Police Have No Case Against ‘Ambassadors’

Spokane police have won widespread praise by enlisting the whole community in the war on crime. Neighborhood-oriented officers and “cop shops” strengthen the ties that prevent crime and catch suspects. Trained volunteers perform low-risk chores so police can concentrate on duties with greater risk and urgency.

But now, in the worst traditions of work-rule unionism, the Spokane Police Guild has ruptured the spirit of cooperation. It has charged the city with an unfair labor practice, protesting the civilian “ambassadors” who walk downtown streets.

The ambassadors aren’t city employees; they work for downtown’s Parking and Business Improvement Area. Private business interests cover most of the cost, although the city contributes.

The ambassadors carry no guns and make no arrests. They give tourists directions, walk nervous pedestrians to cars in the dark, steer skateboarders to appropriate locations, disperse panhandlers, call social agencies to the aid of drunks and the mentally ill. And if they see a crime, they call police.

So what’s the problem? Could the ambassadors be cutting the demand for police to moonlight as private security guards? Or is this just a clumsy attempt to pick the taxpayers’ pockets?

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = John Webster/For the editorial board