The 28th Biennial Conference of the TN State Lodge concluded on Saturday, June 12, 2010 with the election of new officers. The officers are: 

President:                Johnny Crumby
Vice-President:       Dan Raper
2nd VP:                    Scottie Delashmit
Secretary:                Mike Embrey
Treasurer:                Larry McCoy
Sgt-At-Arms:          David Cowan
Trustee Chairman:  Bob Yoakum
Imm. Past Pres:        Brian Moran
National Trustee:    Duane Phillips

The conference was a huge success and everyone had a great time. Thanks to the host lodges and especially Brother Bohanan for his dedication and patience. 

REMEMBER: the bill does not require binding arbitration, protects existing right-to-work

FOP and IAFF Stand Strong in Support of Collective Bargaining

NFOP President Chuck Canterbury  and Harold A. Schaitberger,

www.fopadvantage.com or call (866) 816-5143.

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Utah's 4-10 Schedule A Decided Success

From Time.com, September 7

In an era when most of us seem to be working more hours than ever (provided we're still lucky enough to have jobs), 17,000 people in Utah have embarked on an unusual experiment. A year ago, the Beehive State became the first in the U.S. to mandate a four-day workweek for most state employees, closing offices on Fridays in an effort to reduce energy costs. The move is different from a furlough in that salaries were not cut; nor was the total amount of time employees work. They pack in 40 hours by starting earlier and staying later four days a week. But on that fifth (glorious) day, they don't have to commute, and their offices don't need to be heated, cooled or lit.

After 12 months, Utah's experiment has been deemed so successful that a new acronym could catch on: TGIT (thank God it's Thursday). The state found that its compressed workweek resulted in a 13% reduction in energy use and estimated that employees saved as much as $6 million in gasoline costs. Altogether, the initiative will cut the state's greenhouse-gas emissions by more than 12,000 metric tons a year. And perhaps not surprisingly, 82% of state workers say they want to keep the new schedule. "It's beneficial for the environment and beneficial for workers," says Lori Wadsworth, a professor at Brigham Young University who helped survey state employees. "People loved it." Those who didn't tended to have young children and difficulty finding extended day care.

Managers from around the world have gotten in touch with Utah officials, and cities and towns including El Paso, Texas, and Melbourne Beach, Fla., are following the state's lead. Private industry is interested as well — General Motors has just instituted a workweek of four 10-hour days at several of its plants. "There is a sense that this is ready to take off," says R. Michael Fischl, an associate dean at the University of Connecticut's law school, which is organizing a symposium on four-day weeks.

The advantages of a so-called 4-10 schedule are clear: less commuting, lower utility bills. But there have been unexpected benefits as well, even for people who aren't state employees. By staying open for more hours most days of the week, Utah's government offices have become accessible to people who in the past had to miss work to get there in time. With the new 4-10 policy, lines at the department of motor vehicles actually got shorter. Plus, fears that working 10-hour days would lead to burnout turned out to be unfounded — Wadsworth says workers took fewer sick days and reported exercising more on Fridays. "This can really make a difference for work-life balance," says Jeff Herring, Utah's executive director for human resources.

Of course, in the age of the BlackBerry, fewer days in the office may not make much of a difference in terms of workload. But as energy prices start rising again, it makes sense to be flexible and find savings where we can. 10-4, 4-10.

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The Gates Case:  After Action Report
by Jim Pasco, Executive Director
                                   
On the morning of 23 July 2009, at the direction of National President Chuck Canterbury, I contacted the White House to advise them of the FOP’s concerns regarding the President’s remarks at the previous night’s press conference which were directed at Sergeant James Crowley and the Cambridge Police Department.  I also advised them that National President Canterbury would issue a formal statement later in the day.

I was subsequently contacted by a second member of the White House staff, who told me that all other police groups had committed to remain silent on the issue.  I told this staff member that we were unlikely to remain silent.    I suggested that he call National President Canterbury, who was in a travel status, and gave him National President Canterbury’s cell phone number.  I immediately called National President Canterbury and briefed him on both my conversations with White House staff. 

About ten minutes later, National President Canterbury, having by then spoken with the White House himself, coordinated with Arnie Larson, President of the Massachusetts State Lodge, and instructed the Washington, D.C. office to issue a strong statement in support of Sgt. Crowley and the Cambridge Police Department.  We did so at approximately 3 pm that afternoon.  By early that evening,  as a result of FOP leadership on the issue, all other national police groups--except the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO)–rethought their positions and also made statements in support of the men and women of the Cambridge Police Department.

We were inundated with media calls but only responded to print media to ensure a clear and moderate message.  National President Canterbury declined all invitations to appear on talk shows and television news programs.

On the following day, we were happy to comply with a White House request to help facilitate a call from President Obama to Sgt. Crowley, the content of which has been extensively reported. 

There is no doubt that the FOP’s prompt, thoughtful, and aggressive action ultimately mininmized potential adverse fallout from this matter, and brought focus to the simple fact that Sergeant James Crowley is a good police officer in a good department, and that he and his colleagues were merely doing their jobs that day–and doing them well.

April 7, 2009

H.R. 218 Prevails in South Dakota Case, Judge says States “cannot restrict” concealed carry by qualified officers

Chuck Canterbury, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, was pleased, but not surprised, by news that charges were dismissed against four qualified law enforcement officers who were indicted for violating South Dakota ’s law against carrying concealed firearms during a visit to that State.

“Dismissal of the charges was absolutely the right decision,” Canterbury said. “The judge’s ruling correctly applied the Law Enforcement Officers’ Safety A ct, which is better known to FOP members as ‘H.R. 218.’”

Four off-duty, active law enforcement officers, three Federal and one local, were charged for carrying concealed firearms while visiting a bar in Sturgis , South Dakota . The four were carrying lawfully under the provisions of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers’ Safety A ct (LEOS A ), or 18 USC 926B, which exempts qualified active law enforcement officers from State and local prohibitions on the carriage of concealed firearms. The exemption does not attach if the officer is under the influence.

A fter examining the facts of the case, Judge Warren G. Johnson of South Dakota’s Fourth Judicial Circuit, dismissed the charges, writing that while “[S]tates retain the right to prohibit the possession of firearms on government property and to permit private persons and entities to prohibit the possession of firearms on their property, they cannot restrict qualified law enforcement officers in any other manner.”

“The FOP fielded a lot of calls and emails from concerned members when the indictments were first announced, saying that the officers should not have been charged in the first place. Given the outcome, I agree with them,” Canterbury said.

Initial news reports about the incident were complicated by a misstatement from a public information officer with the Bureau of A lcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ( A TF), which suggested that the law had never taken effect. The FOP contacted A TF about the statement, which prompted a swift response in the form of a letter from W. Larry Ford, the A ssistant Director for the Office of Public and Governmental A ffairs, in which he apologized for the confusion and clarified the application of the law.

“In short, LEOS A is Federal law and qualified active and retired law enforcement officers may rely on it when traveling with their firearms,” Canterbury said.

The news article regarding Judge Johnson’s decision to dismiss the charges as reported by the Rapid City Journal can be found here: