When it comes to law enforcement professionals many of us are happy to see them, keeping our streets safe and offering assistance to those in need. Most of us are also happy to hear it when more officers are being hired on, not only because it decreases the crime rate, but because it brings new jobs and income to the place that we live. In the current long term economic down turn this can be a very welcome thing.

Well, in most cases it is welcome. In the case of the recent hiring in the city of Camden one has to wonder if the money would not be better spend elsewhere. You see the city is getting ready to go through a transition. The city is getting rid of its own police force and instead they are going to be handing over the work to a new metro division created in the Camden County police force.

Yet despite this the city still did $232,000 of hiring. What, you might ask, is wrong with that? After all $232,000 could pay for a lot of officers on the streets. Too bad the money will not be used for that. The money has been used instead to hire on only two people. One of whom will be paid $100,000 and the other $132,000.

One hiring is for a former state police major, who hiring was initially rejected as a measure that was too costly and would only add another level to an already complex project. The man in question, Lanuel J. Ferguson, is being hired on as a consultant to the city as they begin to shut down their police force. This is a separate consultant from the one hired on by the county to help facilitate the same changes. The second big tag hiring was of Police Capt. Edward J. Fanelle, who was brought on as the director of police services.