Macomb, IL – Macomb's police chief still thinks the department needs more officers. For a few years now, Chief Mike Galloway has asked aldermen to increase the number of sworn officers from 26 to 28.
Galloway says every year the department loses two to six officers through retirement or resignation. An increase in the force would prevent staffing levels from dropping too low.
Aldermen say there is no money to hire more officers, and now the department will be shorthanded again this summer. The city council accepted the resignations of three officers on May 21 while two new officers were sworn in.
The new officers will still need to go through training and might not be on the street until mid-August. As a result, the department will have just 20 sworn officers during the summer.
Galloway believes the department will still be able to get the job done for the next few months because there is less activity during the summer. But he also says more officers take vacations during the summer so the already shorthanded department will end up paying more in overtime costs.
Additional information:
*The newly hired officers both grew up in western Illinois.
Travis Helkey is from Pittsfield and graduated from WIU. He's a sergeant in the National Guard and was deployed to Iraq from 2003 to 2005.
Adam Cheesman is from Industry and also graduated from WIU. He most recently worked as a fire inspector for John Deere & Co in the Quad Cities.
*The officers who resigned all took positions with other police agencies.
Bryan Clauson plans to pursue a career with the Illinois State Police.
K.C. Monti took a job with the Quincy Police Department.
Justin Rabe accepted a position with the Pekin Police Department.
*Rabe had been with the Macomb department for about three years while the other two spent less than one year in Macomb.
*The Macomb Police Department is waiting for Deputy Chief Curt Barker to finish his deployment in Iraq. It's not known when he will return. Lieutenant Chris Mason has filled in for Barker, which has left the investigations unit shorthanded.