiting for?
One of them to get raped or killed before we change? Actually, no.
We just can’t attract any qualified males to take the jobs."
- "Contraband? Yes, we have it. And, yes, there are corrupted
guards that furnish it. But, they are the exception. What do you
expect with so little experience and from guards that are so
young? You pay guards very little and the temptation is there. We
get our training in 4 weeks at Forsyth. Then, we rely on
experienced veterans to complete the training on the job. But,
with fewer and fewer experienced guards on staff, how can you
expect a well-trained and professional group? You can’t.
Therefore, the situation is what it is. It’s bad."
- There are 15,000 employees in Georgia’s Department of
Corrections.
- Georgia is short 6 prisons. County jails house and more and
more state prisoners awaiting transfer for longer and longer
periods of time. Local taxpayers foot more and more of the bill
than they should. Now you know why that is so.
Safety on Georgia’s Highways
- "Georgia is the only state in the South that does not allow
unmarked patrol cars."
- "One thing we could do to stop excessive speeding and reckless
driving is to raise the limit on fines- a lot! Fines work. Have
you ever heard of anyone getting a prison sentence for speeding?
Me, either. Prison sentences may as well be eliminated. They don’t
work."
- "Control our highways? GSP is nearly 200 troopers short and we
can’t hire them. We’re authorized 953. We have 760. After you
deduct those in admin jobs, we only have 500 road troopers. Even
at full staffing we’re short. We need 2,000. DeKalb County has
more uniformed officers than GSP."
- Each trooper school is designed for 60 trainees. A class that
started in late 2005 only had 36 applicants. According to history,
only 24 will graduate. There won’t be enough to even replace those
retiring.
- "Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi, but we
have the fewest troopers per road mile or population or any other
way you want to measure it than any other Southern State."
The quotes you have just read were a few of many I received in
response to questions I posed to each person I quoted. The questions
were preceded by a couple of mission statements I made to them. (The
questions follow the mission statements.)
- I want Georgia to be the best place to live, work, raise a
family and do business. The mission of our law enforcement is to
make it so.
- I want to rid Georgia of illegal drugs.
- I want Georgia’s roadways to be safe and under control.
- I will not simply "support" our public safety officers (GSP,
GBI, DOC). I will lead the way! My vision for Georgia can’t happen
unless I do.
These were my questions:
- What will it take to rid Georgia of illegal drugs?
- What will it take to regain control of our highways?
- What is our response capability in the event of a terrorist
attack in Atlanta, or a major natural catastrophe on the scale of
Katrina?
Specifically for Department of Corrections Officers, I asked
these questions:
- What will it take to rid our prison system of gangs and
contraband?
- What are the biggest problems facing our prison system from
your perspective?
Georgians, now you understand the situation from the perspective
of those in uniform who serve and protect you with pride. But morale
is low. The situation is not likely to improve without some major
changes.
So, what will it take to achieve my
expectations? Here’s what they had to say:
- Everyone of them had the exact same thing to say- pay
and benefits!
- Every category of Georgia’s Public Safety uniformed
officers are at the bottom of the pay scale in the South. Most are
below that paid by all of the metro Atlanta agencies. All are
below that paid by federal agency counterparts.
- Pay and benefits explains recruitment
failures.
- Pay and benefits explains relaxing of hiring
standards.
- Pay and benefits explains why GSP, GBI and DOC can’t
retain good officers.
Folks, it’s your Georgia. Illegal drugs and our situation within
our prison system are already at crisis stages. Our highways are out
of control. We are not prepared to meet your needs in the event of
an emergency of catastrophic proportion. The bottom line is simple
to state. You are either happy the way it is, or you want it to
change. I want it to change.
This is my commitment to all
Georgians:
- Georgia will be a safe state.
- We will rid the state of illegal drugs and gangs.
- We will fully fund Drug Courts for every jurisdiction that
wants one.
- Georgians, your children will be able to play in their yards
and on your neighborhood playgrounds without fear. Our schools
will be safe. We will place uniformed, on-duty law enforcement
officers with full arresting powers in all of our public schools
that want them.
- Female single heads of households, you will not live lives of
fear in your homes.
- Georgia will take care of our own in the event of a terrorist
attack or major natural disaster. Outside help will be a plus, not
a necessity.
- We will build the Georgia Defense Force into a viable network
of volunteers fully trained and equipped by the state.
- We will seek involvement of our veteran’s organizations in our
terrorist response effort.
- We will re-take control of our highways so that Georgians will
be able to travel them without fear for their lives by wreckless
drivers, DUI’s, illegally licensed operators and those speeding
excessively.
- All state inspection/weigh stations will be manned and open
24/7/365!
- I will champion a constitutional amendment that gives
authority to the Governor for pardoning and commutation of
sentences, which will enable me to take my Last Chance Program
(details on my website - John’s Vision for
Georgia) to Georgia’s business community as efforts to reduce
our prison population and give deserving inmates a realistic
chance of becoming productive citizens.
This is my commitment to the officers on the front lines- prison
guards, Georgia State Troopers/Radiomen, DOT Highway Officers,
Inspection/Weigh Station Officers, GBI Officers and all of their
uniformed supervisors:
- In my first budget, there will be a $5,000 across the board
pay raise for all officers that are below the average pay for
comparable positions in any other Southern state. I fully expect
that to apply to everyone in uniform except, perhaps, new
recruits.
- During my four-year term as governor, every category of pay
will rise to a level that makes Georgia’s uniformed officers equal
to the best paid in the South.
- Retirement benefits will be closely scrutinized. I do not have
enough information to make a specific commitment at this time.
- Staffing will be increased to meet our needs, whatever they
are.
- Georgia’s emergency communications systems will be modernized
to enable 24/7 command and control and inter-agency communications
capability in every region of the state.
- Georgia will implement a frequency and call-sign management
system.
- Georgia will no longer be the only state without unmarked
patrol cars.
- Everyone will be given everything they need to do their jobs,
which is defined as meeting my expectations for a safe and
protected Georgia.
- My expectations are high. By the end of my term of office, all
reasons for not meeting my expectations will have been eliminated.
Georgians, undoubtedly, I will be inundated with questions
regarding funding. If Governor Perdue can find $750 million dollars
to throw at piecemeal education initiatives that did not improve
Georgia’s public education system, I will find funds necessary to
eliminate quality of life issues that cause Georgians to live in
fear and that impede job creation and economic development in
Georgia.
It’s your Georgia! I want to make it a safe place
for you, your families and visitors to our state. If you share my
vision, you must do your part to get me on the ballot. Afterwards,
we’ll worry about winning the election in November! If you are
motivated to help. The time is NOW!
Only 4 weeks
remain to collect enough signatures to get me on the ballot.
Nomination petitions can be obtained by contacting my headquarters
or obtaining blank petitions at your courthouse. Email us at chairman@dashlerforgov.com
and, time permitting, we’ll send petitions to you or we’ll tell you
how to complete those you obtain from your
courthouse.
Thank you for your interest and support
John Dashler,
Independent Candidate for Governor
john@dashlerforgov.com
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