Montgomery's hobbled police

Editorial, Washington Post, Monday, August 2, 2010

MONTGOMERY COUNTY'S police force includes many dedicated and excellent officers. To the naked eye, most seem to be in fine physical condition. This must be an illusion, however, since so many of them continue to retire with full disability benefits, imposing a heavy cost on the county.

Between 2004 and 2008, about three in five county police officers were granted disability status upon retirement, meaning they receive two-thirds of their salary for life, tax-free. These numbers are without equal in other police departments around the region, including Prince George's County, where large majorities of officers manage to make it to retirement in good health despite a crime rate much higher than Montgomery's.

After this racket was exposed in the media two years ago, the numbers fell off, but only by a little. In the most recent fiscal year, which ended June 30, 18 of the 44 Montgomery police employees who retired were granted disability status -- in some instances for injuries, including relatively minor ones, that took place many years earlier. Keep in mind that in the past, some of these disabled retirees have gone on to land full-time employment, sometimes with other law enforcement agencies and often in roles that are physically demanding.

Of course, this scam gouges taxpayers -- just one of a number run by police officers under the protection of a union that jealously guards the perks of its dues-paying members. In a report released almost two years ago, the county's inspector general, Thomas J. Dagley, found police conduct in claiming disabilities that a "prudent person would consider abusive."

Still, it has continued. Last year, the Montgomery County Council, in thrall as usual to public employee unions, shied away from legislation to address it. And this year, the Fraternal Order of Police refused to relinquish the benefit in contract negotiations despite the disgrace it has earned the department.

Now the county has another chance to correct this abuse. Two council members, Duchy Trachtenberg (At Large) and Phil Andrews (Gaithersburg-Rockville), both Democrats, are introducing legislation that sensibly distinguishes between serious and minor disabilities, so that an officer with an injured finger is not treated in the same way as one paralyzed from the neck down.

The bill also prohibits officers guilty of firing offenses from claiming disability retirements, as they can now. (One such officer, Sgt. Jacqueline Davey, was granted a disability pension last month despite facing trial on charges that she stole more than $10,000 by billing the county for hours she didn't work. Sgt. Davey has denied the charges.)

The legislation will not come up for a vote before the fall, but already a majority of council members have expressed support for it. We urge every member of the council to sign on as a co-sponsor.

Click here to read the article on the Washington Post.