IMPROVING POLICE APPEARANCES

Tampa's new police chief is off to a good start. Steve Hogue, in his
first week on the job, put an end to the practice of allowing top
commanders to drive confiscated luxury cars. He also will require the
top brass to pass an agility test. These policy changes are not big
deals, but they do make the department appear more disciplined and
professional.

It was embarrassing that the top police staff, under the former chief,
tooled around town in high-priced cars snatched during drug seizures.
This made the highest-ranking law enforcement officers in town look
like scavengers, and the pride they had driving these vehicles sent
the wrong message to kids about the spoils of selling drugs.

It was also good for the chief to extend the department's physical
agility tests to every sworn officer. Again, under the former chief,
only employees below the rank of captain had to prove that they could
bolt from a car, run a short distance, climb a fence and crawl in the
dirt. These are minimal capabilities the public expects of any officer
carrying a gun.

It's too early to tell how Hogue will handle more important issues at
the department, but in one week he's made his officers look and act
more like cops.