Police and 1st Responders Warn Mayor about the Community Cost of Cuts

According to the Nashville City Paper:

Public safety leaders told Mayor Karl Dean yesterday that potentially deep budget cuts could mean fewer police officers on the streets and slower ambulance response times.

The Metro police and fire departments both stand to lose staff if their budgets are cut this year, meaning a significant reduction in police officers, in a department that is already understaffed, and a potential reduction in response times for ambulances that are currently at an average of about five minutes.

“There can be a correlation clearly, a cause-and-effect relationship, between the reduction of line operating positions to the safety of our citizens,” said Steve Halford, Metro fire chief ....

At a 15-percent reduction, the highest possible, the police department would lose 152 police officers and about 58 professional staff positions, according to budget documents.

Cuts to Metro Police in particular would present a real problem in my opinion for coverage of our neighborhoods. Here's hoping the Mayor listens to the cops.