The Argos Town Council approved the Police Employment Application that would allow the town the ability to recoup costs associated with new police department hires should those officers leave within two years of being hired.
“Really what this is, we’ve seen several of these. Anything to do with CDLs to Electric Linemen going to the school and classes. But it’s basically a reimbursement agreement between the town and, as I understand it, there’s a couple of new police officers. As it stands, the town would require some training that the town would pay for. There’s clothing and equipment that’s specially tailored to each of these officers. Then there’s also the cost of this PERF 1977 examination,” said Town Attorney Derek Jones.
Jones said that the town’s concern was that if the town spent the money for those items, then it should receive some use and benefit from the officers. “So, there’s a schedule of reimbursement that if any of these officers is terminated for whatever reason, whether they quit or fired or who knows what, but if it’s within a one year time period that they would reimburse 100 percent of those expenditures.”
If the town and the officer part ways during the officer’s second year of employment, that percentage drops to 60 percent of those expenditures. Once the agreement is signed, the town would pay for those costs.
The council approved the Police Employment Application.
Council Vice President Shawn Harley informed the council that the Police Commission held a three hour meeting the week prior to the council meeting. During that meeting, the commission interviewed candidates to fill one current vacancy and one upcoming vacancy. “I’m pleased to inform the council that they unanimously offered to hire two of these candidates on a conditional part-time basis with the guaranteed intent of moving them to full-time status so long as their training is completed satisfactory and they get PERF approval.”
Harley told the council that both candidates were in the process of being hired in other departments in the area. The officers told the commission that they would sign the Police Employment Application and withdraw from the hiring from those other departments.
“Both candidates are unique in their own separate ways and the police commission believes that they will be a great addition to the police department and a great fit for the Argos community,” said Harley.
Those officers are Roman Robic and Austin DeLee.
