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NEWS
Holbrook addresses local Young Professionals
HUNTINGTON -- The Huntington Police Department is facing some difficult challenges, but is by no means standing still in trying to tackle them, Chief Skip Holbrook told the Young Professionals Committee on Thursday during their monthly meeting.
While Huntington is low on officers while trying to battle the heightened crime rate related to crack and heroin, it's had some new hires, started new programs and has some new initiatives in the works, he said.
The Young Professionals Committee (YPC), a subcommittee of the Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce, is made up of future community leaders, Holbrook said, and he updated them on what's being done to make their community a safer place, as well as giving them some ideas for pitching in.
Because YPC is a group of about 200 civic-minded young professionals, "It's appropriate for us to hear the chief of police on the state of our community -- and learn more about what we can do to participate in its improvement," said YPC member Jennifer Wheeler, university fund coordinator for the Marshall University Foundation.
One order of business for the Huntington Police Department is to increase the size of the force, Holbrook said. It had 87 officers when he started last year, and now has 94. But Holbrook said he thinks 106 is an attainable goal for the near future, and 121 would be even better.
"It's all about setting priorities, obtaining money and reaching goals," he said. "I'm optimistic."
The department has seen some officers deployed to Iraq and return recently, and other high-ranking officers have retired recently. All have left the force in a state of transition, but the retirements provided opportunities for promotion, which is a good attraction for drawing quality officers, he said.
With funds from the Empowerment Zone, the TTA and Pullman Square, HPD has a new full-time officer patrolling the downtown business district. Those groups contributed a total $60,000 for the officer, and the HPD will pay for that position after the first year.
It's a great partnership, and "a tremendous boost to us," Holbrook said.
And HPD has several crime-reduction strategies under way to battle the city's drug problem. Holbrook said it just finished the first phase of a significant heroin investigation. Several agencies came together and within six months had identified a source of the drug all the way to Mexico. The agencies linked pushers to victims who had died of overdoses, and with strict sentencing, those individuals will get life in prison and no longer be released back onto the streets to perpetuate the problem, he said.
The city has had 11 homicides since he arrived in 2007, six of which can be traced to drug activity, Holbrook said. The others were domestic situations, which are difficult to predict and prevent, Holbrook said.
"Our clearance rate on those homicides is 90 percent," he said. "That tells you that we get after them. There are always lots of rumors. ... There are some things that we can talk about, and some things we can't."
The December 2007 homicide case involving Marshall University student Leah Hickman is one in which police haven't been able to release a lot of information, but that's not because they don't have leads, he said.
"It's not a case of who done it, but how do we prove it," he said.
Holbrook said Huntington has some of the most talented officers he's ever worked with, and the community is fortunate.
In efforts to combat drug activity, the police also have been doing more with the bicycle patrol, which is more of a "community policing model," Holbrook said. Not only does it make officers more approachable to community members to improve their relationship with the police, but it makes it easier for officers to sneak around, Holbrook said. HPD also is in the process of implementing a laptop system, in which every officer has a laptop computer in his or her vehicle and can use it to obtain information and communicate in a way that won't be heard over the scanner.
"Now, we do a lot of talking on air, and (criminals) know where we're going and what we're doing," he said.
An in-car camera system, which provides surveillance for officers when they have lights flashing, is another new effort.
Grants from the federal government and other groups have helped fund these initiatives.
Members of the private sector started a concerted effort to raise money for the police department earlier this year. They did so by establishing the Supporting Technology for Our Protection committee (S.T.O.P.). That group has raised more than $100,000 used to support a federal technology grant. It also purchased motorcycles, patrol rifles, a non-lethal bean-bag gun, a S.W.A.T./drug van and laboratory equipment.
HPD also has added detectives and a canine, and is working toward a new street crime unit.
It also plans a new self reporting system for moderate, nonviolent crimes, such as car theft or moderate property damage. For cases in which victims mostly need the police report for insurance purposes, they will be able to fill out their own report and bring it back to the station, freeing up officers' time for more serious crime prevention. Soon, victims will be able to fill those reports out online, Holbrook said.
For those in the community who wish to help prevent crime, the best things to do are to get involved in neighborhood groups aimed at helping to identify possible problems, and to share what they know by calling the HPD's tip line at 304-696-5555, he said.
"Never hesitate to pick up the phone and call the police department," he said.
