Michigan Votes Forum

are secondary to the duplication of effort issue. if whoever doled out the powers and responsibilities in the first place would have wanted you certified to do the things that you now have to wait for troopers to do, then they WOULD HAVE given these powers to you in the first place. obviously they DIDN'T. why? because there are already troopers who are charged with doing these things, and who are RESPONSIBLE for doing these things. no, the current system is NOT efficient, but then again, neither is BOTH of you doing the same job. as far as the safety issue is concerned, do you really think that you being able to 'investigate' and write up accidents without a trooper present is going to make the highways any safer? the only possible way this will happen is that we won't have to wait for the trooper to finish watching his movie at the station before coming out to do HIS part of the accident. efficiency is NOT in the legislator's vocabulary.

wrong assumption 1. i'm sure it WASN'T A TROOPER, or TROOPER RANK's decision to put m.c.o.'s in dark blue cars. wrong assumption 2. giving you the AUTHORITY to investigate accidents also gives you the RESPONSIBILITY to investigate accidents. we don't need two entities with duplicate responsibilities. wrong assumption 3. i'm not a trooper. wrong assumption 4. the uproar over this decision is NOT because of money, the figures are trivial. it's about ABUSE OF POWER and DUPLICATION OF EFFORT.

Wow, a lot of mud slinging going on in here, I read some good points as to why this should be considered, and then a bunch of garbage from someone who obviously doesn't support it and seems to attack anyone that does. Seems like the MCO's are obviously thinking of better pay in the future and the troopers are feeling threatened by someone else willing to help out. What about what's best for the public?? Put your own needs aside and think about what is best for everyone. I've been trying to get a cop job for almost two years, no one is hiring, and those departments that have openings are just taking cops laid off from another department. Bottom line is there is less and less police out there and more crooks. Now the state wants to let 5,000 prisoners out early. Of course their not violent, just druggies. Yeah right, no violence there! If this magically puts another 150 cops on the street I'm all for it.

I say yes to this. I drive almost two hours to work everyday. I see the state weighmaster almost every morning and wonder why he can't do something about the moron riding my bumper or the idiot who cuts everyone off at the light. If it is such a problem to make them full fledged police officers, then why not let them take care of the traffic? Last summer I got hit on the way to work. The other driver took off. It took almost an hour for a cop to get there. Two weighmasters stopped to check on me but told me they couldn't write the report. Why not?? I wait almost an hour for a cop to show up to get my name and number and give me a card to give to my insurance. Seems like if the weighmasters could have done that I wouldn't have been waiting around. The weighmasters do a good job getting the bad trucks off the road, why not let them take some of the road rage idiots and piece of junk cars off the road too. Seems like it could make the roads safer.

I read in the paper where this would cost $600,000.00 and that the motor carrier officers would need firearms training. Don't they carry guns? Does this mean that the state hired these guys and gave them guns without any training? If they're not cops and need firearms training, then why do they carry guns? This concerns me. I had to take a class for my ccw, guess all I really needed to do was get a job at the state.

You shouldn't judge anyone until you've walked a mile in their shoes. Is there a program to ride along with a motor carrier officer and see first hand what they do?

If your big problem is the Troopers sitting in the station watching movies then why dont you do something about it. Alot of comments have been made on here about this. Why is it the state lets them sit there and watch movies and you MCO's are out there stopping 18 wheelers? Why would you want to get certified to do stuff they are suppose to be doing if they are just sitting in the station? Get them off there rear ends to do there jobs and MAYBE just MAYBE the roads would be safer.

Yes, the statement I was reffering to said that MCO's are the only ones to "investigate" truck crashes. If you read the post you can tell it was made by an MCO. So like I said before..MCO's INSPECT trucks, not investigate accident. And MSP MCD is not the only law enforcement agencies that have CVSA certified Officers. Nice try on trying to sidestep my comments.

How many of you DOT guys/gals will jump ship after you get certified? You can go work for the county and be a real cop and not worry and complain about crawling under trucks.If the state certifies you they will have to pay you more than a trooper because you will be a speciality. Our DOT guys get paid more than our troopers. You have to be a trooper for a couple years to even go into cmv enforcement or any other speciality.

does an MCO average per shift? How much will this go down after certification? Safety first.

I think all the MCO's that were on this site decided not to comment anymore. The real agenda of more pay came to light and they ran away........

TROLLING? Looking for an argument? Be honest, now (for a change).

so whats all the fuss?

