NYC Cops Have Stopped Making Most Arrests-It's Too Dangerous

This is not some job action or salary demand. The New York Post is reporting that overall NYPD arrests and traffic tickets are way down when Christmas weeks of 2013 and 2014 are compared.  The reason according to The Post,"officers feel betrayed by the mayor and fear for their safety."

The call last week from the PBA is what started it, but this has been simmering for a long time,” one source said. “This is not a slowdown for slowdown’s sake. Cops are concerned, after the reaction from City Hall on the Garner case, about de Blasio not backing them.”  The Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association has warned its members to put their safety first and not make arrests “unless absolutely necessary.”

An earlier Post story spoke to individual cops about the slow down:

“I’m not writing any summonses. Do you think I’m going to stand there so someone can shoot me or hit me in the head with an ax?” One cop said Sunday, referring to the Dec. 20 slayings and another recent attack on the NYPD.

“I’m concerned about my safety,” the cop added. “I want to go to home to my wife and kids.”

An NYPD supervisor noted, “My guys are writing almost no summonses, and probably only making arrests when they have to — like when a store catches a shoplifter.”

And the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association directive for cops to respond with at least two patrol cars has resulted in a manpower shortage that’s delaying response times to non-emergencies — such as burglaries or car crashes without injuries — to as much as four hours, sources said.

Perhaps because of the slowdown, perhaps because of the cops turning their backs on him or the boos, NY Mayor De Blasio is meeting with the heads of each of the police unions on Tuesday afternoon.

Sergeants Benevolent Association President Ed Mullins told The Post he’s glad de Blasio is meeting with the unions, but worries that it’s just a publicity stunt. 

“I’m disappointed in the issuance of a press release announcing the meeting, which now raises concerns of sincerity,” he said.

“Is this about politics or is it about working through problems?”

The reaction to the labeling of the Michael Brown and Eric Garner incidents as racial killings, the association with perpetual cop-haters such as Al Sharpton, and other such actions such as De Blasio's speech talking about warning his son about the cops has had unexpected consequences for the President and most especially the Mayor.

While they were trying to brand the institution of police forces as laden with race issues the individual policemen, the vast majority of whom are good and fair in the execution of their duties, took offense and rightfully so.   They know their lives are in danger every time they go to work and based on recent actions, they do not believe they have the support of governmental officials.

FYI ..Tuesday Night on the Tami Jackson Show (at 10PM EST) she will be talking to Enes Smith about these and other issues related to the recent "War on Cops" by protesters and politicians. Enes is the former Tribal Police Chief for the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Indians of Oregon. Smith was also a homicide detective, Crime Scene Investigator, and a former college instructor and adjunct professor of courses including Criminology, Sociology, and Social Deviance. Knowing Tami's interview skills this will be a "must listen." To hear the show live (or to hear the podcast any after the show ends at 11PM EST) just click here!