(Washington, DC) Today, after the Judiciary Committee of the Council of the District of Columbia voted to cut Mayor Bowser’s proposed Metropolitan Police Department package by $6 million, which is about 20% of the entire package, the Mayor released the following statement:
“I sent to the Council a package that includes the funding necessary to hire 347 officers while also retaining high-quality, experienced officers who already know our community. I want to be very clear: if we can’t do both, we will lose ground and the number of police officers will continue to dwindle. DC residents have been very clear: they don’t want another decrease in the number of officers at MPD. Residents want MPD staffed at the level it needs to keep neighborhoods safe – and we need the whole package to do that. We need the money and the incentives to hire 347 officers and we need the right incentives to keep good officers. You can’t say you’re for hiring police and then cut $6 million from the MPD package.
“Similarly, when we surveyed our school leaders, they overwhelmingly opposed removing School Resource Officers. We know, and people who spend time in schools know, that there are times when support is needed to keep all students safe. We want that support to come from trained SROs who know and have built trusting relationships with our students and who know the school administration and teachers. Again, this is not the moment to be removing these resources from our community.
“On top of all these cuts, the same committee wants to cut 31 correctional officers at a time when our current DOC staff is already stretched incredibly thin to the point that some officers have not had two consecutive days off in almost two years.
“I want Washingtonians to be safe in our neighborhoods, in our schools – no matter where they are, they should be safe. My focus, and the focus of the budget I sent to the Council, is on building a safer, stronger DC.”
Social Media:
Mayor Bowser Twitter: @MayorBowser
Mayor Bowser Instagram: @Mayor_Bowser
Mayor Bowser Facebook: facebook.com/MayorMurielBowser
Mayor Bowser YouTube: https://www.bit.ly/eomvideos