It is hard to be a police officer. The pressure, the scrutiny, of course the inherent potential dangers day in and day out. Across the nation, police agencies are near desperate for new officers to join their forces, to expand the ranks in order to serve growing communities, to take the place of those retiring, or those who just walk away from the job.

Madras is in that difficult position. It's been well documented in our newspaper that the city is in dire need of officers. We don't scream it in big headlines every week — Madras police staffing is only half its allocation, hurry in criminals! — because we don't need to essentially advertise it. But we also don't shy away from reporting that fact because it's a status that the local public should be aware of. There's a balance there. The fact is, Madras only has six officers on staff, half of what the budget allocates and what the city would like to employ. Plus, for a couple months now, the city has been operating with a temporary chief whose contract is nearing an end.