Our friends at the Herald astutely point out that police officers on road detail have made over 100 arrests since January 2007, insinuating that we'll be less safe if normal folks are allowed to work details in lieu of police officers. Gosh, it is so sweet and touching that cops continue to do their real jobs while serving details--just imagine how many more arrests they might make if they were patrolling the streets, investigating cases, and following leads, instead of tooting whistles and waving their arms! Additionally, most of these situations caused the officer to leave the detail to make the arrests, meaning that no one was doing that all-important detail job (perish the thought!). A Beacon Hill Institute Study from 2004 concluded that police details cost the state millions of dollars and do not improve safety. As with those "consumer-protecting" price stickers, it may shock Bay Staters to learn that no other state puts police on detail--and crime has not swallowed up the rest of the country as a result. It's time for Massachusetts to stop doing things a certain way just because it's always been like that, and start doing things that actually make sense. We know this may cause some heads to explode, but we're willing to take that loss.
