Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/1731
30 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: MAY 2009 W h e n o f f i c e r s w i t h t h e Escondido Police Depart- ment in California learned the city council voted to eliminate 401(k) contributions and longevity pay hikes, union offi cials responded by mailing a fl yer to 17,000 homes in the city. According to a story by North County Times reporter David Garrick, the fl ier used crime statistics and pictures of an El Salvadoran gang in an effort to per- suade residents that compensation cuts for police would be a bad idea. The fl ier also ac- cused city offi cials of negotiating with its unions in bad faith and making poor decisions with taxpayer money. The attorney rep- resenting the union told council mem- bers they should expect more of these same tactics if they cut police salaries and benefi ts as a way to balance the budget. Critics say the Escondido union is using tactics developed by a San Bernardino County labor attorney that recommends police labor unions "annoy decision-makers" and "chastise them for their lack of concern for public safety." It also suggests the union act "like a quiet giant in the position of 'do as I ask and don't piss me off.'" Michael Guerrero, president of the Escondido police union, said he has never been to the web site where the strategies and tactics are outlined, and that he prefers to negotiate based on facts and statistics instead of intimidation and threats. The controversial website (www. policeattorney.com/newsletters- 94.htm) is hosted by attorney Dieter Dammeier, whose fi rm represents 120 police unions in California. Guerrero says he has never been to the site, but that he does listen carefully to tactical suggestions from his attorney and sees no problem with aggressively criticizing city of- fi cials for positions they take or mistakes they make. "I reject some sug- gestions and accept others," he said. Dammeier, a for- mer police officer, is holding firm. In a meeting with the city council after the fi rst fl yer was mailed, he told the coun- cil members they should be expect more of the same. "This police asso- ciation is going to continue to edu- cate the community about the lack of public safety being prioritized," Dammeier said. "This fl ier was just the beginning." But some city councilors have la- beled the recommendations on the website "deplorable" and "shock- ing." City Councilman Dick Daniels told North County Times reporter Garrick that, in his opinion, some of the tactics are reprehensible. "It's a game plan that goes beyond what is civil," Daniels said. "I hope whatever they do in the future is not racial and does not cre- ate undue fear." Is fl yer a scare tactic or just smart politics? According to CBS affi liate CBS2 in Los Angeles, authorities are look- ing for a well-endowed con-woman that used someone else's ID to get herself breast implants. Police in Huntington Beach have issued a $20,000 arrest warrant for Yvonne Jean Pam- pellonne, 30, who was identi- fi ed through a photo line-up as the woman who allegedly had liposuction and a breast implant procedure at the Pacifi c Center for Plastic Surgery in Huntington Beach, according to Huntington Beach P.D. Detective Larry Pitcher. Pampellonne went in for the pro- cedures in September but never re- turned for follow-up appointments, Pitcher said. Pampellonne is wanted on commercial burglary, grand theft, and identity theft charges. ID theft facilitates breast implants Circle number 116 on the Reader Service Card.