Winder Police Chief Stanley Rodgers retired unexpectedly and with only two days’ notice last week.
In his Jan. 19 resignation letter to Mayor Chip Thompson, he said he would retire Jan. 21.
The letter did not explain his sudden departure, but sources said the management of the police department has come under increased scrutiny – and some criticism – since the November arrival of city admin-istrator Don Toms. Rodgers was among the unsuccessful candidates for Toms’ position.
A source said the final straw for the chief was the city’s decision to actively explore a possible consolidation of the city’s emergency dispatch operations with the county’s 911 center – something that, the source said, Rodgers opposes.
There have been two closeddoor city council meetings in the past two months to discuss police personnel matters.
The council’s Police Committee met Dec. 2, but took no public action and did not disclose the nature or substance of what was discussed.
Then on Jan. 3, the council held a closed session to discuss litigation and personnel. It was at the end of that meeting that the council voted in public to authorize Toms to work with county officials on the possible consolidation of emergency communications.
Questioned at the time about why the 911 discussion had been held behind closed doors, city attorney John Stell said it was because personnel decisions were a part of that discussion.
Rodgers has not responded to the newspaper’s request for an interview about the reasons for his departure and to explain any concerns he might have about consolidated services.
However, Toms told the
Barrow Journal on Friday that the chief had expressed to him only minor concerns.
“Chief Rodgers did mention some minor concerns, many due to the dispatchers handling some clerical duties for the PD; however, he supported the consolidation based on providing better service to the citizens of Winder,” Toms wrote in an e-mail to the newspaper.
Toms also said it is not that unusual for a department manager to privately plan his resignation or retirement and, once the decision is made, to make a quick exit.
He said Rodgers had been preparing for retirement for months and had made sure Deputy Chief Dennis Dorsey was ready to take over the department.
On Jan. 21, Dorsey stepped into an “interim chief” role, and if he meets expectations in the coming months, he likely will become the permanent chief, Toms said.
He said there is no legal requirement for the position to be advertised. The city charter authorizes the mayor to appoint city employees.
Toms said Dorsey is scheduled to make a Feb. 7 presentation to the city council about his plans for the department.
Saying he didn’t want to steal the new chief’s thunder, Toms said the presentation would focus on moving the department toward a “community policing” model.
In his resignation letter, Rodgers endorsed Dorsey as his successor.
“He is an outstanding young man with strong family values, well trained, familiar with the community, its issues, and dedicated to the future of the City,” he wrote.
Dorsey got his start in law enforcement at the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office, where he was a detention officer for more than two years. He has worked for the city’s police department for 14 years.
Late last year, Dorsey tested the waters elsewhere by applying for another chief’s position. But he stayed put and was named deputy chief in late December.
“The response I have gotten has been overwhelmingly positive from the mayor to the council to the citizens, and it changes your outlook when you get a response like that,” Dorsey said shortly after his initial promotion.
“Most of your law enforcement career is spent in a negative light and it’s good that I had an overwhelming response from the community giving me calls and encouraging me to stay,” he said. “It was heartwarming.”
Rodgers’ career in law enforcement spans 45 years.
He started in 1965 in Miami as a trooper for the Florida Highway Patrol. After retiring from that agency, he relocated to Georgia and served as Barnesville’s police chief from 1994-2001. He became Winder’s police chief in July 2001 and at the time of his resignation Friday was six months shy of a decade of service.
Rodgers has modernized Winder’s police department, and under his direction it has become a state-certified law enforcement agency.
“When I was brand new, they only had two or three computers,” said Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith, who began his career working for Rodgers. “By the time I left, they had a dispatch call center, computers and laptops in the cars. He has brought that agency a long way in a short period of time.”
Smith added: “He’s done a lot for me and for the city of Winder. I hope he does well in whatever he does in the future.”
What is your point? “You have no life, correct?” does not make a whole lot of sense regarding my comment. How do my comments make me an idiot? I am trying to understand why a man of his fanfare resigned with a two day notice. Since you took such offense to my comments then you must have some personal knowledge of this man, and if you do then you know what I am talking about. It is just not like him to leave overnight. He does not care what people think about him, he is too egocentric or narcissistic so, why up and leave without a true explanation?
You said if I had proof he did something wrong then someone would listen. Well that is exactly what I am asking, what did he do wrong. I am not making the claim he did something wrong. I am making the observation, based on the comments from the other article, that he was never mentioned as a great leader, friend or colleague. If fact just the opposite was mentioned.
Now what I do know is the majority of the officers that worked for him could not stand him and the department lost more than a few good men and women because of him. They tolerated him because he would have their jobs if they crossed him. The officers who brown nosed him for favor or advancement never spoke well of him when they weren’t around him, and I mean all of them. He was a self proclaimed dictator, his words not mine, and history proves dictators are neither successful nor popular. Why did he never have an assistant chief? Why did he go to the Middle East less than a year ago and then suddenly resign? Why is this a “resignation” and not a “retirement”? Did he make a difference? I say no, I say the dedicated officers made the difference. They are the ones who stuck it out and put up with him for the betterment of the city.
I just want to know what the real catalyst was for his TWO day notice and departure. If you comment, try making a response rather than an attack. I won’t waste my time attacking you back.