In the Beginning — 15
Much of the focus for the last year of the century concentrated
on a problem known as “Y2K”. Since much of the world
is linked and assisted by computers, there was speculation that on
January 1st of the year 2000, many computer systems would fail because
of Y2K programming errors. To ensure continued function, the city
of Saint Paul invested in updating and testing of its computer equipment,
as did much of the essential services from the private sector. As
part of the preparation for Y2K, all sworn officers attended a one-day
refresher class on Mobile Field Force. This was the second time the
Department, as a whole, was trained in this technique. The Critical
Incident Response Team (C.I.R.T.) developed an operations plan for
situations requiring the use of that team’s specialized training
and equipment, and the Ordnance Disposal Unit (O.D.U.) received in-depth
training in domestic terrorism and weapons of mass destruction.
The Police Department scheduled all sworn officers to be available
on December 31st, in case of emergency. The old year passed into
the new with no disruption of services. While Y2K passed without
incident, the planning and training used to prepare Saint Paul police
officers may now be used for future major events requiring a specialized
response.
Because of the large number of sworn officers who retired in 1998 and 1999, the Department focused on means in which to hire capable officers quickly. The Inspection and Training Units coordinated recruitment efforts and engineered a new hiring process in 1999, Accelerated Entry. The program permitted the hiring of experienced police officers and their accelerated training process, allowing them to “hit the street” as soon as possible. Twenty officers were hired and trained through this Accelerated Entry model in 1999.
The Police Department decided in 1999 that, since the Parking Enforcement Officer (P.E.O.), Community Liaison Officer (C.L.O.) and Park Ranger positions were intended to prepare individuals for future appointments as Saint Paul police officers, employees hired in those titles would be required to pass the same minimum standards for fitness as police recruit candidates. Fitness assessments given every six months would ensure that the standard was maintained.
During the summer months of 1999, the merger of the Fire and Police Emergency Communication Centers (E.C.C.) became a reality. The merger brought civilian employees to the center with an exception of the Computer Aided Dispatching (C.A.D.) specialist and police liaison positions.
As 1999 closed the 20th century, the Department had evolved in numerous ways. Some of the most significant changes included: an increased adherence to the philosophy of community policing; a strong commitment that the Department would continue to be reflective of the diversity, values, and expectations that are present in the broader community; a focus on the level of professionalism from patrol officer to chief; and the transformation of the departmental staff, which had lost the experience, history and tradition of the retired officers. Yet, we gained youth, energy, creativity, and new problem solving attitudes, which will serve us well into the future.
During the 1990s, the Saint Paul Police Department, working together with the citizens and the neighborhoods of the city, accumulated an impressive list of successes. Those successes include developing a high degree of trust, support, respect, and cooperation between police officers and citizens, plus the implementation of team problem-solving, where members of community groups and neighborhoods work with police officers to identify quality of life issues and implement strategies to address them.
History has shown us that there have been many changes in the police service model since the Saint Paul City Council elected its first marshall in 1854. By the dawn of the 20th century, Saint Paul was quickly becoming a large urban metropolis with a decentralized police department and mounted patrols. Striving for greater efficiency, police service evolved away from the concept of the cop on the beat during the first half of the 20th century to the idea of a more mechanized police service in the 1950s. Yet, in this process, police officers often became anonymous figures to the average citizen. Confronted with civil turmoil in the 1960s, police responded too slowly and too impersonally, according to critics. Police service in the 1970s and 1980s recognized that it must have greater support from prosecutors, courts, corrections agencies, and the people they served, if crime was to be curbed. By the end of the century, policing returned to the neighborhoods, through concepts such as community and problem oriented policing, and historical approaches, including beat officers, substations, horse and bicycle patrols were embraced.
As we move onward in the 21st century, the city of Saint Paul and the Saint Paul Police Department will continue to amend the police service model, based on the ever-changing political, social and economic aspects of community living. The Department can and will draw from past experiences to create an engaging future.
NOTE: This article was published in 2000. Therefore, the history on this page stops at 2000. We are in the process of updating this to the current time