Does not seem to make much sense to argue with somebody that will not accept the answers they are given. To do so would be waste of time and would become redundant. Obviously some are opposed to the certification of MCO's. So be-it, they are certainly entitled their opinions. Seems to be a select few who oppose this idea in spite of the overall good it could produce. The cost is minumal at best. Take care, Jim

mailmen cops also. Lots of them are ex military. They are in the neighborhoods all day (which is someplace you will never find a cop since they are all out hiding with radar guns). I really can't see a downside.

that they would all be "sitting in the station watching movies" At least then they are not out harrasing citizens and trying to bring in more money for Two Penny Jenny.

think that they will do anything different than the overpaid police departments do. They only take the easy stuff. To get the guy that is the "moron riding my bumper or the idiot who cuts everyone off at the light." they would have to patrol and be in the traffic flow. This would in turn make everyone drive nicer but won't make any money for the imperial state government. An empty visible cop car parked on busy streets does wonders for folks manners but once again, makes no money for the imperial state government.

how is certifying two groups of officers to do the SAME JOB going to produce any good other than to have one group doing all the work and the other group watching the first group work? certifying m.c.o.'s will not make the current situation any better, it will not make the highways any safer, and will be very redundant as it will have two departments duplicating each other's efforts. why not make troopers certified in inspecting trucks while you are at it? that way, you both would be TOTALLY interchangable with each other.

there are TWO divisions of the SAME AGENCY that are assigned TWO DIFFERENT JOBS. at present, both are certified to DO THEIR OWN JOBS. one division wishes to be certified to DO THE OTHER'S JOB. the only way that this could save money is to CUT THE OTHER DIVISION. the only way that this could make the highways safer is IF NEITHER DIVISION BLOCKS UP THE HIGHWAY ANY MORE THAN IS NECESSARY. now, all this 'making the roads safer' stuff sounds good on paper, but in practice, it doesn't wash. two divisions doing ONE job is, by default REDUNDANT.

If being redundant is the question, why do we have Sheriff's Departments, or city or township police. They all do the same job. Lets do away with all departments except for the State Police. That way we will have quality Law Enforcement instead of quantity. (yes, this is sarcasm)

I got it, it just came to me. Let's decertify the DNR officers. They don't actually do police work, then we can cut their pay and save the state a lot of money! MCO's don't need to be certified, that wouldn't do any good. Troopers, why do we certify them, they don't do much. Rarely do I see them on the interstate, and when I do, it's almost a challenge to get them to come out after you. I say get rid of the overpaid MSP all together and give the money to local police departments!

To the gal/gal that made the statement about two divisions, one wanting to do the other ones job.... I AGREE 100%. Get rid of one. No need for two divisions. Your comment was very well said.

I think its funny that the MCO's on this site will not answer some of the questions that have been asked. They just want to side-step all the tough questions and talk about how safer the roads would be. When the roads would not be safer. The troopers would just sit back more than they do already and wait as the MCO's do there job. Now why in the world would an MCO let the Trooper get away with this. MCOS on this site already said that all the Troopers do is sit at the station and watch movies. So you want to get certified to do THERE job? Did you bump your head one to many times crawling under those trucks. TAKE CARE OF THE REAL PROBLEM AND GET THE TROOPERS ON THE ROAD.

I'll answer questions, no BS, no sugarcoating. The system isn't perfect and if you have any suggestions I would be very intersted in hearing them. We are looking for solutions and the more ideas we can come up with, the closer we are to fixing something that is broken. It may not be perfect, but there's definately got to be some middle ground somewhere. We either need to move forward and give MCO's full police power, or take a step back and make them truck inspectors only without any arrest powers. There are significant gains and losses either way. The question is, what will benefit the public most? Please let me know what your questions and concerns are and I will give you answers. Thanks! FNS

like A Toad Needs A Toyota. There are too many Barney Fifes running around on power trips now. Go inspect your trucks and quit complaining.

I am reading a lot of comments that apparently do not want mco's certified. Why is that? Aren't they state police? Don't they go through the police academy? I don't understand why the state police has two different officers. By reading the comments, I would guess that most of the positive comments are from mco and some retired troopers. I can also tell that most of the negative comments are from police haters and troopers. Why are they against mcos certified?

Police State Haters.. Big Difference. The cops have become revenue agents for thge state and the people are fed up.

1) Why dont you report these Troopers that sit and do nothing. Using that as an excuse to become certified is stupid. Man up and report it. 2) Dont MCO complain all the time that they have enough to do already? And now you want more responsibility? 3)You inspect trucks not investigate accidents, right? 4)You dont think being certified would take away from the job your trained to do...truck safety?

