Oxford Police Union Displeased With "Smear Campaign" By First Selectman Prior To Primary

OXFORD, CT — Leadership of the Oxford Police Union has lashed out against derogatory comments purportedly made by First Selectman George Temple in a local newsletter he founded.

Officer Jose Taverner, president of AFSCME Council 4, Local 2693, accused Temple of attempting to slander a political opponent who is a law enforcement officer.

Temple and Selectman Arnold Jensen are being challenged in a Republican primary Tuesday by Jeffrey Luff and Robert Boroski, who won the party's endorsement at a caucus this summer. Boroski has been a police officer for more than a decade.

Taverner said some of the statements made by Temple in his newsletter were a "heinous attack" with "too many untruths."

The entire statement from Taverner is as follows:

"This week, using the local newsletter that he created and maintains, called “The Elephant Trumpets,” George Temple took aim at the Oxford Police Department and launched an ugly political attack on the courageous officers that put their lives on the line to keep Oxford safe, in an effort to slander a political opponent who has spent nearly a decade selflessly serving the people of Oxford as a law enforcement officer. Temple took this step because he can feel public opinion shifting away from his administration as he faces an upcoming primary election, and he hopes to save his floundering campaign on the backs of Oxford’s police officers.

"Unfortunately for Temple, with this heinous attack, the only thing that he accomplished was to demonstrate to the public his true nature: a selfish, craven politician who cares more about his ego and political games than public safety.

"There are too many untruths in Temple's article to unpack, so by necessity, our response will have to focus on a select few. First, George Temple accuses the Oxford Police Department of being too “political.” To be clear, the Oxford Police Union has never endorsed a political candidate, participated in political campaigns, or engaged in partisan politics. Our Union believes that our sole mission is to protect and serve the citizens of Oxford, regardless of party affiliation, political background, or creed.

"The fact that George Temple chooses to accuse the Oxford Police Union of politicizing public safety, in the middle of a political smear published in a local paper that he created, is as absurd as it is concerning. In fact, by doing so, George Temple demonstrated that it is he who can't seem to separate his political ambitions from the safety and welfare of our community.

"Next, Temple accuses the Oxford Police Department of leaving the town of Oxford “uncovered.” It is true that Oxford's Police Department has struggled with short-staffing for years, a problem that is caused by none other than George Temple and Arnold Jensen, whose mismanagement has left this department with few staff and even fewer resources.

"This issue of short-staffing became the Oxford Police Union's primary point of contention with George Temple during the last four years of contract negotiations. During contract negotiations, George Temple asked Oxford’s Police Union to accept minimum staffing requirements, requiring a certain number of police officers to work each shift—and our union agreed, despite the fact that we understood that some of our officers would be required to work longer, harder hours.

"These minimum staffing requirements would have automatically come into effect when the Oxford Police Department reached a staffing level of 14 full-time police officers, which would require the Town of Oxford to hire additional officers. Then, Temple decided to demand that part-time of icers be included in the of icer-total required to trigger the minimum staffing requirements. These part-time officers were not available to work every shift, in fact, most of these part-time officers would have been unavailable most of the time. Moreover, the Town of Oxford would have had no right to order these officers into work, even in times of emergency.

"The only reason that Temple was adamant in his support of integrating part-time police officers into the Oxford Police Department was because these officers would have been paid significantly less than full-time officers and would not receive benefits.

"The practical result of Temple’s scheme would have been that Oxford’s police would be required to do more with less support. Officers would be required to spend more time away from their families, take longer and later shifts, work even when sick—Temple intended to work our officers to the point of exhaustion, which would put lives at risk, and we would not go along with it.

"The truth of the matter is that for four years, Temple took pride in being the sole barrier to our police officers receiving a fair contract. The town repeatedly cancelled scheduled negotiation sessions, while Temple blatantly disregarded the rules for good faith negotiation, publicly spreading misinformation and slander about our officers and contract proposals. Due to George Temple’s wasted time, Oxford’s police officers have had to weather the last four years of financial uncertainty without so much as a penny in raises, and police officers in Oxford now make about $25,000 less per year than in surrounding towns.

"Despite these provocations, the Oxford Police Union still did its part, because of our commitment to the safety of Oxford’s residents. Last month, the Oxford Police Union settled on a contract with the town that is substantively identical to our initial proposal that we made four years ago. In this contract, Temple’s part-time police officers are nowhere to be found; the town walked away from the entire idea. So, contrary to the public narrative that George Temple presented in his article, it seems that he is the one who caved, and the residents of Oxford are worse off because of all the time that he wasted.

"If Temple actually cared about the safety of the citizens of Oxford, he would put aside his ego, stop his public temper tantrums, and work to ensure that Oxford Police Officers receive fair pay and benefits, so that our town can attract and retain new hires. Instead, the First and Second Selectmen—who are more than happy to take photo ops and claim to “back the blue”—are more interested in political games than backing us up."