NOPD Budget Reduction.

The Best online firearms community in Louisiana.

Member Benefits:

  • Fewer Ads!
  • Discuss all aspects of firearm ownership
  • Discuss anti-gun legislation
  • Buy, sell, and trade in the classified section
  • Chat with Local gun shops, ranges, trainers & other businesses
  • Discover free outdoor shooting areas
  • View up to date on firearm-related events
  • Share photos & video with other members
  • ...and so much more!
  • JBP55

    La. CHP Instructor #409
    Premium Member
    Rating - 100%
    338   0   0
    Apr 15, 2008
    16,999
    113
    Walker
    New Orleans police face $16 million budget cut amid increase in violent crime
    Main reason for 8% reduction is not defunding demands but pandemic's effect on tax revenue
    UPDATED NOV 12, 2020 AT 6:41 PM

    New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Shaun Ferguson holds a press conference as New Orleans Police Department investigate the scene where two officers were injured in a shooting that took place at the corner of St. Philip and Royal street in New Orleans, Friday, Oct. 30, 2020.

    It's an annual ritual: One by one, City Hall bureaucrats go before the New Orleans City Council to make their case as to why they deserve more money or, at times, why they are happy to accept the amount put forth by the mayor.

    On Thursday, it was Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson's turn. He told the council he's ready to absorb a hit.

    The Police Department is staring down a $16 million budget cut for next year, an 8% decrease due to a steep drop in tax revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Despite a sharp rise in violent crime, Ferguson said he'll find ways to make it work, mostly by requiring officers take 26 unpaid days off, cutting pay for other employees by 10% and leaving non-critical positions unfilled.

    Under Mayor LaToya Cantrell's proposed budget, funding for the department would drop from $193.7 million this year to $177.8 million in 2021. Other municipal agencies would take much bigger hits, in some cases up to 20%.

    Council members asked Ferguson how his agency planned to grapple with significant spikes in homicides, carjackings and non-fatal shootings, while also trying to complete the last few unfulfilled requirements in a package of federally mandated reforms that the Police Department has been implementing since 2012.

    *I hope you look at this as an investment in continued constitutional policing,* Ferguson said of his department's proposed budget.

    Sade Dumas, executive director of the Orleans Parish Prison Reform Coalition and one of the leading voices favoring the shifting of taxpayer money from law enforcement to other preventative social services, said she was disappointed that New Orleans officials still intended to dedicate so much money to policing. She argued that New Orleans will be made safer during the pandemic with better access to stable housing, health care, food and job opportunities — not with a certain number of police officers patrolling the streets.
    *Overpolicing our way to safety can never work, because officers arrive once the harm is done,* Dumas said. *We must be proactive in caring for those most vulnerable in our community.*

    Ferguson said the fight against this year’s surge in violent crime would be the top priority for his 1,200 officers in 2021. As of Thursday morning, unofficial statistics maintained by the City Council showed that the 169 homicides reported this year represent an 80% increase from 2019, when killings in New Orleans reached a 47-year low. Non-fatal shootings this year were up almost 59%, and carjackings had jumped 106%.

    Ferguson said he was confident the Police Department's newly formed violent crime investigations squad would rise to the challenge of bringing those numbers down. Members of that team will work with detectives in the eight police patrol districts or in the homicide unit to clear shootings, robberies and killings in the short term when possible, Ferguson said. The team also will build more complex investigations in partnership with the FBI and Louisiana State Police when necessary.

    *We believe it’s several crews … committing these crimes,* Ferguson said. *It’s not one particular crew.*

    But Ferguson said police are also intent on achieving three broad pending reforms mandated by the 2012 federal consent decree: supervision and performance evaluations, promotions and bias-free policing. He said the hold up mostly involves city officials and consent decree monitors reaching a consensus on how compliance with those last reforms *should be … [and] would be measured.* He credited the reform agreement with helping the Police Department enact use-of-force restrictions.


    The only proposed spending increase Ferguson noted is $94,000 to cover higher costs for body-worn, in-car and stun-gun camera equipment and video storage. The agency relies on the cameras and videos to ensure officers’ actions are lawful.

    City Council members offered little, if any, resistance to the mayor's proposed budget for police. They did mention the June 3 episode where officers on the Crescent City Connection fired tear gas and rubber projectiles at a crowd protesting police brutality, sparking public outrage. But it was in the context of council members Jay Banks and Kristin Gisleson Palmer thanking the police for their cooperation afterword in crafting a measure that banned use of the chemical irritant in most cases.

