Tonight: MCC P.D.? - no, No, NO, NO!!!

The MCC Board of Trustees will be asked tonight to approve a Police Department for McHenry County College.

Somebody spent hours crafting a two-page letter for the signature of newly-installed MCC President Vicky Smith. Unfortunately, almost no one outside of a small group at MCC will read it.

Is a Police Department needed on MCC's campus? Absolutely not! No, as in NO! What is the matter with those people?

A decision to establish a Police Department is nothing short of empire building. Who came up with that idea? Should Director of Security Mike Clesceri share the blame? Or maybe not "share" it?

I'm sure Mike must be a nice guy; after all, somebody hired him. But he's a California cop who came here to little, ol' McHenry County for a job and now wants "Chief" in front of his name. Why is he on my list of favorites? Well, refusal to enforce MCC's stupid (unenforceable) 15MPH speed limit (which was set before he came) has something to do with it. And refusal to push the Trustees to adopt a legal speed limit that could be enforced is another reason.

$20,000 for start-up costs for a P.D. is just the tip of the iceberg. President Vicky's letter doesn't even mention the $68,000 for two police interceptor vehicles. But the trustees may have already approved that, and before she showed up on the scene. Whom will they chase? Drivers who park across two spaces?

Read Pres. Vicky's two-page letter in the Board packet for tonight's meeting. Obviously, she didn't write it; she just signed it. Go to www.mchenry.edu; at the bottom, click on Board of Trustees. Then find tonight's meeting date and click on Packet. Scroll down almost to the end (about Page 59 of 61).

On the second page of her letter it says that "Of the 25 community colleges in the state surveyed by the College (MCC), all but three were protected by sworn police officers on campus." Is MCC is one of the 22 that is already so protected? The previous director of MCC security was a sworn police officer! Doesn't MCC employ sworn police officers part-time? That's pretty loose flying with words...

MCC can hire out finger-printing and pre-employment checks for a whole lot less money than setting up its own police department! It doesn't need its own crime lab. Can you just imagine what will be coming down the pike? Their own jail? And hiring Crystal Lake PD officers for $46.00/hour (four hour minimum), just because Joe Alger and his flag-waving buddies showed to protest a speaker? No, the cops were not even needed that night. They could have been called by campus security, if needed. The College didn't need four C.L. PD officers standing around for $800.

Got an opinion but can't go tonight? Call 815.455.3700 and leave a message for Pres. Smith.