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Police Sergeant ‘counseled’ after post on facebook By Cynthia L. Jacoby Special to The Press news@presspublications.com
A view from the zoo Guests at Maumee Bay State Park were recently treated to a winter carnival over the holidays. At left, Jane Pearson, of the Toledo Zoo, gave kids a close-up look at a snake, and (top right, and bottom photo) an armadillo. (Press photos by Ken Grosjean
Northwood
City undecided on dispatch center Northwood officials are continuing to discuss the possibility of being part of a regional dispatch center with other communities in Wood County, but nothing yet has been decided. Lake Township Police Chief Mark Hummer recently gave a presentation on the topic to Northwood City Council. Hummer, who is leading the effort, has made similar presentations to Lake Township, Walbridge and Rossford, which would also be part of the center. Currently, Lake Township dispatches for Rossford, Walbridge and Millbury. Northwood has its own dispatch service for fire and police. Hummer, Northwood Administrator Bob Anderson and other Wood County officials have been meeting since 2009 to discuss the matter. A regional dispatch study funded by an $87,840 state grant looked into establishing a regional dispatch center and the formation of a council of governments to manage it, said Hummer. “A consolidation of emergency dispatching services for Lake Township, the villages of Millbury and Walbridge, and the
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But they’re not going to give us any more money. I think we’ve heard that story before.
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By Kelly J. Kaczala Press News Editor kkaczala@presspublications.com
cities of Rossford and Northwood would be a better format to meet changes for the 9-11 system being planned by the state,” said Hummer. The country is preparing for the transition to a “Next Generation 9-1-1” or NG91-1, a technological upgrade to the current 9-1-1 system. NG9-1-1 is expected to improve public emergency communications services by updating the 9-1-1 service infrastructure, which will allow the public to transmit text, images, video and data to a 9-1-1dispatch center, also known as a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). Costly system Last February, the Federal Communications Commission, according to Hummer,
gave a report to Congress that noted plans for the Next Generation system of 9-1-1, which he said would be expensive. “But they’re not going to give us any more money,” he said. “I think we’ve heard that story before.” The upgrade will require the installation of a costly fiber optic system, which would allow dispatch centers to receive text messages and video. “It’s going to be very expensive, not only to put in, but to maintain. They have a plan on how we can do that. They want to lower the number of PSAPS in each county. Wood County currently has eight PSAPS. By 2018, they are only going to fund three. You will be able to fund your own, if you wish to, but if the county is not in compliance, they are going to cut 50 percent of our funding,” he said. A regional dispatch system would provide a seamless flow of information between the jurisdictions and responders, he said. “It would give us consistent service levels and standard operating procedures. And it would improve our staffing efficiencies,” he said. Costs to each community, he said, would be reduced over time.
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A sergeant in the Village of Genoa Police Department who mocked a neighboring police chief in Facebook by posting cartoons has been disciplined for his actions. Sgt. Todd Mocniak took down the Facebook posts referencing Clay Township Police Chief Terry Mitchell and had “corrective counseling” in a one-on-one session with Chief Bob Bratton in early December, the chief said. Clay Township borders part of Genoa and the departments regularly assist one another with mutual aid calls. “He got a sit down meeting with me,” Bratton continued. “I thought it was in bad taste that he did that.” Mocniak, a more than 10-year veteran of the department, is an avid Internet user and regularly posts items on his personal Facebook and Twitter accounts, the chief said. However, the items in question were brought to Bratton’s attention in November by staff from another law enforcement agency. “We thought it was not in the best judgment and it was about a chief of an area police department.” Bratton outlined the problem in a letter written Nov. 18 to Mayor Mark Williams. He noted the cartoons were standard ones that came from a pull-down menu and that users then inserted their own words to finish the cartoon. Mocniak told Bratton he considered the cartoons a joke. But there’s a history between the two departments and its officers and the cartoons only served to open old wounds, Bratton said. In one of the two cartoons, two children are seen running from a house with a broken window. One of the children is carrying a baseball bat. The caption states: “Jamie and Todd won’t be playing ball near the old Mitchell place again.” The second child supposedly refers to a former Clay Township police officer. “He didn’t think anything of it. He thought it was a joke. But as a command officer he should know better … and there’s an underlying history there with the departments to consider,” Bratton said. Bratton said he spoke to Mitchell on behalf on his department regarding the issue.
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