Law enforcement agencies across the country are bracing for budget reductions not seen in more than a decade.
," law enforcement agencies across the country are bracing for budget reductions not seen in more than a decade.
Chuck Wexler, executive director of the D.C.-based think tank that authored the report, said police operations have not confronted such a threat since the financial crisis of 2008, when operations and force numbers were cut dramatically to account for the steep decline in available public funds."Unfortunately, the situation this time is only certain to get worse because of the pandemic's resurgence and the convergence of the defund police movement," Wexler said.
"There are a lot of pressures dragging down and threatening levels of public safety," Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore said."It's really a perfect storm." “I don’t know yet whether I’m going to have to lay off police officers," he said."I don’t have enough police officers as it is to do emergency calls,” he said. “Our cuts are going to mean we’re going to plow the streets less, water the grass less. We’re going to police with less. It’s a challenge.”
Comparing the think tank's 2020 survey – conducted just five months into the pandemic – with similar 2008 research –,a year into that recession – the group found that more police agencies planned cuts to training, hiring and technology acquisitions this year than during the last economic crisis. “Then police don’t have the skills they need to do what needs to be done properly, and then something bad happens and everybody wonders why something bad happens,” Davis said.“I understand that people are angry.
At least one-third of the department's calls for service, Moore said, involve people who are mentally ill or emotionally disturbed. Los Angeles is one of hundreds of police departments struggling to find more meaningful and efficient ways to respond to such calls.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
U.S. To Spend $2.1 Billion On GlaxoSmithKline-Sanofi Covid-19 VaccineThe U.S. agreed to spend $2.1 billion on a joint experimental Covid-19 vaccine from GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi to supply the nation with an initial 100 million doses by iamsternlicht
Read more »
Hundreds of pitchfork-wielding protesters gathered outside billionaires' Hamptons mansions to demand a wealth taxProtesters called on Gov. Cuomo to raise the taxes of New York&39;s richest residents to avoid more school and hospital budget cuts amid COVID-19.
Read more »
Preparing for Hurricanes During the COVID-19 PandemicPreparing for a hurricane can be stressful, even when there isn’t a pandemic to worry about. Learn how to prepare, evacuate, and shelter for Isaias while protecting yourself and others from COVID19: HurricaneIsaias
Read more »
Tesla Pulls Ahead in the Coronavirus Era After Elon Musk’s Years of StruggleFor all of Elon Musk’s public complaining about the handling of the pandemic, Tesla is shaping up to be one of the biggest business winners of the Covid-19 era.
Read more »
Lena Dunham says her body 'revolted' under COVID-19Lena Dunham says her body “revolted” in a debilitating month-long struggle with COVID-19.
Read more »
Guatemala burying dozens of unidentified coronavirus deadDozens of COVID-19 victims are being buried anonymously in Guatemala
Read more »