March 14, 2006

SOS Members:

Please review this letter sent to the Citizens Advisory Panel for the selection of the new Chief of Police. It outlines some of our concerns as a community and provides some constructive feedback for the process. Please let us know your thoughts via email or the website. Remember, this is perhaps the most important decision that City & County Goverment will make over the next several years.

In addition, please take the time to review the SCMPD Police Chief Recruitment and Selection Memo, which outlines the selection process & job description for the new Chief, via this link:

Police Chief Recruitment Executive Summary

As always, email us your thoughts and feedback. We look forward to hearing from you.

Martin

March 13, 2006

Mr. Brian Foster

President

First Chatham Bank

Post Office Box 1248

Savannah, Georgia 31402

(Hand Delivered March 13, 2006)

Dear Brian:

Congratulations on being named Chairman of the Police Chief Recruitment and Selection Advisory Panel. Selecting the new Chief of Police is the most important decision that City and County Government will make for the next several years.

It is imperative that we choose The Chief that will be able to turn around a city & county crime problem and a police department in desperate need of help. Violent crime is out of control in Savannah. A good example is the recent home invasion suffered by one of your employees. The citizens of this community have had enough and we demand better policing.

Brian, I know you and several others on your committee; I trust you and the others to look at the situation in a non-political fashion and insist on hiring the best of the best for the new police chief. Your job comes with a heavy load of responsibility and we thank you for your service.

Specifically, here are five additional points for you to consider when helping select the new chief:

    1. There is a crime problem in Savannah and the new chief needs to make a commitment towards zero tolerance. It cannot be business as usual.

    2. The Police Department needs reorganization from top to bottom. The new Chief needs to look and listen and then take whatever steps necessary to turn the department around.

    3. The salary for the new Chief should not be a concern. The citizens want the best of the best and it will probably cost more in salary and benefits, especially if the applicant comes from a large metropolitan area. There is no reason why the Police Chief cannot be paid more than the Mayor and City Manager. Their jobs don’t include being shot at by the bad guys, the politicians and the citizens. It takes a special person to take a job like that and we might have to pay more.

    4. He or She should be physically fit and that image along with physical requirements should be established for recruits and all police officers. We need our police officers to be the best of the best.

    5. The new chief needs to come from outside of current ranks. No one has the support of the community and therefore he or she cannot be successful.

Please review our ideas and let us have some feedback with regards to how you and your committee feel the process is working; as well as anything Save Our Savannah can do to help you in your work.

Sincerely,

Martin R. Sullivan

Save Our Savannah

Cc: Michael Brown

R. E. Abolt

William Baugh

William Lyght

Earline Davis

William Megathlin

Bernie Polite

Zelda Tenenbaum

James Hall