The Aspen Police Department is experiencing a significant exodus of patrol officers this spring. Aspen Public Radio’s Carolyn Sackariason has the story.
Two patrol officers have given their notice of resignation. A third is expected is to soon. Having three officers leave the department within months of each other has police chief Richard Pryor scrambling a bit to fill in the voids. Adam Loudon’s last day will be on April 17th. Vanessa March will be leaving in June. Pryor believes they all are leaving for personal reasons, and are not seeking jobs in other police departments. While it’s a lot all at once, the police chief says the department will be OK.
“Right now we have 26 people on the books for patrols, so technically speaking we are up to staff. Now, two of those are in the police academy. They will be coming out of the academy May the 1st. So they will be going to the 12-week training program. We are in off-season as well. Things dial down a little bit so I am not too concerned. Obviously we want to keep our customer service levels the highest as possible and I think that generally we are able to maintain that.”
Pryor says it’s common for officers to stay 5 or 6 years and then move on. That’s the case with Loudon and March. The cost of living and the lack of housing are major factors. Out of 35 employees, 13 APD staffers live in city subsidized housing. The average salary for a police officer in Aspen is $50,000. Pryor says it’s hard to recruit and retain.
“It’s challenging to find the person with the right fit for Aspen. You know we have a unique community that expects unique policing and so we need to be really careful about the types of people we hire.”
Despite those challenges, the chief says the turnover rate has dropped in the last 10 years. In 2008, it was 23 percent when 11 people left the department. That was a year after Pryor’s predecessor resigned. The turnover rate is currently 15 percent. Pryor’s goal is to lose only one officer a year but in reality, he expects it to be two or three.
