Police cadets face cuts

Three police cadets graduating from the academy this week and set to join the Costa Mesa Police Department are safe from the department’s current belt-tightening, but four other cadets in the academy may not be as safe, officials said Tuesday.

Instructions from city leaders for all Costa Mesa departments to find places to save money have made the police department implement an unofficial hiring freeze, preventing new recruits or lateral transfers from other cities from joining the force, said Police Chief Chris Shawkey. The three graduating cadets were already budgeted in as some of the department’s 164 sworn-in officers.

Officials did not elaborate on if there is room for the four other cadets.

“It’s under review, it’s possible those positions could be cut” before they finish the program, Shawkey said.

Cutting the four cadets from the academy, where the department has invested equipment, time and money training them, is one of several avenues city leaders are exploring in streamlining costs for police.

Allen Rieckhof, president of the police officers’ union, said he would prefer for older officers to retire, saving the department costs in salaries and benefits when compared to new officers’ compensation.

The city manager’s office has asked the police department to cut more than $640,000 in costs by the end of the fiscal year in June, said City Manager Allen Roeder.

The department is expected to find $412,851 in personnel costs and $228,402 in operational expenses to withhold through at least the rest of the fiscal year, according to a November study session with City Council members. Several vacant positions in the department will remain so, though they could be filled in the future, Shawkey said.

“This is by no means permanent,” he said.

The first major change in the department was the decision to disband the narcotics and vice unit, a seven-officer strong unit that focused on drug crimes and related crimes such as prostitution. Six of the officers have been reassigned while the other remains a liaison with the U.S. Justice Department’s Drug Enforcement Administration, officials said.

Dissolving the unit will save the department about $150,000 in its first six months through overtime savings and various operational and equipment costs, Shawkey said. The narcotics unit had an annual budget of about $450,000, Sgt. Bryan Glass said.

The narcotics unit will be disbanded by the first week of January and any other changes to the department will likely come soon after a mid-year review of the department next month, officials said. Any changes or cuts are meant to stave off more drastic changes in June, Shawkey said.

Rieckhof continues to push for renewed contract negotiations to save jobs and cut costs.

“In our last contract, we agreed to language that if the city can’t pay, the city can’t pay,” Rieckhof said. “We’re up for sitting down and talking to them again.”

He added, “We’re not greedy to the point where we sit down at the table and demand a raise ... we want to be average. We’re not greedy where we want to be top-step. If the city can’t pay we’ll understand, we’re willing to sit down at the table.”

To this point City Council members have not instructed city employees to begin talks with the police union, Roeder said. Nor has the city given serious consideration to urging older, better-compensated officers to retire so younger, less-expensive officers can take their place, he said.

“I think each association is soliciting feedback from their membership right now,” Roeder said. “We’re still in the idea-gathering phase.”

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.