Pay picked as big reason why police officers leave rural towns

TARKIO, Mo. -- Tarkio Police Chief Mick McAdams has seen numerous officers move in and move on since he took over the department 18 years ago. He can't remember the last time he had a full staff.

"It's not uncommon for us to get down to just two guys, including me," McAdams said. "Then we gain a third officer, but before we can get the fourth and final one hired, one inevitably quits on us."

Taking their $18,000 annual salary into account, he said he really can't blame them. The chief's concerns underscore a troubling dilemma for small towns where officers are needed but budgets can't keep them around.

"I know it's tough on my officers," he said. "Salary is the reason it's hard to get them here, and it's why it's hard to keep them. Small towns just can' t compete with larger cities, and that's not going to change anytime soon."

Struggles with staffing

It's a familiar tale throughout Northwest Missouri's rural departments. Hamilton, in Caldwell County, is currently struggling to operate without a chief and at half-staff.

"We're out here in the middle of nowhere and the pay is low," interim Police Chief Wade Hampton said. "If we do get good officers, they tend to migrate elsewhere for better pay. It's kind of sad."

Nearly 30 different officers have passed through the small-town agency, which has an $18,000 starting salary, in the last three years.

"Even the local people that you expect have the ties to keep them here, go on to the county," Hampton said. "The Sheriff's Department has a larger jurisdiction, more excitement and more pay, common-sense stuff. The bottom line is that pay is going to have to go up. They won't stay if they have to continue to scrape by."

That's the position Joshua Howery was in as he served the Savannah, Mo., police force for $18,540 a year. It was his first job after completing Missouri Western State College's Regional Law Enforcement Academy. He knew about the department's trouble with turnover so he gave them a one-year commitment.

The 27-year-old didn't realize how tough it would be to keep that promise until his third child was born. "I went to Savannah for experience," Howery said. "Things got pretty tight, but since I told them I'd stay, I stuck it out."

When Howery and his wife had to file for bankruptcy, he knew it was time to look for work elsewhere. He became an officer with the St. Joseph Police Department in August and things are better now, he said. And in a year, he' ll be compensated nearly double what he was in Savannah.

"The responsibilities of being an officer are just incredible," he said. "Sure one call can be a lock out, but the next might be a suicide attempt or a man with a gun. You never, ever know what you're walking in to here or in Savannah."

$6,000 raise

St. Joseph's starting salary was $22,464 when Howery began. But he's looking forward to a nearly $6,000 increase to be reflected in his first October paycheck thanks to a voter-approved sales tax.

"No one said Savannah's salary needs to be comparable to St. Joe's, but it needs to be above towns smaller than it," Howery said. "And it can be better."

It can and it should, Savannah Police Chief Derald Lammers said. But now, while the council is preparing for its next budget year, might not be the right time.

"There's an extreme lack of funds coming in this year since Wal-Mart closed," Lammers said. "You have to pick a time to battle for things, and right now is a terrible time to even approach them about an increase."

Since January, Lammers has had to replace three out of five officers.

"The city has become complacent," he said. "The high turnover has meant a drain on our budget because we're constantly training officers. It makes us less effective."