Ingram seeks pay increase for police • Poverty-level entry rate dulls attraction of DPS to qualified personnel

Public Safety Commissioner Charles Ingram made a strong pitch on the need for higher salary of police officers and revamp of existing anti-crime laws in the CNMI at the conclusion of the House oversight hearing yesterday on his department which he considered a “necessary evil.”

Rep. Frank Cepeda, chair of the House Committee on Judiciary and Governmental Operations which initiated the hearing, likewise vowed to institute reforms in DPS through legislation.

But yesterday’s hearing, the last in a three-part series of investigation, seemed to have failed in tackling one major concern as the committee jumped from one issue to another, making it a “chopsuey” mix of several problems besetting the crucial department.

Topics ranged from employees to weapons allowed in the Commonwealth, from a mysterious abbreviation to a missing audit report, and from the fire division to the correctional division.

Felons as employees: JGO member Rep. Timmo Olopai brought up an important concern regarding alleged practice in the DPS to continue hiring employees who have been convicted of felony, but the issue was never discussed at length.

Ingram defended the department from the accusation, saying existing laws do not forbid convicted government employees from being re-hired so long as the charges are misdemeanor.

Those sentenced on felony charges are allowed to be employed after 10 years, but they cannot carry firearms, the commissioner told Olopai, who promptly ordered Ingram to investigate on the matter.

Cepeda, meanwhile, castigated Ingram for allowing honor guards to chew betel nut during a state funeral or public ceremony, a practice which the JGO chair claimed diminishes the community’s respect to DPS personnel.

He also inquired on the policy regarding gun ownership as well as the type of weapons that ca be brought onto the island, urging Ingram to do an inventory on the firearms and ammunition stock of the department.

But Ingram, when asked what the Legislature could do to improve the service of the DPS, said police officers need to have higher salary to keep them out of poverty level.

“You get what you pay for,” the DPS chief told the hearing.

He said the current entry level for police officers stands at $13,000, which must be raised to at least $19,000 to attract more qualified people into the department.

“We are getting a hard time getting people for the Division of Corrections,” Ingram later explained in an interview with reporters. “We need a lot of people.”

Jail conditions: DOC Director Gregory F. Castro said the division has recently hired four new officers, but will need 23 more to beef up the current number of jail guards of 22 to supervise 71 inmates.

Training is ongoing for DOC officers as part of the consent decree entered into between the CNMI and the US following settlement of the lawsuit against the island government alleging inhumane jail conditions here, according to Castro.

A DPS detective testified also that the Legislature must amend existing criminal laws as there are several loopholes, such as the jail sentence imposed on convicted theft or burglars.

There has been a marked increase in the number of repeat offenders in the CNMI in recent years as the laws only stipulate of up to six-month sentence on convicted robber.

According to the investigation officer, at least 100 repeat offenders are roaming scot-free after serving out their court sentence. They are not also required to pay fines.

Cases of burglary have jumped in recent years, especially in Capitol Hill where residents have complained to the House committee about robbery cases that remain unsolved.

“It’s frustrating, yes. We share that frustration with the victims,” the detective told the hearing. “No arrest has been made and all the evidence is circumstantial.”

An off-island investigator may have to be hired by the government to deal with this issue which would take long as the CNMI does not have the resources for his services.

Revamp of laws: Ingram believed the laws should be changed. “All our laws need to be revamped either in Constitutional convention where they come up,” he said, noting that DPS had submitted their recommendations when the CNMI criminal code was being drafted, but he had lost track of its fate.

On the outcome of the hearing, the commissioner said “it’s a necessary evil. If the public wants to know and needs to know, then it should be done… I’m mission-oriented, regardless of what Mr. Cepeda may think.”

Held since last month after last March’s prison stand-off and spate of jailbreaks in the past year, the oversight is expected to release its recommendations on the list of legislation needed to improve DPS services — findings that always point to inadequate funding and lack of leadership.

“I am hoping that they understand the problems a little bit better, but we are going to get our job done whether we get our money or not,” Ingram said