Don’t be a weasel

At this point, the Fairfax County Police office of internal investigations has no credibility. Its only purpose is to protect the department from embarrassment and to foil any outside investigations.



But we pay you to work for us...well to show up and drive around gas guzzlers all day...so we have a right to know what the hell it is your doing.


Create, within that office, a sub office of Citizens Concerns. That’s a nice, non-offensive name, but don’t underestimate the importance of nice, non-offensive names in the public relations war.


Under the office of Citizens Concerns, run a weekly public listing of cops that have been disciplined. You don’t have to publish their names, that’s just going to lead to all sort of trouble. Simply publish what action caused the discipline, what the outcome was and how many prior actions have been taken against the cop in question.


Post it on the county website. The first instinct of the police will be to agree to this and then weasel on it but hiding the report. Don’t be a weasel. Put down the donut and be a civic leader. Place the notices in a place people can find them, under a heading people can recognize.