Mar 20, 2008 7:24 pm US/Eastern
NYPD To Slash 1,000 Officer Jobs By 2009
Police Force To Be Reduced To Lowest Number Of Employees In 16 Years
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
The NYPD is now the latest victim of the growing economy crisis. Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he plans to slash 1,000 officer jobs by next year.
So what does that mean for New York City?
One thing that's certain is the streets will be less blue next year with the police force reduced to the lowest number of officers in 16 years.
"We have to adapt and I'm sure we'll do the job that has been done to date to protect this city," said Commissioner Ray Kelly.
The cut is part of a budget plan by Bloomberg that will get rid of the thousand jobs by not filling vacancies left open by retirement and attrition of current officers.
Future NYPD recruits at John Jay College admit they're worried.
"That wouldn't deter me from my passion in law enforcement, but it would of course raise some concerns," said John Jay student Jonathan Scott.
But the cuts are really just a technicality because the NYPD has had problems recruiting new officers due to low salary. Right now, the force is not at its full capacity.
Bloomberg said the cuts will not affect public safety.
"Comissioner Kelly will continue to bring down crime with fewer officer. He's operating today with 5,000 less officers than we had when I first came into office," he said.
Last year, crime in the city fell by another 6 percent, down 26 percent in all since 2001. But Councilman Peter Vallone fears that will all change after the cuts.
"Crime is down because we follow the age old maxim of 'more police equals less crime.' We cannot continue to win the war on crime without more police," he said.
The 1,000 officer reduction will save the city $37 million overall. The union representing the officers said it's extremely disappointed by the cuts.
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