Once a quarter, department heads give an update to the Sitka Assembly. On December 26, it was Sitka Police Chief Robert Baty’s turn. Reading from a prepared statement, Baty shared some statistics, like 10,737– that’s the number of calls for service SPD responded to this year. Or 3462 – that’s the number of 911 calls dispatchers answered, more than double last year’s 911 calls.
A much smaller but equally significant number is 15. That’s the number of positions at the police department that are currently vacant. It accounts for around half of the department’s staff of jailers, officers, dispatchers and animal control. This time last year, the department was also reporting a shortage of around a dozen positions. Nevertheless, Baty said under his leadership they’ve reduced the attrition rate by 75% since 2010. And morale is “generally positive,” a testament to what Baty said is a supportive work environment.
“The state of morale and the department has been sustained by the administrators 2023 employee climate survey,” Baty said. “However, the workload, particularly for officers with young families, is a significant concern and can impact morale. In response to rumors and criticisms over social media about me personally and my leadership, and I encourage direct engagement with our department.”
Baty attributed the current low staffing levels to national trends and a declining interest in law enforcement careers, making hiring more competitive for small departments like Sitka’s, which has the added challenge of being a remote island community with a tight housing market.
“This trend is not unique to Alaska, but is a national issue affecting all sectors of the workforce. Consequently, the competition for recruiting officers has intensified remarkably,” Baty said. “Departments across the state are now compelled to offer substantial hiring bonuses ranging from $20,000 to $60,000.”
Along with a $20,000 sign-on bonus SPD is offering, Baty said he’s collaborating with a police recruiting consulting firm and a separate retention and mentoring program. Baty said he’s focused on “quality not quantity” in his recruitment efforts.
View Baty’s report to the assembly here
Assembly members didn’t publicly address Baty with questions or comments about his report. But some members of the public voiced concerns. Breezy Cranford is married to former SPD sergeant Gary Cranford who filed a lawsuit against the city and police department this year after he was demoted.
“If everything is so positive, why is there been an mass exodus over the past 12 to 18 months?” Cranford asked. “It is a hostile work environment and the employees are not to have an opinion about anything if it isn’t all rainbows and butterflies.”
“How many more lawsuits does the city have to get before there’s a third party investigation to find out what’s going on within the PD?” she added.
Two former employees also spoke including the most recent animal control officer Sam Pointer, who said he resigned from his position in mid-December after a disagreement over compensation. He said he wants his job back, but only if Baty isn’t his supervisor moving forward.
“I sent a letter detailing the incident that fell on deaf ears. The Union sent a letter but then I heard from a city employee that because of social media, they wanted to offer me my job back working for the chief, or take a check and never come back,” Pointer said. “I also had been told that there’s two sides to this story. I am totally open to hearing publicly or privately the other sides from the administrator, from the chief, from the finance department and from HR,” Pointer said.
“I love my job, and I’m not trying to fight somebody else’s battle,” he added.
And Senolden Norwood, a former employee, alleges he experienced sexual harassment while on the job, before he quit in 2022.
“During the course of the time that this incident happened…when I did make my report, I felt that there was not a good work environment for me. I felt that I had to be isolated from everybody,” Norwood said. “I walked like I was on eggshells because I couldn’t say anything or couldn’t do anything, because I didn’t know which direction it would be taken.”
His wife, Petra Lechner, who said she was there when Norwood filed the complaint, said it all came down to one thing– Baty’s leadership.
“The Chief’s treatment of employees is arbitrary, unfair, unequal, and I think he’s in over his head. Professionally, he does not know how to run a police department that attracts good employees and retains good employees, and it is just not a fit,” Lechner said. “So a change as the solution is pretty simple to me.”
Baty took over the department in 2019, but morale and staffing problems in the Sitka Police Department extend back further. In 2016, SPD staff held a nearly unanimous vote of no confidence in leadership, and in the last five years, four former SPD employees have brought suits against the city– all of them represented by the Anchorage civil rights law firm, the Northern Justice Project. Three were settled out of court for around $900,000 in all– the fourth was filed this October by former sergeant Cranford.
KCAW reached out to Municipal Administrator John Leach and Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz for comment.
In a statement on Wednesday afternoon, Leach wrote, “On behalf of the City and Borough of Sitka, I want to assure the public that Sitka’s safety and security is paramount to our mission. I also fully support Sitka’s law enforcement efforts, which includes Chief Baty and the Sitka Police Department employees. However, I am unable to specifically comment on any of the stated claims made last night during the Assembly meeting by the public due to the confidential nature of the personnel matters referred to by those who spoke out against the Chief and alleged poor morale in the department.”
“I will continue to investigate and correct allegations made against the Chief of Police or the SPD when those allegations are supported and reasonable,” Leach’s statement continued. “However, I will also vigorously defend any unfounded or untrue allegations. I am fully committed to upholding the CBS principles of integrity and accountability in the SPD as well as all other departments. As Municipal Administrator, my focus remains steadfast on serving the community of Sitka with transparency and dedication.”
