NYPD officers are retiring or quitting in record numbers, with many even hitting the exit before receiving their full pensions. The New York Post reported Saturday:
Ever-growing exodus figures show 2,465 police officers have filed to leave the department this year — 42% more than the 1,731 who exited at the same time last year, according to the latest pension fund stats obtained by The Post.
More disturbing is the fact that the number of cops hanging up their holsters early — before reaching 20 years for a full pension — has skyrocketed 71% this year from the year before (1,098 from 641).
Former NYPD Detective Jason Caputo appeared on Fox and Friends Monday to point out that safety in the city is at risk:
You’re losing qualified [people], you’re losing experience, you’re losing so much when it comes to that kind of stuff.
Caputo is leaving the force after 18 years, two shy of earning his pension. Officers held a walkout ceremony June 28 to celebrate his retirement. His message at the time:
To know me is to know I love the job in and out, but it’s not the same job I joined.
The no-bail law was a big thing with me. It’s not even really crimefighting anymore. You arrest somebody for assault 2 with a weapon and then the person is back at the precinct getting his property the next day. They’re not locking anyone up, even those with records. Pay your debt to society. You broke the law.
Congratulations to Detective Jason Caputo on his well-deserved retirement. In addition to fighting crime, Jason had a mission to keep the memory of Officer Eddie Byrne alive for all to learn about — and the vehicle he maintained does just that. The DEA salutes you, Detective! pic.twitter.com/ti6SDVsq7K
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— Detectives’ Endowment Association (@NYCPDDEA) June 28, 2022
None of this is surprising in the slightest—after all, who in their right mind would sign up to be a police officer in this day and age? The politicians don’t support you and often are openly hostile, BLM rioted in the streets for months in 2020 with the backing of the authorities and the approving media, and recent laws such as “no-bail” mean that you’ll see the perp you arrested this morning back on the street by lunchtime.
Paul DiGiacomo, president of the Detectives Endowment Association, agrees:
It’s simple. Detectives are retiring in historic numbers because they have no support from politicians who care more about criminals than cops and the New Yorkers they protect.
The military is struggling with similar problems, and recruiting efforts have fallen to their lowest levels since the Vietnam War. It’s not just the NYPD, though. The Associated Press writes that the police staffing issue is affecting departments nationwide:
From Philadelphia to Portland to Los Angeles, killings and gun violence are rising at the same time officers worn out by the pandemic and disillusioned over the calls to divest from policing that followed George Floyd’s murder are quitting or retiring faster than they can be replaced.
Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell, whose department has lost 237 officers since 2020, is worried about the future:
For me, I wonder, what the profession is going to be 20 years from now if we’re having these challenges on a nationwide scale. Are we going to be able to recruit enough people to serve our cities?
All of this was by design, as the nation was swept up in the nonsensical “Defund the Police” movement. Democrats declared open warfare on policing and woke DAs refused to punish criminals. It’s already bad, but the real worry is for the future: who is going to be willing to protect our streets a decade from now?
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