Austell will again demonstrate his leadership by conducting serious talks about police protection with the county. As for the county, Manager Jan Winters would best demonstrate his leadership by providing accurate cost figures to Cherryville. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged. Oops! Gaston County Police Chief James Buie won't get an "A" in arithmetic for his quick -- and preposterous -- initial calculation on the cost of county officers covering for Cherryville police. The numbers, however, deserve a close -- and exact -- examination. Earlier this year, Cherryville Mayor Bob Austell took some heat for exploring the possibility of outsourcing the city's police department to Gaston County. Austell had his eye on saving taxpayers money. The mayor's endeavor hit the skids when word spread on Facebook, sparking rumors and needlessly raising citizens' concern for their safety. Good for him. The mayor was right to seek out alternatives to a costly city-run police department. He might not have caved to misplaced criticism so quickly had he known the trouble brewing within the ranks of the city's P.D. Mayor Austell would be wise to resurrect his endeavor in the wake of the several police officers' arrests and the ensuing resignation of Chief Woody Burgess. The citizens of Cherryville would be wise to support their mayor. The bad situation in Cherryville creates a good opportunity to see if police consolidation makes sense. We believe it does. With county officers already patrolling in the city,