Town Administrator Jim Gildea had stated at a December Town Council meeting that the new Dodge Durango would be purchased for the police department's detective bureau since the unit had not received a new vehicle in 7 or 8 years. Go to the following link for related story.
http://07090.blogspot.com/2011/12/westfield-invests-in-futureof-who.html
With the recent promotion of Captain David Wayman to police chief, it wouldn't be out of the question for Wayman to "seize" the vehicle for his own use. After all, each of the last two police chiefs drove town purchased vehicles during their tenure at the expense of the taxpayer. Why should Wayman be any different.
Should anyone object to a police chief utilizing a town vehicle for town business? What is objectionable is when the town employee uses the vehicle for personal use that results in questionable circumstances occurring that diminish a town asset to the point where the taxpayer foots the bill for the employees indiscretions. Look no further than former Westfield Police Chief Barney Tracy's escapades with town property. Town vehicle's assigned to Tracy were mysteriously damaged on separate occasions with explanations comparable to fiction and fantasy. We won't even get into the "multi-tasking" that went on in former Chief Parizeau's town owned vehicle. Just hope Chief Wayman stays out of dark parking lots late at night.
One such Tracy accident resulted in a town vehicle being "totalled" in the early morning hours of New Year's Eve back in 2004. Aside from the vehicle allegedly sideswiping parked vehicles and crashing into a building, circumstances surrounding the crash remain cloaked in secrecy to this day. One Westfield police officer included in Tracy's inner circle had indicated Tracy claimed to have slid on "black ice." With temperatures in the mid to upper 40's at the time of the crash, the existence of "black ice" was non-existent. Mr. Black Haus and Mr. J. Walker, also known as Black Label might have a clue. Only the responding officers in a neighboring Union County town know the truth. The "blue code of silence" was in effect.
Chief Wayman has been spotted in a number of vehicles over the past couple years, as he rose through the ranks, that have been fueled and maintained by the Westfield taxpayer. Whether it was the BMW 5-series sedan or the $40,000 plus Chevy Tahoe earmarked for the police department's D.A.R.E. program, Wayman has proven he will not be denied his choice of "chariot" to shuttle him around on business and pleasure. Recently, Wayman has been spotted driving the department's new Dodge Durango; the vehicle that Town Administrator Gildea stated was being purchased for the detective bureau. Well truth be told, you really 
can't always believe what comes out of Gildea's mouth. 
Prediction: It won't be the first time that a town employee (Wayman) or others have caught Gildea in a lie or more delicately, that he "mis-spoke." That's a town officials way of covering their misconduct, no lie was told, he just "mis-spoke." Well at least for now, Chief Wayman appears to be the beneficiary of "Pinocchio's promise" that the vehicle was destine for the detective bureau. Perhaps the Chief is only test driving the S.U.V.
After all, why draw attention to oneself at softball games and local watering holes in a town owned vehicle. Happy motoring.
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ReplyDelete......JT his driver.....is that when he isnt in the back of a Trooper's squad car crying???????
ReplyDeleteThis Web Blog is a farce. The Administrator is very biased and has some axe to grind. Generally these people live in their mother's basement or or provided som for of support or maintenance by their family. It appears he makes Anonymous comments to his own postings - what a creep.
ReplyDeleteThere is no issue with Public Employees having access to their vehicles for personal use. This is very common in the private sector.
I pay for my own fuel when using a company vehicle for personal use
People always complain when public sector employees receive perks because its taxpayer money paying for them. What they don't complain about is the obscene perks afforded to private sector executives that cost many multiples of the public sector perks. Those private sector perks are taken as tax deuctions limiting the taxes paid - hence costing the taxpayers money. Rarely have I seen in my career instances where such execs would allow these perks to be included in their compensation and in the few instances where they did we of course had to gross up the value to cover the taxes for them. I have seen first hand, not just top level execs, but officers as well, who charge back to the company; grocery bills, auto leases, vacations, utility bills, clothing purchases, family dinners, etc ...and yes this still goes on today - even during difficult times.....execs will order layoffs in order to save room in the budget for their personal expenses.
DeleteWhe comparing apples to apples, an orange can't be used. Private sector perks come from a source that uses profit to fund such perks. Public sector uses taxpayer funds to cover the cost of the perk. While I don't disagree with a public sector employee using a vehicle on "company time," the personal use of a vehicle cost the taxpayer for a perk that goes unreported/cllaimed on the public sector employees tax return. Gas, insurance, maintenance and repairs should not be a burden on the taxpayer. Liability becomes an issue for the taxpayer when the public sector employee gets into an accident on personal time.
Deletemaybe he can hire JP as his driver.............
ReplyDeleteHey Dave how about a Prius
ReplyDelete