By Carol Stark

Globe Editor

Carl Francis says his move from the Joplin Police Department to the top spot of a smaller force has given him a whole new perspective on his career.

Francis, the Webb City police chief, says he used to view his role mainly as that of a crime fighter. He’s had an attitude change, he says, as he sees more and more the importance of “customer satisfaction.”

“It’s not all about busting the bad guys,” Francis said. “I’ve learned that maybe you can fight crime by working to get the trash cleaned up in a neighborhood. There’s a definite change when you can accomplish some of the little things.”

That theme — one of community service — was echoed by the three other police chiefs who ,along with Francis, met with the Globe’s editorial board last week.

Joplin police Chief Lane Roberts, Carl Junction police Chief Delmar Haase, Carthage police Chief Greg Dagnan and Francis spent about an hour answering our questions about trends they are seeing in law enforcement and the challenges they face.

Haase, Dagnan and Francis all spent a good part of their careers at the Joplin Police Department, so it was an interesting exchange between them and Roberts, who has led the department for a little more than a year.

While it’s hard to compare the problems Haase has with a department of 12 members with those of Roberts, who has a department of 97 officers, all of the chiefs lamented the ever-shrinking pool of officer candidates.

Roberts and Dagnan have budgets that allow them to send new hires to the Missouri Southern State University police academy. Haase and Francis don’t. That means their new hires must already have gone through the academy or they must be willing to spend the $5,500 it takes to receive the police training.

“That stops of lot of potential hires in their tracks,” said Haase.

That means retention and recruitment are key in the departments, and all four chiefs find themselves competing to attract the 30 to 40 candidates who graduate from the police academy each year.

“And we all want those same top 10,” Dagnan said.

While the four jurisdictions are only miles apart, there are distinct differences in the communities.

Traffic is one of Joplin’s biggest issues, according to Roberts, while the other three chiefs cited crimes against property.