Santa Ana Police Adhere to Policy in Contract Fight

Santa Ana police began working in strict accordance with oft-ignored department regulations Wednesday, despite a court order forbidding them to engage in work slowdowns or stoppages during an ongoing contract dispute with the city.

Sgt. Don Blankenship, president of the Police Benevolent Assn., said the strict adherence to policy, which began with the 7 a.m. shift, was not intended to be a “work-to-rule” job action that would back up routine police calls, but rather a response to the city’s claim that the police force is almost fully staffed.

“We’ve wanted to do this for a number of years,” Blankenship said. “We’ve been down . . . a critical manpower shortage the last six years, and . . . we’ve cut corners trying to get the job done going from call to call.”

City Manager David N. Ream said the police force has 20 openings--down from 40 earlier in the year--and plans to have no vacancies by the end of the year.

Higher Raise Sought

The PBA has pointed to the city’s unstaffed police positions to support its argument that Santa Ana must pay higher salaries to attract and keep new officers. The officers want an 11.9% raise this year, while the city has countered with an offer of 4.5% this year and 4% next year.

Ream says that Santa Ana has not had a problem keeping officers because of salaries and that the city has “had a very successful recruiting program.”

Ream, describing the PBA’s latest action as a “work-to-rule type activity . . . on a limited basis,” said it had no discernible effect on Wednesday but that its full impact might become more apparent in a day or two.

As for what effect the new adherence to procedure might have, Blankenship offered the example of two officers dispatched to handle a potentially dangerous call. Until now, the first officer arriving on the scene would go handle the call without waiting for help, even though procedure might dictate that he or she wait for backup. Now, Blankenship said, that officer will wait for help, which could result in a 10- to 15-minute delay on each call.

On a typical swing shift in Santa Ana, he said, there might be 30 to 40 calls pending.

“Our contention is that we can finally start servicing the people in a manner that they should be served,” said Blankenship, adding that the manpower shortage did not allow officers enough time for follow-up investigations and area searches for suspects.

No Contract Since July 1

The 430-member PBA, which represents all sworn officers through the rank of sergeant and some non-sworn personnel, has been without a contract since July 1. After a three-day sickout later that month, a Superior Court judge issued an injunction at the city’s request blocking the officers from further work stoppages or slowdowns.

PBA attorney Seth Kelsey said the association’s latest development does not violate that injunction because it is not intended to be a work slowdown.

“A work slowdown is a concerted effort to refuse to provide services requested by the public,” Kelsey said. “That is not what the police association is doing. They’re providing services; they’re just making sure they’re provided entirely consistent with the rules.”

If the officers provided those services in a different manner in the past, he said, then the police administration was to blame for requiring them to work “in a manner that is not consistent with safe law enforcement procedures,” Kelsey said.

“Any employee, particularly a police officer, has the right, even if it falls in the midst of a contract dispute, to insist that his employer require him not to break the rules,” he said.

If the new by-the-book policing results in a reduction of service, Kelsey said, it would not be “the intent of what the association is doing, but . . . an incidental consequence.”