John Gaccione

5/29/17

Here at headquarters folks see the need for keeping the issue of local control of our police services constantly in front of the community, despite the clandestine efforts of a small vocal group who favor contracting for our police services.

A majority of Kensingtonians would agree that with our current understaffed police department, security and public safety are major concerns. Faced with the over stretched police and talk of outsourcing police services, one of our right thinking residents has come up with a unique suggestion. He is asking how many Kensingtonians would like to consider starting a gun club.

You know the kind of thing where the community gets together over small talk about guns and ammo, maybe squeeze off a few rounds, view a gun safety video and then return to the gun range for some spirited semi-automatic target practice. Sounds like good clean family fun with a practical twist.

The point of the “gun club” of course may be for citizens to provide the protection that our paid police force can’t provide. And of course needless to say, the right to bear arms is a basic constitutional right. Even so, the suggestion has been met with cries of vigilantism by naysayers who do not share the wisdom that more firepower will result in more security.

And as one local former news guy keeps pointing out, the future of our local police department has already been decided anyway. He postulates that the current KPPCSD Board intends to “fire” the police and contract for police services. In his view this will inevitably lead to an increase in crime and mayhem. The former news guy is predicting something akin to an “end of days” scenario for Kensingtonians.

Many old sages and previous board members have weighed in on the issue, pointing out once again the alarming lack of transparency by the present KPPCSD Board. Some of the more litigiously inclined have even threatened legal action to stop contracting out for police services. It apparently takes a heap of toiling lawyers to keep Kensington in the top five safest communities in the state.

In the past, the Kensington Police Department has had a somewhat spotty history. Yes we hear stories of individual officers providing the kind of service one expects from a well-paid professional force. Unfortunately, these stories are overshadowed by the many years the police department was run as someone’s private fiefdom with mismanagement and lack of accountability as the norm.

As a result Kensington citizens have had to endure a police department that gave us the salacious Reno Debacle, police harassment incidents, the infamous Berkeley Stop, incompetent leadership and piles of legal bills. As indicated by the results of the last KPPCSD Board election it should come as no surprise that the voters considered contracting for police services.

In light of all this what is one to make of the “gun club” suggestion? Are we really ready for the “Kensingtonian Kalashinkov Knights” to protect us?

Striving to Keep Kensington Litigious since 2008