“We have captains who can't spell 'lieutenant'.”

Department: Police

Employed for: 35+ years

Cred: Awarded four figures from the federal monitor

Background: Master's degree in law enforcement; experience in hostage situations and numerous shootings; good physical shape (he runs every day).

Gripe: Within the last four years Slayton has unsuccessfully applied three times for a promotion to a captain position, of which the department currently has over 70. He claims that, each time, the department has promoted less qualified candidates over him.

Why the city's not compliant: Slayton says the promotion process has a built-in patronage component, in that the police department can, in each promotion cycle, promote one-third of the applicants "meritoriously"—based on the judgment of superiors rather than test scores, time in service, and education. "That's what pisses me off," says Slayton. "Which brain surgeon do you wanna see? The one who tested well, or the one chosen on merit?"

The system has resulted, Slayton maintains, in a disappointing lack of leadership and incompetence. "We have captains," he says, "who can't spell 'lieutenant'."

Why cloutless: Slayton has worked most of his career in the Patrol division, in which most district officers serve. It looked like good place to be, career-wise, under former superintendent Terry Hillard.

"Hillard said he would make captains from Patrol lieutenants—but he didn't," says Slayton. "Look at where lieutenants were made from: very few from Patrol units." Since Hillard resigned in 2003, Slayton says, mid-rank promotions have come from specialized units, which one needs clout to get into. (See Lt. Madison Beadell.)

Slayton says the police department has a large number of very qualified officers—"but they don't get promoted cuz they don't have the phone call" from a clouted patron. For example, he says, "it took me 25 years to make sergeant."

*Not his real name.

See "Substantially clouted", the main article for this story.