Tulsa Police Department: Term Limits To Impact 25 Officers

NewsOn6.com

TULSA, OK -- The term limits imposed by the racial discrimination lawsuit will affect about 25 positions in specialty departments, the Tulsa Police Department said Thursday.

Those positions are across the Department, but the majority occurs in the Detective and Special Investigation Divisions.

Although the "short-notice removal of critical personnel is not preferred," the Tulsa Police Department will abide by any court order in the racial discrimination lawsuit, a news release stated.

The lawsuit agreement between the City of Tulsa and the Black Officers' Coalition specifies that officers can only be assigned to specialty units for a period of 15 years before returning to general assignment duties.

5/26/2010  Related Story: Detective Has Concerns About TPD Settlement's Specialty Unit Term Limits

Specialty positions include narcotics, gangs, robbery, homicide, burglary, K9 Unit, Task Force, Traffic Enforcement Units, Street Crimes and Vice Units, Helicopter Unit, and other assignments that are not directly related to field operations.

5/26/2010 Related Story: Does Police Settlement Agreement Violate Tulsa City Ordinance?

The Department is seeking exemption for several critical positions. Exemption will be requested on the basis of security clearance – such as Homeland Security - and the need for special certifications – such as K9 officers.

"The Police Department, as most other public and private sectors, has a continuity plan and a knowledge-retention plan in place, if in fact this policy is mandated," the release states.