By: Diane Benjamin
City Manager Jeff Jurgens STRONGLY urged residents to conserve even more water. Of course the below isn’t all that happened last night, just what I thought was notable.
Last night’s Bloomington City Council meeting was tortuously long. Two items were pulled from the Consent Agenda. Both serve as a lesson in government costing you money.
The first pulled item was extending the federal lobbying contract with Thorn Run Partners, $288,000 for 3 years. “Bringing home the bacon” is how governments funds projects they can’t afford. Since the contract can be cancelled at any time with 30 days notice, it eventually passed.
The longest conversation concerned the police department replacing guns. The gun officers currently carry, SIG Sauer P320, has been banned nationwide from police academies, agencies, and training facilities because of safety concerns. The Police Chief stated his department and other Illinois departments have NEVER had a safety concern with this gun. Since guns are regularly replaced around every 6 years, this replacement was close to happening anyway.
The gun presented for purchase included a credit for trading in guns and a credit if officers wanted to buy their gun. Read the details here: https://bloomingtonil.portal.civicclerk.com/event/4100/files/report/4836
68 officers stated they want to buy their gun for $350. 80 would be traded in for a credit of $260 each. Alderman Mollie Ward didn’t want these “dangerous” guns sold or traded in. The vote to strike saving money failed, John Danenberger, Cody Hendricks, and Abby Scott voted with Ward. The original item them passed with only Ward voting no.
The vote might have been sealed when Sheila Montney asked the Chief what would happen to the guns if Ward’s amendment passed. Just hit play to hear the answer:
I don’t care what kind of statement Sig Sauer releases, nor do I care if the BPD has never had an issue, the P320 CAN and WILL go off by itself when the conditions are right. There is video evidence of this. Just because some local officials want to bury their heads in the sand doesn’t get rid of the problem. This handgun should be banned from police use. It’s dangerous and unpredictable. The worst part is that Sig Sauer refuses to even admit that it’s possible.
Fun fact – Alex Pretti was carrying a Sig Sauer P320 when he was shot and killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis. The implications of this fact could be quite damning.