Police officers across the US have quit their jobs in recent days. Here is where there have been resignations-
(CNN) -- Since G****e F***d's death three weeks ago, the role of America's criminal justice system has been catapulted to the forefront of national conversation with thousands calling for sweeping changes within the country's policing system. Protesters have called on their community leaders to hold officers accountable and defund police departments -- in hopes those funds could be redirected toward other programs. And many local leaders have responded, signing orders changing how departments operate, promising further reform and acting quickly on incidents of police brutality that have surfaced in recent weeks. But as anger bubbles in parts of the country, some US police departments are facing their own crises and some officers have now opted to walk away.
In Minneapolis
In Minneapolis, at least seven police officers resigned from the department since protests sparked by Floyd's death in late May flooded the city's streets. More than half a dozen officers are also in the process of leaving, a city spokesperson told CNN. The number of officers who are no longer with the department doesn't include the four men who were involved in Floyd's death and were fired, according to Casper Hill, the city's spokesperson, "There's nothing that leads us to believe that at this point the numbers are so great that it's going to be problematic," police spokesman John Elder told the Minneapolis Star Tribune of the departing officers, which include both patrol officers and detectives. "People seek to leave employment for a myriad reasons — the MPD is no exception," Elder said. Members of the department condemned the actions of ex-Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin -- who pressed his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes -- in an open letter last week. Derek Chauvin failed as a human and stripped G****e F***d of his dignity and life. This is not who we are," said the letter, signed by 14 officers. "We're not the union or the administration," the letter says.
In Atlanta Atlanta became the epicenter of protests this week after a black man was shot in the back and k**led Friday night. Following Rayshard Brooks' k*****g, Atlanta's police chief stepped down and the officer who k**led the 27-year-old father was fired. A second officer was placed on administrative duty.
Atlanta police said in a statement eight officers have resigned from the department this month. "Our personnel data indicates that we have had anywhere from two to six officers resign per month in 2020," Atlanta police said in a statement. The Atlanta Police Foundation earlier reported that 19 officers had resigned "since the start of social justice protests." The foundation has since retracted that incorrect number. Prior to Brooks' k*****g, some were critical of charges that six officers faced after video captured the group violently handling a pair of black college students who were in their car and were stuck in traffic caused by ongoing protests. Those critics included Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields, who had already fired two officers involved, and said she didn't expect charges. Criminal charges "were never part of any discussion that I had with the Mayor or her administration," Shields wrote in the memo provided to CNN by the department. "I called the DA and strongly expressed my concern, both to the appropriateness and the timing of any charges," Shields wrote.
In South Florida
In South Florida, 10 officers resigned from their city's SWAT unit over concerns about safety, saying they feel "restrained by the politicization of our tactics," according to documents obtained by CNN. The officers sent a letter to Hallandale Beach Police Chief Sonia Quinones, saying they were "minimally equipped, under trained and often times restrained by the politicization of our tactics to the extent of placing the safety of dogs over the safety of the team members." They also said they were displeased after the command staff took a knee with activists and others during a demonstration on Monday, according to the letter. "Until these conditions and sentiments are rectified and addressed, we cannot safely, effectively and in good faith carry out duties in this capacity without putting ourselves and our families at this needless increased level of risk," the officers wrote. The officers resigned only from the SWAT unit, not from the police department, Hallandale Beach City Manager Greg Chavarria said. The chief told CNN Monday night she was "extremely disappointed" in the officers' decision. "They walked away from their assignment, they never talked to me in advance and let me know their concerns," she said. "If we're not connecting and we're not communicating, then we're not resolving concerns." She said what the officers wrote in their memo was inaccurate, adding she didn't kneel to oppose police but to be in solidarity with their community.
"We provided increased training hours, we provided over $100,000 in the last two years in SWAT-specific equipment and then they inaccurately and falsely stated I took a knee in solidarity with the vice mayor, which was not the case. It was in reverence with our community," the chief said.
In Buffalo
In Buffalo, New York, nearly 60 officers resigned from the force's emergency response team over the suspension of two police officers who were caught in a video pushing an elderly protester to the ground. "Fifty-seven resigned in disgust because of the treatment of two of their members, who were simply executing orders," Buffalo Police Benevolent Association president John Evans had previously told CNN affiliate WGRZ. The two officers captured on video were charged with assault and pleaded not guilty. The 75-year-old protester was seen falling to the ground and bleeding from his head. The 57 officers that turned in their resignation did not quit from the force -- but made up the entire active emergency response team of the department, the Buffalo mayor's office told CNN. A few members of the unit are out currently and are not included in the 57 that resigned, according to the mayor’s office.
Cops are leaving—what does this mean for public safety?
January 20, 2021--byLeonard Sipes---law and order
Share and speak up for justice, law & order...
Cops are leaving the job in record numbers. If there is any question as to the impact of police officers on society, remove them and see what happens. But with the new data, we may be doing that now. The results could be disastrous for cities and many communities.
Is there hard data suggesting that cops are leaving the job in numbers that could affect public safety? Beyond a survey stating that recruitment is down 63 percent (below), no, there isn’t. But it seems like a daily ritual to read articles about police staffing problems throughout the country.
America is going through a lot right now. From the recent disgraceful storming of the Capitol resulting in the horrific deaths of C*****l P****e officers to protests-r**ts-l**ting resulting in two billion dollars in insurance claims R**t Insurance Claims to rising violent crime and fear of crime Crime in the US to the p******c to lack of trust in government Pew to endless questions about the accuracy and reliability of the media Columbia Journalism Review, institutions seem to be failing us.
At least we can count on cops to come to our aid when warranted, right?
