The Bryant Police Department will spend $78,000 to buy 33 body cameras for officers in the next couple of months, one of several steps the new chief has implemented in his first months on the job.
The 45-person department is scheduled to get Narcan kits within the next two weeks, traded in its guns last month for new weapons, is working to hire a part-time administrative assistant and is waiting on the delivery of several new police cars, said Bryant Police Chief Carl Minden.
Minden was hired four months ago. He previously worked as a major at the Pulaski County sheriff's office.
His longer-term goals include increasing the number of training hours and starting pay for officers, which he says are lower than other area police departments.
"It's a known need that our starting pay needs to be more competitive," Minden said.
Starting, uncertified officers make $28,719.60 before any holiday pay. Certified officers make $30,155.58, and all officers get a 2.5% increase in pay each year, he said.
Through virtual classes, Minden hopes to have 40 hours of training each year for officers, although state law only requires 16, he said.
The 2019 planned budget included about $4.6 million in expenses for the Police Department, and about $1.6 million in revenue, according to publicly available documents.
Bryant Mayor Allen Scott said it's impossible to have a viable police department with expenses that equal revenue.
Minden said a few of the costs the Police Department plans to incur in the next weeks are either budget-neutral or funded by the city's public safety tax.
For the first time since 2015, Bryant had more revenue than expenses in 2018. The city's overall expenses were nearly $13.4 million last year, according to budget documents. It generated $337 more in revenue.
The 2019 budget planned for $13.7 million in expenses, and $1,573 more revenue than expenses.
The city's 2019 budget documents also include a list of goals from Scott. One is to "continue to ensure the public safety through continuing improvements in the police and fire departments."
The body cameras were a major part of the planned improvements, the mayor said.
"Honestly, I came into office thinking we had them already," Scott said.
The city's eight school resource officers already have body cameras, and the patrol cars are equipped with cameras. Officers also wear microphones, which they'll trade in when the cameras arrive, Minden said.
The City Council unanimously approved the purchase and waived the competitive bidding process at a meeting last Tuesday.
The cost to the city is being offset by a private donation from an anonymous donor, whom Scott declined to name. Scott added that he'd approached the donor when he learned that not all officers have body cameras.
The donor gave $20,000 to the Police Department, and tax revenue will cover the rest. All traffic units, school resource officers and patrol officers will wear the body cameras at all times. A few extras will be available as needed for administrators, Minden said.
"[Using body cameras] wasn't something that was foreign to the department," he said. "It just hadn't gone department-wide."
The Police Department is also waiting on Narcan kit deliveries in the next couple of weeks. Officers should soon be trained in using Narcan, which reverses opioid overdoses, Minden said.
The department also switched from using .45-caliber pistols to 9mm handguns. The 9mm ammunition is cheaper and lighter, and the weapons are easier to handle, Minden said.
Because the department is trading in the handguns, the move will be cost-neutral, he said.
"It is a gun that's probably easier to handle," he said. "If you have smaller hands, smaller stature, sometimes it's not as easy to handle the .45."
The City Council also approved the decision to find a part-time administrative assistant for the department. The position was frozen and unfilled for about eight years, Minden said.
The job description was developed in 2008, according to city documents.
The position will pay $10.50 an hour, Minden said, and he hopes to have the budget for a full-time administrative assistant in 2020.
"We had talked about that before, because, believe it or not, our Police Department does not have an administrative assistant at this time," Scott said. "It'll take some of the load off some of the officers themselves."
The City Council also gave the go-ahead for the purchase of a new police car Tuesday after a driver hit one of the cruisers, totaling the vehicle.
The driver and officer weren't seriously injured, Minden said. But the purchase comes as the Police Department is waiting on four other new patrol cars to be delivered.
Scott said the 2019 budget had money set aside for the new cars.
The department ordered the cars months ago, but they're still being outfitted with lights, sirens and cages. Minden said that it's not typical for the delivery to take so long, and the reason for the delay is unclear.
"Every so often, you have to replace the fleet ...," Minden said. "Car purchases you have to do about every year."
The four new cars will cost $148,000, and insurance will cover the car that was totaled, he said.
Scott said he's excited to see the new things Minden is accomplishing with the Police Department and the way he handles staff.
"Basically, what I'm so excited about is his leadership style and his ability to motivate people ...," Scott said. "He's willing to go out and do whatever needs done."
SundayMonday on 09/02/2019