TallPine
July 14, 2005, 11:01 PM
This was discussed here not long ago, and the "guidelines" have been eliminated :)
http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&tts=1&display=rednews/2005/07/14/build/state/15-trafficstops.inc
Highway patrol drops mandatory traffic stops
Associated Press
HELENA -- The Montana Highway Patrol has dropped its policies that set goals of officers making one traffic stop an hour and issuing at least 12 drunken-driving tickets every year, Attorney General Mike McGrath said Thursday.
The agency will continue developing a system for evaluating the performance of its officers, but no such guidelines will be part of that effort, he said. "We'll be using a total quality management process, but the numbers are gone."
McGrath, who oversees the Highway Patrol as part of his job, acknowledged it was a mistake to have implemented specific goals and that it had not occurred to him the numbers would be seen as the kind of law enforcement quota system prohibited by law.
"In the next few weeks, we will have a written final policy on how we evaluate performance," he said.
Since July 1, each patrol officer driving on state roads has been expected to meet a target of stopping at least one vehicle per hour, even if no tickets are issued. The goals don't apply when officers are investigating accidents, receiving training or testifying in court.
The patrol's chief, Col. Paul Grimstad, described the targets as guidelines -- not quotas -- aimed at reducing traffic accidents, fatalities and drunken driving. He said the public is expecting more from the patrol after the Legislature gave officers a higher pay raise than other state employees and expanded the patrol staff.
Grimstad also implemented guidelines in December 2004 for each officer to issue at least 12 tickets a year for alcohol-related infractions such as driving or walking while intoxicated.
Rep. Jonathan Windy Boy, D-Box Elder, had said he would seek to outlaw the guidelines, as well as quotas, during the special legislative session planned for December.
He was pleased to learn of McGrath's decision.
McGrath said there are other ways for a patrol sergeant to evaluate an officer.
Among the potential measurements, he said, are how an officer did testifying in court, the kinds of complaints registered about the officer, how thoroughly an officer investigates accidents and how proficient the officer's driving skills are.
http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&tts=1&display=rednews/2005/07/14/build/state/15-trafficstops.inc
Highway patrol drops mandatory traffic stops
Associated Press
HELENA -- The Montana Highway Patrol has dropped its policies that set goals of officers making one traffic stop an hour and issuing at least 12 drunken-driving tickets every year, Attorney General Mike McGrath said Thursday.
The agency will continue developing a system for evaluating the performance of its officers, but no such guidelines will be part of that effort, he said. "We'll be using a total quality management process, but the numbers are gone."
McGrath, who oversees the Highway Patrol as part of his job, acknowledged it was a mistake to have implemented specific goals and that it had not occurred to him the numbers would be seen as the kind of law enforcement quota system prohibited by law.
"In the next few weeks, we will have a written final policy on how we evaluate performance," he said.
Since July 1, each patrol officer driving on state roads has been expected to meet a target of stopping at least one vehicle per hour, even if no tickets are issued. The goals don't apply when officers are investigating accidents, receiving training or testifying in court.
The patrol's chief, Col. Paul Grimstad, described the targets as guidelines -- not quotas -- aimed at reducing traffic accidents, fatalities and drunken driving. He said the public is expecting more from the patrol after the Legislature gave officers a higher pay raise than other state employees and expanded the patrol staff.
Grimstad also implemented guidelines in December 2004 for each officer to issue at least 12 tickets a year for alcohol-related infractions such as driving or walking while intoxicated.
Rep. Jonathan Windy Boy, D-Box Elder, had said he would seek to outlaw the guidelines, as well as quotas, during the special legislative session planned for December.
He was pleased to learn of McGrath's decision.
McGrath said there are other ways for a patrol sergeant to evaluate an officer.
Among the potential measurements, he said, are how an officer did testifying in court, the kinds of complaints registered about the officer, how thoroughly an officer investigates accidents and how proficient the officer's driving skills are.
