Last Monday, out-of-town Hollister Police Department chief
finalist Jeff Miller withdrew his name just hours before the
Hollister City Council was to confirm his appointment. The reason
stated for his withdrawal was past issues arising from his 18-month
tour of duty as chief of police for Rohnert Park.
Dear Editor:
Last Monday, out-of-town Hollister Police Department chief finalist Jeff Miller withdrew his name just hours before the Hollister City Council was to confirm his appointment. The reason stated for his withdrawal was past issues arising from his 18-month tour of duty as chief of police for Rohnert Park. Miller had also worked for embattled Hollister Interim Chief of Police Larry Todd at the Los Gatos Police Department.
The last sentence in the Tuesday, July 22, article about Miller’s withdrawal stated, “There are no candidates from within the HPD.” As the ex-mayor of Hollister, I completely disagree with that statement. It has always been my belief that people who spend their career with a department should get a shot at the top job. Hell, we encourage our employees to make their career here and then cry, moan and wring our hands when they leave city or county employment for better paying jobs with opportunities for advancement elsewhere.
Elected officials have always complained that we are nothing more than a steppingstone or a training ground for other cities and counties. My response to that: Why not leave if you don’t get a shot at the top position?
One of our problems in Hollister has always been that for some reason we feel the necessity to go elsewhere to get qualified staff to fill not only our department head positions but other positions as well.
Right now, we have police officers and deputy sheriff’s working for the city and county that live as far away as Fresno. Two out of our three deputy district attorneys also live out of the county. These people come here, put in eight hours, collect their pay and go home, expecting us to believe they have an investment in our community – no local accountability, investment, involvement or representation.
We elect locals to fill our City Council and Board of Supervisor positions, yet find it necessary to go out of county to fill the chief’s position. Does that make any sense? No it doesn’t.
At the next election, let’s make it mandatory that we elect only out-of-county people to fill all of our elected positions and see how loud our present elected officials scream. However, that’s not possible, the law in its wisdom won’t allow us to do that. It is a requirement that you live in the city, county, district, etc., in which you are running for elected office. There is a reason for that, it’s called accountability and representation. How can you be held accountable or represent us if you don’t live here?
When you’re an elected official, you work, sleep, shop and play where you live. You have a heartfelt investment in your community. When you go out in your community, you are held to answer for the stupid things you may do or say as the elected representative of the community … accountability.
We need to appoint a chief who is responsible, involved and accountable and we have one already working for us. His name is Richard Vasquez. As a captain with the Hollister Police Department and life-long resident, he is more than qualified for the job. I’ll remind you that when he ran for sheriff, he was supported and endorsed by the HPOA.
We need to stop this foolishness and hire from within the department. There is no need to start another search and (pay again) for what should have been done right the first time. Reward Richard Vasquez for his loyalty to our community, give him a chance and make him chief of police … he has earned it.
Richard K. Boomer,
former two-term mayor of Hollister
