If you’re an officer or employee of the Columbus Police Department and wish to voice your opinions on the current state of the department, please reach out to the Muckraker. We will privately verify your credentials and will not publish your identity.
Residents may voice their opinions on the current state of the Columbus Police Department by contacting their city council members.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — A former member of the Columbus Police Department’s Special Operations Unit came forward to speak up about their experiences before their recent departure from the department.
As we continue our previous reporting on the dysfunctional state of the Columbus Police Department, this is the fourth exclusive insider article that the Muckraker has published in as many days giving voice to officers of the Columbus Police Department.
The officer answered the Muckraker’s questions about what they believe to be the driving factors behind the department’s apparent dysfunction, shedding light on how the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office and the city’s judicial system amplify the effects of the department’s lack of effective leadership.
Note: The interview below was conducted via a private messaging application with a former member of the Columbus Police Department’s Special Operations Unit who recently chose to leave the department. It is one of several pieces of correspondence received by the Muckraker from several CPD officers. It has been slightly edited for both grammar and content to maintain the strict anonymity of the officer.
MUCKRAKER: Thanks for taking the time to talk with us and help the public understand the intricacies of the issues at the Columbus Police Department. Where would you like to start?
OFFICER: I am an ex-CPD officer who was a part of their Special Operations unit. You (Muscogee Muckraker) should look into the relationship between Muscogee County Sheriff Greg Countryman, Police Chief Freddie Blackman, and City Manager Isaiah Hugley. Look at whenever Countryman was elected and compare the crime rates and statistics to whenever Countryman stopped allowing the jailing of “petty” misdemeanor crimes.
MUCKRAKER: What other things come to mind? What are the biggest flaws/problems/conflicts you see?
OFFICER: The lack of support from anybody in the chain of command. We essentially went from a unit of 15+ all the way down to like four officers before I left. Without getting into the details, we were tasked with the impossible: to go after violent gang members and arrest them.
We had no support from any other investigators or from our own criminal intelligence units. They effectively did not exist.
(Chief Freddie) Blackmon kept telling our supervisors to “do less with more,” but offered absolutely no support for them to actually do so.
When we brought a detainee to the Muscogee County Jail, we would literally wait “on the wall” for at least three- and a half-hours because of the bad blood between the Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office and the Columbus Police Department.
MUCKRAKER: What do you think is driving that lack of support?
OFFICER: With what our unit was tasked to do, the lack of leadership and support from our own police department provided a huge safety issue. When we’re only working with a roster of four people, having one person stuck at the jail for that long makes us unable to do our job. That allows even more criminal activity to happen throughout the city.
MUCKRAKER: How often did events like that occur? How often was someone stuck at the jail?
OFFICER: I would say it happened constantly for at least the past two years (beginning in 2020). When I was working, it was a daily occurrence. We actually sarcastically said that the jail was “moving quickly” if we were there for less than two hours, which is actually a ridiculously long time to be stuck there not doing our jobs.
MUCKRAKER: What are some other things you think our readers should know about?
OFFICER: There are a ton of officers in the Columbus Police Department who try their hardest on a daily basis to do their jobs. There are really only a handful of individuals who are actively hindering the department — but unfortunately, they are the individuals running the show.
A lot of people keep saying “bring back the gang enforcement/proactive policing units.” While I agree with this statement, people need to understand that we in law enforcement can only do so much. The judicial system is a big problem in the city.
I understand that court offices are slammed — but until we actually address the issues of where to house inmates and what to do with violent repeat offenders, nothing is going to change for the better.
MUCKRAKER: What made you leave CPD?
OFFICER: I left for a couple of reasons. Let's just say I didn’t really see myself raising a family in Columbus so my family and I moved.
MUCKRAKER: Are you still in law enforcement?
OFFICER: I am.
MUCKRAKER: Thanks again for your insights and also for your kind words of support. If you think of anything else, don’t hesitate to drop us a line.
OFFICER: Of course.
//———End of Officer’s Interview———//
If you’re an officer or employee of the Columbus Police Department and wish to voice your opinions on the current state of the department, please reach out to the Muckraker. We will privately verify your credentials and will not publish your identity.
Residents may voice their opinions on the current state of the Columbus Police Department by contacting their city council members.
Facts are stubborn things — and we’ll keep publishing them, whether city officials like them or not.
-30-
© 2023 Muscogee Muckraker. All rights reserved.
Previous Coverage:
Be sure to follow Muscogee Muckraker on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to see all the muck that’s fit to print as it breaks throughout the coming week.