Trolling there. Some posters on this site TROLL everywhere.

Why don't I man up and report slackers. First off, let's get beyond the 11th grade name calling. That was my first posting and already you are insulting. So to answer the first question, yeah right, hey sarge, trooper so and so was screwing off last night. Then when I need backup, think trooper so and so is going to rush to my aid. If it doesn't affect me, I stay out of it and don't want to know anything about it. My life may depend upon that person some day, so if his work ethic is different than mine, so be it. I cannot control others, I can only control what I do.

Complainint about too much to do. Actually we could do a lot more, however we are mismanaged. Those who run the show seem to have forgotten what it is like being the person who has to make all their ideas work. I'm not in charge so I follow orders. Certification does not mean that I will have a whole new standard to live up to, it will give me more options to do what is right and fair.

Inspect trucks vs investigate accidents. If only I had a nickel for every time I went to a truck crash and after inspecting the truck, the investigating trooper/deputy/whoever comes over to me and says "I don't understand all of this truck stuff, can you help me" More than just fill out a form, actually assisting with the crash investigation. Yes, I said investigation. Another duplication of efforts, either let us do it, or school the troops/deps/others on the truck and bus stuff. Either way would be fine with me.

Certification would not take away from my job - that is to inspect and weigh trucks. I would be no different than a DNR officer. I would still be focused on trucks. Should I see someone in a car do a hazards act near a truck that could or does cause an accident, 5 minutes of my day to either issue a ticket or give a warning is not going to take away from what I do. I have witnessed people flicking cigarettes at propane tankers, yet I can do nothing about it. I have seen people swerve at trucks because the trucks move too slow for them, yet I can do nothing. During bad winter weather, I'm not out stopping trucks because it isn't safe. Most troops are working their butts off with all the cars that spin out on freeways. Instead of me sitting at the desk, I could give help out. We're not trying to step on anyone's toes, we're just saying that if the troops need help, we're up to it and certification would get rid of a lot of grey areas and public liability issues. Certified or not, I'm still focused on commercial vehicles.

That's my view on your questions. Thank you for your interest. Please feel free to comment or ask more. Sounds like there could be some good conversation there. FSN

Another reason why mco's need to be certified. How many times has an MCO seen a violation like this while on patrol, yet can do nothing? Reference: clickondetroit.com All lanes on eastbound Interstate 96 reopened around 5:15 p.m. Thursday. All lanes were closed at the Southfield Freeway because of a crash involving a tractor-trailer around 1 p.m. According to witnesses at the scene, a Lincoln cut across four lanes of traffic and cut off a tractor-trailer, causing it to lose control. The four people who were inside the Lincoln left the scene on foot, but returned moments after the crash. The driver of the trailer was not injured, but two juveniles who were inside Lincoln were transported by EMS to Henry Ford Hospital for minor injuries. The driver of the Lincoln was cited for reckless driving. Crews are at the scene trying to clear the crash and direct commuters to exit at the Southfield Freeway exit. It is unclear how long the freeway will remain closed. Stay with Local 4 News and ClickOnDetroit.com for updates.

m.c.o. being certified make this situation any safer? the m.c.o. can already make arrests and press charges against the driver. the m.c.o. can already secure the scene and re-route traffic, which is the ONLY thing that makes this situation safer. what the m.c.o. CANNOT do is write up the accident, which is the ONLY thing they need troopers for.

who won't report 'trooper so-and-so'. if his work ethic is to slack off, do you REALLY think it's going to change when YOU need help??? if you believe this little fairy tale, 'doc says you're gonna die'.

I am a Motor Carrier Officer. There are many reasons this is a good bill and would benefit the public, but some of those are subject to opinion. Hopefully the following reason makes sense to everyone. We spend over 50,000 dollars to train a Motor Carrier Officer via the academy. Then we spend thousands each year on additional training. Nearly half of these officers will leave the job after a few months or years. We lose this very considerable investment after a few years and then repeat the process to replace those officers lost to attrition. We have spent millions repeating training academies that should not have been necessary. This legislation addresses the most significant contributer to our attrition problem, and would save millions in future training costs by reducing that turnover.

increasing the training and certification of an officer does not reduce officer transfers, it actually increases them. the officer is now MORE attractive to other departments, not less. that's LESS training the OTHER department has to do.

I can show you 10 cops sleeping in their cars between 3 and 6am.