After all, policing in America is one of our most trusted institutions ranking much higher than most, including Congress and the media. When adding all three categories in a recent Gallup poll, a great deal of confidence, quite a lot, and some, 81 percent expressed a level of confidence in law enforcement. As to a great deal of confidence, law enforcement did better than most institutions, Gallup Via Crime in America.
So regardless of all the harshly negative press, America continues to count on police officers for their protection, correct?
So in this day and age of C***D, endless protests, Capitol Hill r**ts, police defunding, fewer protections for police officers and relentlessly negative media coverage, cops will always be there, right?
Police Officer Deaths
A staggering 264 police officers were k**led in the line of duty in 2020 representing a 96% increase compared to the previous year, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. As of Dec. 31, 2020, the 264 officers k**led consisted of federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial officers in the line of duty compared to 135 officers who died in the line of duty in 2019. The Memorial Fund’s report also records the deaths of officers in the category of “other” causes, which includes C****-** deaths, which is up 300% compared to other causes last year, Crime in America.
Copes Leaving-Chicago Sun Times (direct quotes rearranged for brevity)
The number of police officers retiring in Chicago and other cities has soared amid a chorus of anti-police rhetoric that’s become increasingly loud over the past year.
In Chicago, 560 officers retired in 2020 in a police department that had about 13,100 sworn officers as of March, records show. That’s about 15% more cops retiring than during the previous year, when the number of retirements rose by nearly 30%.
In New York City, 2,500 cops retired last year, nearly double the number in 2019, according to the New York Police Department, which has about 34,500 uniformed officers.
In Minneapolis, about 40 officers retired last year, and another 120 took leaves of absence. That’s nearly 20% of a police department with about 840 officers in the city that touched off anti-police protests nationwide following the death last May of G****e F***d, who was Black. A since-fired white cop knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes that was captured on video by witnesses. Police officials are waiting to see whether the leaves of absences in the Minnesota city become retirements.
“It’s serious,” said Michael Lappe, vice president of the board of trustees for the Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago, which oversees police pensions. “A lot of these people aren’t retiring. They’re quitting.”
Minneapolis city officials are asking surrounding communities to place some of their officers on joint law enforcement teams in the face of the flood of departures. The Minneapolis Police Department also is curtailing some of the work it normally does, Chicago Sun Times.
63 Percent Reduction in Police Recruits-ABC News (direct quotes-rearranged for brevity)
Police agencies across the country are having trouble keeping and hiring police officers, according to a new survey obtained by ABC News.
Produced by the Police Executive Research Forum, the survey shows a “triple threat” for police departments: there is a decrease in applications, early exits and higher rates of retirement.
Agencies participating in the survey reported that there has been a 63% decrease in applying to become a police officer. Departments are also having trouble hiring non-white/minority applicants the most, followed by female officers, according to the survey.
Montgomery County, Maryland, just outside of the nation’s capital, felt the hit because of increased racial profiling incidents, when someone is targeted because of their race of ethnicity, according to acting Police Chief Marcus Jones.
“I can’t ignore that that’s a factor. When you do a job that’s being highly criticized on a daily basis, we have to ask ourselves, how do we find good candidates that really want to be under that type of scrutiny,” Jones said, according to Bethesda Magazine. “If you feel like you’re being scrutinized all the time, then this may not be the career that you want, so we understand that that may be a roadblock for us.”
The survey encompasses agencies from 45 states, the District of Columbia and Canada — with the majority of answers coming from medium-sized departments, ABC News.
Example Of Underfunded Agencies-Buzz Feed News (direct quotes rearranged for brevity)
But unlike its legislative counterpart, the US Park Police suffers from chronic understaffing and deeply diminished resources, according to multiple Inspector General reviews, reporting by a watchdog group, and interviews with current and former officers. Since 2001, its ranks have shrunk by a third, to just 508 sworn officers currently nationwide, according to the National Park Service’s annual budget request documents. Its budget stands at $116 million and hasn’t grown in years, while the C*****l P****e has seen its funding increase about a quarter, to $516 million, since 2017 alone.
The agency denied that staffing issues played any role in the Park Police’s ability to respond when the Capitol was overrun, Buzz Feed.
Context
But it’s not just cops leaving; there are important issues for all Americans to consider:
Crime
From 2015 to 2018, the total number of violent victimizations increased by 28%. The rate of total violent victimizations also increased. The number of violent incidents increased from 5.2 million in 2017 to 6.0 million in 2018, Crime in America. There is additional data stating that violent crime is becoming more serious in nature. Gallup states that violent crime tripled. Fear of crime is at an all-time high.
Arrests and Contacts
Arrests are also down considerably, Arrests. There is conflicting data as to proactive police contacts. Is the immense negativity thrown at cops causing them to pull back?
Per Pew, 72% say officers in their department are now less willing to stop and question suspicious persons. Overall, more than eight-in-ten (86%) say police work is harder today as a result of high-profile, negative incidents.
About nine-in-ten officers (93%) say their colleagues worry more about their personal safety – a level of concern recorded even before a total of eight officers died in separate ambush-style attacks in Dallas and Baton Rouge, Cops Holding Back?
When asked whether they want the police to spend more time, the same amount of time or less time than they currently do in their area, most B***k A******ns — 61% — want the police presence to remain the same. This is similar to the 67% of all U.S. adults preferring the status quo, including 71% of W***e A******ns.
Meanwhile, nearly equal proportions of B***k A******ns say they would like the police to spend more time in their area (20%) as say they’d like them to spend less time there (19%), Police Myths.
Mental Health
The data on police PTSD, suicides, drug and alcohol use and general stress is well documented, see Police Stress. Is policing becoming too hard, too emotionally draining? Is that why recruitment and retention are problems?
Does Policing Change You?
There are endless references as to how being a cop changes your personality. “How many domestic violence calls can you handle? How many people shot? How much blood? How many abused children? How much violence can you process?” Crime in