Dallas police say one version of a plan to increase the number of new hires for the department would require moving 40 officers from patrol to make it happen. NBC 5’s David Goins reports on the public pressure for more officers on the street.
Dallas Police on Wednesday said a council committee recommendation to hire 325 officers this year would reduce the number of patrol officers and have a negative effect on response times for all calls, including for violent crime.
Interim Police Chief Michael Igo told the city council during a briefing on hiring and retention efforts that the department is on track to hire 280-300 officers by the end of September.
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WATCH HERE"We want to do those goals in the right way and in the right manner,” Igo said.
Igo added the department calculated the Dallas PD would need to move 40 officers out of patrol to be able to stretch the hiring goal to 325 this year. The extra officers would be needed in the police academy to assist with more recruits in academy classes.
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SIGN UP Council member Kathy Stewart, who proposed the 325 target on February 11 as a compromise to an earlier 400 target from council member Cara Mendelsohn, said Wednesday the specifics around the impact on Dallas PD staffing changed her thinking.
“Knowing that 40 officers that we would take off of patrol, that clarifies for me, the decision," Stewart said.
Mendelsohn, who chairs the public safety committee, said she is being responsive to voters who approved Proposition U last fall, requiring Dallas PD to move to 4,000 officers.
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"The residents have spoken and we can choose to listen or not," Mendelsohn said.
“While we heard the voters, we also should listen to you because you are the man who is held accountable for this," council member Paula Blackmon told Igo in support of his plan.
After the briefing, Igo told NBC 5 he understands the concern from the public about how quickly the department is hiring new officers, but reiterated moving too quickly will have negative impacts.
"I want more officers as well," Igo said. "It (325) definitely impacts where we’re at as a department from the patrol answering side and that’s where I have the greatest concern."
Igo told the council Dallas PD continues to work on incentive programs to ensure veteran officers leave the department at a lower rate than new hires coming in.
A hiring projection Dallas PD presented Wednesday forecasts a net gain of 110 officers each year until reaching approximately 3,560 officers by late 2028.
Igo said his goal is to get Dallas PD to 3,600 officers.
It's a considerably more condensed timeline than that of his predecessor. Former Police Chief Eddie Garcia told council last August he projected the department reaching 3,600 officers by 2033.
