South Carolina's ability to screen police
applicants for mental stability hinges on whether Senate leaders decide
it's worthy of state funding.
The state's psychological screening service fell victim to budget cuts
in 2003, even though it helped weed out nearly one-third of police
applicants who lacked the mental stability for the profession.
The recent Post and Courier series "Tarnished Badges" found that some
police departments have since abandoned the practice altogether.
House leaders were concerned enough about the newspaper's findings that
they amended their budget last month to revive the evaluation program.
The Senate, however, didn't follow suit. The Senate's version of the
budget passed Tuesday included no money for reinstating the program at the
state Criminal Justice Academy in Columbia.
But Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell said the issue has not
been forgotten. He said he's confident the screening service will be
included in a final version of the state's $5.8 billion budget.
"I think it's a good thing," said McConnell, R-Charleston. "I think it
helps us understand who is serving and whether they are qualified to
serve."
State Rep. Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, who chairs the House Ways and
Means Committee, said he'll restore the $500,000 when the House gets
another crack at the budget next month. He said he'd also fight to keep
the money in place when lawmakers from the two chambers huddle to iron out
differences in their spending plans.
While most of the state's larger law enforcement agencies, including
Charleston and North Charleston police, pay for screenings out of their
own budgets, many smaller departments relied on the academy to foot most
of the bill. The same testing that the state offered for $25 to $35 can
cost $200 or more on the open market.
Although the House budget provides only enough money to fund the
screening unit and its staff for one year, Academy Director William Neill
said he'll take what he can get. "It's that important," he said.
Still, the screening service will remain vulnerable to the budget ax
until the state mandates psychological evaluations for police applicants.
The lack of a mandate in South Carolina has had obvious results: Fewer
than 100 of the state's 280 police agencies administered the tests as part
of their application process, a 2001 academy survey found.
Academy officials don't know how many of the more than 1,000 new
officers in South Carolina each year go untested.
But the lack of screening is only part of the problem. Gov. Mark
Sanford has called for a task force to examine gaps in state law that have
allowed troubled police officers to remain in law enforcement, despite
histories of misconduct and criminal behavior. He appointed Director of
Public Safety James Schweitzer to head the committee, which could hold its
first meeting next month.
The Department of Public Safety is the parent organization of the
academy, which is responsible for training and tracking some 14,000 law
enforcement officers.
Some have criticized the academy's effectiveness, saying it has been
neglected since 1993 when it was absorbed by Public Safety, where it
competes for funding and resources with that agency's many other
divisions.
Bills filed in the House and Senate on Wednesday would restore some
authority to a 17-member training council that oversaw academy decisions
before the agency was folded into the Public Safety Department.
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LEGISLATIVE
REPORT