June 9, 2014
By Neal Tepel
New York, NY – Joining DC 37 Local 1549 President Eddie Rodriguez on Friday June 6th, at a rally calling for major staff changes at the NYPD was Council Member Vanessa L. Gibson (D-Bronx, 16th CD), the chair of the City Council’s Public Safety Committee and Public Advocate Letitia James. Several speakers discussed the importance of the police department assigning civilian employees rather than police officers to clerical tasks.
Seeking to maximize the use of existing uniformed police in the fight against crime, the gathering of elected officials and supporters pointed to recent data indicating that 731 uniformed police officers were performing administrative and civilian functions at the end of last year – not including those assigned to limited, restricted or modified duty.
“Putting more police on the streets – especially in communities experiencing persistently high rates of street crime and gun violence – is critical to enhancing the public safety of every community throughout New York,” Council Member Vanessa L. Gibson (D-Bronx, 16th District) said. “By civilianizing the NYPD we will be able to more effectively utilize hundreds of available police officers who are already on the payroll and put their training and skills to use serving all New Yorkers while saving millions of taxpayer dollars over the long term.”
Several studies conclude that the most effective and efficient way to utilize uniformed police is to assign officers to neighborhood streets. The civilianization of the city police force will save the big apple millions.
“Our commitment to public safety requires not only a sufficient investment in law enforcement, but also that the city make the best possible use of the resources at hand,” said Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito.