    *It wasn’t adversarial,* Banks said. *It was cooperative.*

    Ferguson said cost cutting has already started this year. Police officers, like all other municipal employees, must take six unpaid days off before the end of December. The Police Department has also limited the amount of overtime work it approves for officers and would do so again next year, Ferguson said.

    Council members have until Dec. 1 to adopt a 2021 spending plan.
     
    Last edited:

    hoopstar789

    Well-Known Member
    Rating - 100%
    21   0   0
    Sep 15, 2017
    441
    28
    Slidell LA
    I work for NOPD myself and the budget reduction isn't the concerning factor, its the fact officers are jumping ship to surrounding agencies or leaving Law Enforcement in general. Between the overly strict policy, federal consent decree and now pay reduction for officers across the board, I dont blame officers for leaving.
     

    babyboy70363

    Member
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Nov 8, 2008
    16
    1
    God bless all the folks in uniform. Thanks, to the good guys! I hope you all make it home safe to your families.

    A really close friend asked me years ago why I wouldn't join law inforcement.......plain and simple, im not built for it.

    I sincerely thank the guys/gals that put on that uniforn everyday and actually serve and protect!

    Sent from my SM-G988U using Tapatalk
     

    CatCam

    Ready, Shoot, Aim!
    Rating - 100%
    5   0   0
    Feb 20, 2013
    1,025
    63
    Oh well - let them rename all the streets and take down all the statues -- I could really care less. Hopefully they figure it out. That's my nice way of saying, "F-them".... You deserve the government you elect.
     

    noob

    enthusiast
    Silver Member
    Rating - 100%
    41   0   0
    Mar 18, 2008
    4,284
    48
    New Orleans
    I work for NOPD myself and the budget reduction isn't the concerning factor, its the fact officers are jumping ship to surrounding agencies or leaving Law Enforcement in general. Between the overly strict policy, federal consent decree and now pay reduction for officers across the board, I dont blame officers for leaving.

    Thank you for trying to keep our community safe...
     

    noob

    enthusiast
    Silver Member
    Rating - 100%
    41   0   0
    Mar 18, 2008
    4,284
    48
    New Orleans
    Oh well - let them rename all the streets and take down all the statues -- I could really care less. Hopefully they figure it out. That's my nice way of saying, "F-them".... You deserve the government you elect.

    You heard they wanted to rename Tulane Ave b/c He was a donor the the confederate states.
     

    Abby Normal

    Well-Known Member
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Apr 16, 2014
    1,458
    113
    Metry
    Overpolicing our way to safety can never work, because officers arrive once the harm is done,* Dumas said. *We must be proactive in caring for those most vulnerable in our community.*

    Is DumbAss saying the police can’t protect you, so everyone should arm themselves? Is da city going to cut the money spent on the decent decree? We have no money but we’ll make the community feel better about their criminals. As long as they have their priorities straight.
     

    noob

    enthusiast
    Silver Member
    Rating - 100%
    41   0   0
    Mar 18, 2008
    4,284
    48
    New Orleans
    I wouldn't step foot in New Orleans East unless I absolutely had to... That being said with the budget cuts, I imagine there's going to be significantly less patrols going on at any given time, and the ENTIRE NOLA area will be a warzone like NO East is.
     

    hoopstar789

    Well-Known Member
    Rating - 100%
    21   0   0
    Sep 15, 2017
    441
    28
    Slidell LA
    I wouldn't step foot in New Orleans East unless I absolutely had to... That being said with the budget cuts, I imagine there's going to be significantly less patrols going on at any given time, and the ENTIRE NOLA area will be a warzone like NO East is.

    I actually work in the East (7th District) and the response times have gotten slower across the board for the city. Obviously due to the city furloughs there is less officers but it is getting to the point of officer safety. There has been some nights I've worked where we have as little as 3 officers and a supervisor for the entire East due to "mandatory" furlough days. Like I said in a previous post it is sad because the mayor and city government is completely oblivious to the fact first responders are leaving in droves for better opportunities myself included.
     

    Abby Normal

    Well-Known Member
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Apr 16, 2014
    1,458
    113
    Metry
    Hoopstar I hope you join JPSO to keep me & my neighbors safe & keep Latoya the Destroyer’s Tugs in NOLa where they belong.
    Stay safe.
     

    Forum statistics

    Threads
    195,218
    Messages
    1,546,026
    Members
    29,168
    Latest member
    Lyle.lejeune2017
    Top Bottom