Move to disarm Chester County Park Rangers

[johnpsu]

From the Chester County Park Rangers Facebook Page on 1/8/2015.

ALERT

The word on the trail is there is a move by County facilities managers to disarm our park rangers -supposedly to reduce expenses and liability.

Dumb move! Instead we should be properly training and equipping the rangers so they can protect us, and appropriately insure that risk.

Chester County is a very affluent county with great parks. Don't risk safety to save a few bucks.

I know for a fact that the two newest full-time Chester County Park Ranger hires are working unarmed. Those two park rangers were told at the interviews that they would not be armed at all.

[Metz]

Sorry, but we need another local law enforcement agency exactly why?

[Sandcut]

Sorry, but we need another local law enforcement agency exactly why?

Because you would be surprised just how many drunken parties and drug deals and poaching and mobile meth labs and illegal logging and general shenanigans occur in public open space that local PD don't have the resources to focus sufficient attention towards to adequately monitor these areas.

[JAKIII]

Seems like a bad idea for their own protection let alone mine. If an unarmed Ranger encounters a threat situation he/she will be unable to engage and will need to stand-off and contact local LE to intervene.

[cdi]

I just told my dog about the plan to disarm the park rangers.
He says he feels safer already.

[Big77]

[QUOTE=Sandcut;2950736] drunken parties - drug deals - poaching - meth labs - illegal logging - general shenanigans/QUOTE]

You are a party pooper sir. Poaching and logging I get but you are still banned from the fun team. FYI if we didn't allow some level of shenanigans it would be impossible to get a girls shirt off. Fact.

[Cyclops]

Seems like a bad idea for their own protection let alone mine. If an unarmed Ranger encounters a threat situation he/she will be unable to engage and will need to stand-off and contact local LE to intervene.

I agree. If they are there to enforce the law, and I must assume that is the intention of having them, then they ought to be armed. Any LEO who is unarmed is at greater risk than if armed. I am too too old to be a LEO, but if I were not and desired to be one, you can be sure I would not do it unarmed.

I especially want to see armed (and trained) LEOs wherever crowds gather> With it being just a matter of time before some home grown terrorists decide to shoot a public gathering, I like to think I will not be the only person there with a gun other than the bad guys.

[Red]

From the Chester County Park Rangers Facebook Page on 1/8/2015.

ALERT

The word on the trail is there is a move by County facilities managers to disarm our park rangers -supposedly to reduce expenses and liability.

Dumb move! Instead we should be properly training and equipping the rangers so they can protect us, and appropriately insure that risk.

Chester County is a very affluent county with great parks. Don't risk safety to save a few bucks.

I know for a fact that the two newest full-time Chester County Park Ranger hires are working unarmed. Those two park rangers were told at the interviews that they would not be armed at all.

Government employees, including law enforcement, have no constitutional duty to protect anyone, the US Supreme Court has on at least three different times decided this.

What flavor was the Kool-Aid at the government run indoctrination center...err public school... you went to? The one where the nice unionized teachers taught you to worship the religion of the state and to idolize the costumed badge wearers?

[Red]

I know for a fact that the two newest full-time Chester County Park Ranger hires are working unarmed. Those two park rangers were told at the interviews that they would not be armed at all.

From their Facebook page:

The mission of the Chester County Park Rangers is to ensure visitors to our parks and trails have a quality experience. Currently, nine armed regional park rangers are sworn officers of the county and enforce park ordinances while maintaining credentials and ongoing training in emergency medical response, biannual firearms qualifications, wildlife conservation law, fish and boat regulations, educational programming, water rescue, and natural resource skills such as prescribed wildfire burns.

Approximately twenty part time, unarmed non-enforcement, rangers provide visitor services and educational programming...

So are the two new rangers the first full time unarmed rangers? Part-time unarmed rangers? Or is the County planning on making all the rangers unarmed?

Since the Facebook pages states the rangers are there "enforce park ordinances"; and when one does not follow the rules they will probably be issued a citation with a monetary fine.

Does this mean these rangers are actually there to collect revenue, instead of keeping people safe? If so I guess it is easier to rob people if they are armed.

If you ask me, it sounds like a few of these Park Rangers want to be cops, instead of rangers. Maybe they should become cops then, instead of being park rangers.

One interesting observation from the Chester County Park Rangers FB page is if you look at the photos posted you will notice that the armed rangers are not wearing bullet proof vests. If their task is so dangerous that they need to carry guns at work, for "safety", one would hope they would wear a ballistic vest too. I think this is more of an ego thing, than a safety thing, since they can do their job without the need or more importantly the requirement to wear a ballistic vest.

[Metz]

Because you would be surprised just how many drunken parties and drug deals and poaching and mobile meth labs and illegal logging and general shenanigans occur in public open space that local PD don't have the resources to focus sufficient attention towards to adequately monitor these areas.

Its county level. Let sheriff deputies handle it.