Crime pays in San Luis Obispo

August 26, 2019
T. Keith Gurnee

T. Keith Gurnee

OPINION by T. KEITH GURNEE

The Tribune’s recent editorial regarding SLO city’s building inspector Christopher Olcott’s incarceration in a “pay-to-stay” jail utterly missed the mark. It is the City of San Luis Obispo that is actually paying him to stay in cushy detention.

After being caught red-handed on video cold-cocking a young woman in a bar, Olcott was placed on “paid administrative leave” with his $68,000 annual salary in tact since April 16. While he remains on paid leave for more than four months now, his monthly salary is more than enough to cover his 60-day so-called sentence.

Has he sent the city a thank you note yet?

But what is lost on the Tribune is the glaring hypocrisy of our city leaders on this issue. With a City Council comprised by four women some of whom participated in the Women’s Marches in support of the “Me Too” movement with great fanfare, how is it that our mayor and council continue to tolerate this arrangement for a public employee who was filmed abusing a woman? And what does this say to the woman who was the victim of Olcott’s attack?

Does the fact that Olcott continues to draw his full salary for not working reveal the city’s intent to keep him on their staff when the time is right? Who knows?

So this is how the city spends your tax dollars! What is happening to this once fine town? After all, it only goes to prove that crime does pay in San Luis Obispo.


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Duffy needs to be removed from the bench, too. As a judge, she enables this crap.


Time to clean house. Get rid of them all. I’d rather have an honest person running things that was new, than a deceitful liar running things that knew the system.


We are all dumb for continuing to elect these people that think they are above the law.


Im not sticking up for this dude by any stretch of the imagination. I say let him and Chuck Liddell go a few laps in a public spectacle!!. Talk about a sell out event,but to my point. The likes of the SEIU Union or other government sector unions and their democrat support of those unions. It’s that simple for a prick of an employee who needs protection from termination. People joke about canning a gov employee, this is why Mr. woman beater still has a job.


Problem with your democrat fear mongering Snoid? Is the fact that traditionally peace officers unions donate to and support the Republican Party/The Party of Trump The Pervert exclusively! The Republican Party/The Party of Trump The Pervert court these unions while they, like you, demonize all other public sector unions. What do they call that? Oh Yea! Hypocrisy…

Stop with the political bullshit and concentrate on the individual, if you can, and maybe this type of crap would diminish. Putting any political ideology before the person actions insures that this type of bullshit continues.


First, back in 2013, the City of SLO hired back that scumbag POS John Ryan Mason as an EMT/firefighter after Mason beat someone that left the victim with 17 facial fractures.


Then this scumbag POS Christopher Olcott commits a felony on video, and is instead charged with a misdemeanor. Worse he is put on PAID leave and is now going to do his time (a total of 30 days) in what amounts to a secure motel PAID FOR by SLO taxpayers! I wonder if his boyfriend, SLO Administrator Derek Johnson will visit him in “jail?”


Then there’s the matter of the POS scumbagette SLOPD Chief Deanna Cantrell who not only left her loaded firearm in a public crapper, she also lied and obfuscated about what actually happened. THEN she pushed for the person who found her firearm to be charged with a felony! Unbelievable!


F-word you, SLO City Council and SLO City Administrator Derek Johnson! All of you are worthless, entitled POSs! No, you’re not fooling anyone. We are well aware of just how f-worded-up each and every one of you are!


Entitled and oh so privileged govt employees! It would be amazing to see ANY of you get REAL jobs! F-word-off, each and every one of you!


Well, I’m sure this short little opinion piece will get a ton of comments condemning the city and whining about how their precious tax dollars go to such a scumbag. Most of them, however, will be from people who don’t bat an eye that our tax dollars go to for-profit prisons to lock up children on the border who have not committed any crime other than their parents thought they might have a better life in America.


I share your concerns but you should not jump to that conclusion. I am horrified by our idiot in chief, as well as the local bums running this town. Olcott should have been fired immediately, put in jail for felony assault-but no, our fools give him a free ride on us.


I totally agree about Olcott. That video is sickening and he should do some hard time for it. I was just pointing out the hypocrisy of many on this board.


He’s getting his full paycheck while in jail? That is just sickening.


Hi Mark,


Noblemen have employment contracts that are different from those serf’s often have. Nobles, for example, can’t be terminated for punching serfs….but if they say the “N” word or show hesitation before issuing verbal praise towards any number of protected classes of people they can be fired. They can also get into trouble for wearing MAGA hats, or being a “Climate Denier,” but random violence isn’t something that can jeopardize a noble’s employment.


Olcott only punched a couple serfs. No big deal.


We should all be thankful and grateful that Mr. Olcott is inspecting things to insure we’re all safe. Safety is clearly something this guy knows a lot about.


As for you and your opinions, if you don’t wear a uniform or collect your paychecks from tax money, your opinions aren’t worth much……you’re just a serf.


Why? because Olcott is a member of the protected class and the woman he assaulted is not. The class that can do anything they want, legal or illegal, and not have to worry about losing anything, their overpaid salary or bloated pension or worry about really being held accountable, welcome to the public sector.


Full salary for not working?…anyone that is connected with this punishment and soft reaction to a violent crime against a woman while she wasn’t even looking should also lose their jobs….


No one in SLO can terminate a crappy employee because they’ve all got their dirty little secrets and something hanging over the next guy’s head. The whole bunch of apples is rotten. It is time to clean out the refrigerator.