The Union received notification from the Command Staff of their decision to return all HPD personnel to their normal duties and regular days off effective 0600 hours, Saturday, September 27, 2008. 

However, we also were advised that the Red Book will continue to be closed until Friday, October 10, 2008 and that all extra employment has been restricted only to an officer’s regular days off. 

We are at a complete loss to explain the complete lack of logic and leadership that our police chief is continuing to perpetuate.  We have fielded a huge volume of phone calls from officers who can’t believe the ineptness of this most recent directive to prevent officers form working extra jobs, except on their days off , to facilitate private businesses policing needs that the city of Houston can’t fulfill. 

We have reached out to Mayor White to intercede and pray that he has the power to convince our chief to do the right thing.  In addition to the absurdity of the chief’s decision to virtually wipe out extra jobs and block officers from using any earned time off they have, the chief has failed to assist officers with proper relief, equipment, food, and down-rooms.

There is absolutely no reason for our appointed leader to be allowed to make endless bad decisions that do nothing to improve public safety and they especially are harmful to working Houston police officers who have worked so hard to help the Department protect their community.

We have little hope that the chief is going to do anything to reverse his ill-advised decisions, however, we shall not be deterred in our collective efforts to do all we can to eventually get someone in the hierarchy of our city to convince or force our chief to start doing the right thing. 

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