By Raymond Billy
assistanteditor@jacksonvilleprogress.com
The Jacksonville Police Department received quite an honor recently.
In its annual audit of communications offices at police departments statewide, the Texas Crime Information Center gave JPD a near perfect audit. The JPD Communications Department was honored for committing few errors in emergency 911 services, dispatching, and crime reporting services.
“This type of performance is not just rare; it is virtually unheard of in law enforcement circles,” Jacksonville Chief of Police Reece Daniel said in a memo to his communications officers.
Daniel credited Marian Lindsey, who supervises JPD’s Communications Department, for the successful audit. Lindsey, who has been a police officer in Jacksonville for 21 years and head of communications for 17 years, attributes the success of her department to preparation.
Lindsey said JPD doesn’t allow its communications staff to learn on the job. The department makes sure that personnel have a full understanding of their responsibilities and the ramifications of mistakes. If a crime is reported improperly, for example, the department could significantly harm a person’s reputation, not to mention the risk of a lawsuit.
“We do more communications training in our department than most do, especially for one in a city the size of Jacksonville,” she said.
In spite of that preparation, Lindsey said she was surprised by the high rating from the crime information center.
“We’ve always had good audits as long as I can remember, but auditors rarely make a point of praising a department,” Lindsey said. “No matter how many good people you have, the rules and regulations that govern what we do change so often that it’s hard to say how well you’ve kept compliance with everything,” she said.
In spite of the difficult standards, which are handed down from the F.B.I., Lindsey believes that any communications department is capable of achieving a near-perfect audit; it’s all about diligence.
Lindsey says that Tammy Dennis, communications officer II for JPD, has been an integral part of the department’s performance. Dennis recently won the Silent Hero Award, which is given by the Texas Commission on State Emergency Communications on it’s annual 9-1-1 Appreciation Day.
Lindsey nominated Dennis for the award. Lindsey said the award is designed to honor those who aren’t involved in extraordinary situations - such as receiving a phone call regarding a hostage crisis - but perform consistently and reliably each day.
Overall, Lindsey is proud of the current communications department that the JPD has assembled.
“We have the best group of people we’ve had in a long time. The city of Jacksonville is lucky to have this group,” she said.
