Prometheus 6

Paying a punished LAPD officer
When the department disciplines an officer with suspension, the police union replaces any lost wages.
May 22, 2008

So let's get this straight. A Los Angeles police officer does something so bad that he or she is suspended without pay. But the officer gets paid anyway. The punishment comes down to this: The check comes from the Police Protective League instead of the LAPD, and the officer gets what amounts to a few days of paid vacation. This is discipline?

Praise is due Police Commission member Anthony Pacheco for raising the issue Tuesday. The commission ought to take a look at how the union's practice of offering suspension insurance to its members affects the department's discipline system. The surprising thing is that, for seven years now, officers supposedly suspended without pay have been paid, with no one so much as raising an eyebrow. 

Come to think of it, this whole thing has a familiar ring to it.