Injustice for our lawmen

This is an article written by Michael Daly in the New York Daily News. Great article, and I normally don't like the News, but this is right on.

As we bury a second murdered cop in eight days, let's hope that the most promising young people wishing to follow in the hallowed footsteps of Police Officer Dillon Stewart and Police Officer Daniel Enchautegui are not deterred by the discovery that the starting salary on the NYPD is $14,530 less than that of a city gardener.
This startling fact is set forth on the official Web site of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services. The long list of upcoming hiring exams for city jobs begins:

Gardener

Police Officer

A click on "Gardener" produces a job description that includes, "The starting minimum salary is $39,630 per annum."

A click on "Police Officer" also produces a job description, this including, "The current minimum starting salary is $25,100 per annum."

The site adds that after six months the starting cop salary rises to $32,700, still $6,930 less than that of a gardener. The word for this is "outrageous."

A return to the official job description for Gardener states that the applicant need have only two years' practical experience or a certificate from a horticulture or botanical program. The section headed "special working conditions" states:

"Some of the physical activities performed by Gardeners and environmental conditions experienced are: Standing, bending, kneeling and stooping for extended periods of time; climbing around and over various types of terrain; ... and working outdoors in all kinds of weather."

The official job description for Police Officer states that an applicant must have either 60 college credits with at least a 2.0 average or a high school diploma and two years of active duty in the military. A section headed "what the job involves" states:

"Some of the physical activities performed by Police Officers and environmental conditions experienced are: working outdoors in all kinds of weather; walking and/or standing in an assigned area during a tour; driving or sitting in a patrol car during a tour while remaining alert; running after a fleeing suspect; climbing up stairs; carrying an injured adult with assistance; gripping persons to prevent escape; restraining a suspect by use of handcuffs; ... engaging in hand to hand struggles to subdue a suspect resisting arrest."

Among the activities not mentioned is being suddenly fired upon, as Stewart was when he and his partner tried to pull over a man who ran a red light. Stewart was shot in the heart, but still gave chase despite this most mortal of wounds.

At the time of his death, Stewart had been a cop for five years, which means his base pay was $41,952, or just $2,322 more than the starting pay for a gardener. He supplemented his income by moonlighting, every minute of which was a minute away from his wife and two daughters. Those minutes were precious enough before a bullet made the loss of them a loss beyond measure.

The man charged with Stewart's murder was formally arraigned in Brooklyn Supreme Court yesterday. Allan Cameron sat impassive in a brown jailissue jumpsuit as dozens of police officers sat in silent witness.

Other cops were at the Schuyler Hill Funeral Home in the Bronx, attending Enchautegui's wake. The job description for Police Officer fails to say that a cop might be roused in the night by the sound of breaking glass and step outside to investigate only to be suddenly fired upon. Enchautegui was also shot in the heart. He also kept on beyond human limits, wounding both suspects.

Enchautegui died before he had a chance to have a family of his own. He had been a cop for three years, which means his base pay was $38,541, or $1,089 less than the starting salary for a gardener.

Both Enchautegui and Stewart were too dedicated and courageous to have joined the NYPD for the salary. Money was the last thing that came to mind in the hushed, floral-scented funeral parlor, where Enchautegui's parents and sister sat grieving by his open coffin.

Then you watched cops step away from the second comrade to be murdered in less than a fortnight and head into the city to risk the same fate. Too many of them also are forced to work second jobs once they have families, and then the money translates to precious minutes away from those who need them most.

Originally published on December 14, 2005