Scrutinizing Potential Police Sacrifices

NBC 4: Threats? Promises? Hard facts? Police Chief Walter Distelzweig announced possible officer cuts and layoffs at a Tuesday morning news conference. Distelzweig said the division will cut or layoff 297 sworn officers if voters don’t approve the city’s half-percent income-tax increase in August. The income-tax increase will be on the special Tuesday, Aug. 4, ballot. Distelzweig said the announcement wasn’t a scare tactic; it’s simple math.

Police officers said they just want to do their jobs—to serve and protect—but they’re fearful that some of their jobs will be lost. Columbus City Schools said administrators are paying close attention to the proposed budget cuts and are looking at their options. If needed, officials said they would make every effort to replace school resource officers, but that this early in the process, the district does not have a plan in place in the even that the school resource officers are eliminated.

CCS pays 50 percent of the 17 school resource officers’ salaries, with the police department picking up the other half. A school district representative praised the resource officers for playing a critical role in developing relationships with students. But the district would not agree to an interview with NBC 4 or allow a scheduled interview to continue with a resource officer who wanted to explain what made his job important.

NBC 4’s Mike Bowersock GOT ANSWERS on how minor crimes, such as vandalism and attempted break-ins, may have to be ignored and police officers may have to be taken out of school buildings. One of the more unsettling propositions came from the chief himself. “You’re probably not going to get much service on a minor crime,” Distelzweig said.

What does that mean, though? Bowersock visited some recent minor-crime scenes and reported on how the potential cuts could change police response. There was a case of vehicle vandalism Monday night. It was reported to CPD, and officers came to the scene to take a report. Instead, vehicle break-ins could be handled with a phone call to CPD and an insurance report.

There was an attempted break-in at a home on Oakland Avenue Monday night. Someone came in the back yard and tried to get into the back door. Nothing was taken, but it was the seventh time it happened in a year. Columbus City Schools was worried about the potential elimination of resource officers. The district pays half of the salaries of these officers who are stationed in all of the district’s high schools.

The district said losing the officers would inhibit a proactive approach to stopping in-school crimes. Distelzweig said layoffs would affect mostly patrol officers and would be based on seniority. Most of the layoffs would happen in the patrol division, using a “last in, first out” approach.

Bowersock spoke to some of the officers who would be the first to lose their jobs. They’re the younger ones, the ones who work the night shift. That would mean more seasoned officers, with more seniority, would be moved around to take their place.

Chief Walter L. Distelzweig would like your input and has scheduled four community forums. The Columbus Division of Police scheduled forums to gather input from the community on issues affecting Columbus neighborhoods. Citizens were invited to attend, ask questions and provide ideas regarding policing services. Call 614-645-4593 for additional forum information.