Sure, if that's enough to convince enough quality candidates. That would be great. But I want better educated police held to much higher standards and trained completely differently than what we get now. That may well be enough. But if not, we should up it.
Yes, but entry levels are considerably lower...and if you want to attract "a better product" and train them properly, starting pay needs to be "attractive". Hell, here in Georgia, starting pay is around $35K. https://www.indeed.com/career/law-enforcement-officer/salaries/GA
Most of those jobs are not as critical as being a police officer, and most don't require near the education I'd like to see. Police officers should be far more highly trained and be held to a far higher standard than most of those jobs as well. They shouldn't be paid a lot because of the amount of danger they are in. They should be paid a lot because we want the best people doing that job with the right intentions. Nobody else on that list has the right to legally apprehend a person by force (unless I'm missing something). That's a huge responsibility. And IMO it is not a responsibility we should be giving to a person eager enough for that power that they accept a lower wage to do it.
Then why the fuck do they call it Defund the Police? Words matter. It’s gotta be one of the dumbest named movements I’ve ever seen.
Because defunding the current systems (or replacing them altogether) is what frighten the police and their bosses. Yes, words matter. And those words scare the hell out of the people who want to maintain the status quo.
There's a lot of sayings that have been around awhile but that doesn't by default, mean they have much traction or merit. ======================================================== Despite 'defunding' claims, police funding has increased in many US cities. https://abcnews.go.com/US/defunding-claims-police-funding-increased-us-cities/story?id=91511971#:~:text=Of the 109 budgets analyzed,increased by more than 10%. Of 109 budgets analyzed, 91 agencies have upped police funding by at least 2%. In Los Angeles, the county sheriff says local residents are in danger because "defunding has consequences" -- even though his agency's budget is up more than $250 million since 2019. Sheriff Alex Villanueva is not alone in suggesting to voters that crime is up because Democrats defunded police agencies after nationwide protests following the 2020 murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. Politicians, pundits and police leaders across the country are repeating the accusation as they address concerns about crime heading toward Election Day. Yet in many communities, defunding never happened. ABC Owned Television Stations examined the budgets of more than 100 cities and counties and found that 83% are spending at least 2% more on police in 2022 than in 2019. Of the 109 budgets analyzed, only eight agencies cut police funds by more than 2%, while 91 agencies increased law enforcement funding by at least 2%. In 49 cities or counties, police funding has increased by more than 10%. An 'outbreak of crime' Despite what the public record shows, an analysis of broadcast transcripts shows that candidates, law enforcement leaders and television hosts discussed the impact of "defunding the police" more than 10,000 times over the last two years, according to the Internet Archive's TV news transcripts dating back to June 2020 -- and the mentions aren't subsiding during this campaign season. "In communities across the country, like in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, so many other places, it is this remarkable, incredible, outbreak of crime," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in a video posted on Twitter in August by the Republican Governors Association. "You typically see where these crimes are taking place, there has been a de-emphasis of the role that law enforcement plays. It could be defunding law enforcement. It could be a reduction in law enforcement," Abbott said. Dr. Rashawn Ray, a sociologist and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told KABC in Los Angeles that this false narrative has persisted due to repetition by public officials. "Overwhelmingly, cities, counties, police departments across the country are not being defunded in any way," Ray said. "In fact, many of them have increased their budgets. Part of the reason why the 'defund the police' narrative has stayed around is because police officers say it and elected officials say it." A chart shows the Los Angeles County Sheriff's total budget from 2012-2023. KABC ABC's analysis of police budget data shows police spending has increased in some of the very cities frequently cited by conservative politicians and pundits as places where Democrats' defunding has fueled violent crime waves. The Los Angeles Police Department's budget is up by 9.4% since 2019. San Francisco's police budget is up by 4% and Philadelphia's is up by 3%. In Chicago, police spending is up 15%, representing almost a quarter billion dollars in new police spending since 2019. In Houston, where the homicide rate nearly doubled in both 2020 and 2021 before starting to subside this year, local government officials have increased police spending by nearly 9% -- almost $80 million -- from 2019 to 2022. President Joe Biden heralded this movement in his 2022 State of the Union address, saying, "The answer is not to defund the police. It's to fund the police. Fund them!" -- a line that drew bipartisan applause. Perception versus reality A few cities did try to reallocate police spending following concerns from advocacy groups in the wake of the George Floyd protests. In Austin, Texas, leaders cut the police budget by about 30% in 2021, proposing to instead spend that money on programs like family violence prevention, mental health responders, and police oversight. But that lasted only one year. The Texas legislature voted to bar cities in the state from decreasing police budgets, so Austin boosted police spending by 50% in 2022. In Los Angeles County, where Sheriff Villanueva is engaged in a tight re-election battle, he's been outspoken for months about the impacts of what he describes as the defunding of his agency, claiming that his budget is being "cannibalized." Yet records show his agency's budget is up about 8% percent -- more than $259 million -- from 2019 to 2022. "While the perception may be that defunding is taking place, in fact, the sheriff's budget has increased," County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said. Click the link to view the rest of the article.
Hundreds of state troopers may have falsified thousands of traffic tickets, audit finds ROCKY HILL, Conn. (WFSB/Gray News) - Connecticut state police troopers may have falsified thousands of traffic tickets. WFSB reports a recent audit found nearly 26,000 fake tickets. According to an internal investigation, troopers falsified tickets for their own personal benefit as those who appear productive are often eligible for federally funded overtime. And lawmakers are now demanding answers. Governor Ned Lamont said those who intentionally wrote bogus tickets should be let go, including management. The audit also reportedly found that troopers not only falsified thousands of tickets but more than 32,000 were inaccurate. “Those people should go, and I think their management should take a look at themselves as well,” Lamont said. Ken Barone with the Public Policy Institute at the University of Connecticut pushed for the audit. According to Barone, this has raised concerns about skewing racial profiling data. “The records that should have been likely reported to the system were not,” Barone said. Officials said it’s possible hundreds of state troopers were involved in falsifying tickets. Lawmakers are scheduled to hold a hearing on the matter on July 27. “Losing the lack of trust of the public in a situation like this has dire consequences for our sense of public safety,” said Rep. Jason Rojas. Some of the troopers may face criminal charges. https://www.kmvt.com/2023/07/19/hun...sified-thousands-traffic-tickets-audit-finds/
And we're supposed to believe it was only tickets they lied about? I don't see how any of these cops can ever testify in court again. A fake ticket is the same as manufacturing evidence. Also what about the higher insurance rates people had to pay because of these false tickets?
So are you implying that we are actually cannibalizing police funding via inflation?...The graph seems pretty consistent to me, and funding is certainly not dropping, while crime is rising at an alarming rate..
There is no doubt that inflation from 2019 to 2022 would mean a budget increase of 2% would buy less in 2022. Current US Inflation Rates: 2000-2023 Year Jan Ave 2022 7.5 8.0 2021 1.4 4.7 2020 2.5 1.2 2019 1.6 1.8
We're certainly not doing enough. But with the explosion in homelessness and home prices skyrocketing actually cutting police spending will be very difficult. The homeless cost a ton in emergency services. Including police. Just having so many struggling to pay rent results in huge increases in crime rates. I don't think a slogan can be expected to make much of a difference... Police aren't the solution, but they are a part of coping with the problems created by poor policy. Hopefully we can make sure they are more helpful than harmful.
I would imagine that most of the funding is for payroll and equipment...and not for consumer goods which cops still have to pay for to support themselves and their family. If that's the case, cops are actually making less in comparison.
