The Lafayette Police Department is sharing the results of a recent survey of employees.
Invitations to take the survey were sent to all Lafayette Police employees back in February, with a link that allowed them to respond anonymously. A total of 323 invites were sent; all but six were successfully delivered, and 247 employees filled out at least part of the survey.
If you'd like to read the report for yourself, scroll down.
Police Chief Judith Estorge said she initiated the survey so she could get real feedback.
“I’ve had several opportunities to meet with community members and hear their opinions on issues,” Estorge says. “But this internal survey was an opportunity for my agency to provide feedback, and for me and my team to hear both the good and bad—so we can make efforts to improve.”
She said she's looked at everything that was said.
“I’ve reviewed the comments, and my team and I have already begun to put things in place to allow officers to share their ideas. And if it’s something that’s feasible, we’ll be glad to implement it. But all things have to be carefully weighed and considered. Some issues are far more complex than they appear. We pride ourselves on training, and when you take a closer look, you see we have some really good people working here," the chief says.
More than 125 questions were asked, and most of those who took the survey answered all of them. According to the responses, 71 percent of the people who answered identified as male, and 64 percent identified as white.
The questions asked respondents how serious they felt certain crimes were - including drug use, domestic violence, burglaries, "unsupervised house parties" and drinking in parking lots.
Respondents also were asked about how safe they think Lafayette is compared to a few years ago, and how safe residents feel they are, as well as how effective various crime prevention and reduction efforts are.
On the topic of most serious crimes, here are the crimes that the most respondents felt were "very serious" problems in Lafayette:
Illegal gun use - 78 percent
Teen Violence - 69 percent
Illegal drug use - 57 percent
Drunk Driving - 57 percent
Car Burglaries - 56 percent
Domestic Violence - 53 percent
When asked about factors that contributed to crime over the past several years, here are the percentages that respondents ranked as "large influence"
Lack of Jail Space - 94 percent
Poor parenting - 81 percent
Too-lenient courts - 79 percent
Lack of respect - 70 percent
Availability of weapons - 63 percent
Alcohol/drug abuse - 56 percent
Here are the "large influence" percentages for other factors, many of which are frequently cited in studies as contributing factors to crime:
Unemployment - 21 percent
Lack of activities for kids - 23 percent
Homelessness - 25 percent
Lack of education - 27 percent
Poverty - 33 percent
When asked about the effectiveness of several programs and services offered in the community, including diversion programs for first-time juvenile offenders, at-risk youth programs and domestic violence program,s almost half answered "don't know."
When asked what kind of training they'd like, the most popular answers were:
Investigative skills - 64 percent
Current laws and changes - 62 percent
Management - 59 percent
Firearm use - 58 percent
Physical fitness - 57 percent
The lowest interest training topics were crime analysis at 19 percent, and diversity/equity/inclusion at 13 percent.
When asked open-ended questions, employees provided detail responses.
When asked what the best thing about the LPD is, here are some of the comments:
"I love the people that I work with for the most part. And the ones that are toxic, I avoid. I don't think it's a matter of liking or disliking the Lafayette Police Department itself. I think everyone is fed up with police work in general. It doesn't matter what police department you work for, policing in general has become ineffective, which is frustrating for everyone."
"Being able to be a part of something that makes an impact in the community."
"Unfortunately, at the moment there is very little that I can brag about. I feel that we were at one point the best in the state but now instead of being the premier agency we are too worried about pleasing the community instead of protecting them."
"The work family I gained."
"Helping the community. I wish the PD would stop trying to divide the races."
When asked what could be improved, improved pay, more training and better leadership were repeat responses. There were a number of complaints about "older" officers within the department. Here are some of the detailed comments:
"Leadership, and by that statement I mean a Chief and Command Staff that stands behind the Officers while putting the priority on fully staffing the Patrol sector and stop worrying about having special sections like other agencies do. Officers on the street that are allowed to be the Police stop or deter crime, not social police."
"The morale. Especially between different divisions. Some employees are not heard when bringing problems to their supervisors. I would like to see improvements from supervisors in solving problems from their subordinates."
"Leadership. Morale. No focus on race. Ability over favoritism. Less clique-type behavior. Lafayette consists of more than the Northside."
"Less emphasis on community bonding and get back to REAL policing. The only way to decrease crime is boots on the ground and taking back our streets. Only citizens that participate in the community events are the ones not committing crimes. We need a stronger presence in the high crime areas with zero tolerance."
"Better dissemination of information. Patrol officers are on the front line of the agency, but are frequently the last to find out information. For example, many of the programs that were asked about in this very survey, I was unaware of their existence, therefore many of us are not equipped to provide the best advice to certain scenarios. There is a lack of communication between the command staff and officers, as well as between the different sections of Lafayette PD."
There also were a number of complaints about the jail, and the inability of officers to book people in the jail.
"Moving away from progressive ideologies and focusing more on the incarceration of repeat violent offenders," was one comment, and one included the desire for a chief that was willing to "fight the sheriff over the jail."
When asked to list the most significant values or characteristics for a LPD officer to have, the most frequent response seemed to be "honesty." But integrity, patience, honor, loyalty and work ethic also appeared frequently.
When asked what officers would like from residents of Lafayette, "support" appeared to be the most frequent response. Other frequent responses included empathy, appreciation, support and respect. Other comments included:
"Lock your car doors and DO NOT LEAVE FIREARMS IN YOUR VEHICLES!"
"A willingness to engage in discussion when on the scene of a call for service."
"Appreciation and assistance in solving crimes. Crime Stoppers is legit anonymous, help the police arrest who is responsible for these shootings/murders because communities know people, faces, suspects, etc. Community witnesses are highly important. Everyone sees/knows something."
"Assisting officers with investigations instead of turning a blind eye and say the police are not doing anything."
"Lock your cars and stop shooting each other."
"Start raising their children, instead of just having them and letting them run amock. Raising them does not mean just beat them when they do something wrong and eventually "give up" on them. A parent should NEVER give up being a parent. Stop making excuses for their mistakes and the mistakes of their children."
Other suggestions included "learn to drive" and "two parent households."
According to the chief, LPD’s next step is to further analyze the survey results and determine ways they can improve the agency. Estorge said she promises to meet with the Command Staff and other LPD employees to discuss the findings and develop plans of action.
