Minneapolis, once known as one of America’s most livable cities, is now in the midst of a law and order crisis.
With police officers leaving the force faster than new ones can be hired, it is clear that reforms are needed to ensure public safety.
The George Floyd riots showed how easily the city can fall into chaos when crime isn’t properly addressed.
The 5 Eyewitness News recently reported that between 2020 and 2022, 273 MPD officers left their jobs while only 117 were hired – resulting in a net loss of 156 officers.
This equates to an average net loss of 52 officers over the last three years.
If this trend continues, MPD will have fewer than 400 sworn officers – far less than what was seen just two years ago when there were 900 sworn officers on its payroll.
Chief Brian O’Hara has assembled a recruitment team to try and reverse this alarming trend but progress has been slow so far.
In his words “the situation is not sustainable the way it is.”
He acknowledges that the current group of policemen are doing their best given the circumstances but more must be done if we want to restore safety and stability in Minneapolis as soon as possible.
David Strom from Hot Air recently expressed his thoughts on this matter: “Minneapolis hasn’t been prosperous because we have the natural assets that San Francisco or Los Angeles have. Our weather sucks, and the industries that led to our prosperity are less central to the national economy. We don’t sit on the Great Lakes as Chicago does. Our best assets in the 21st century are a decent quality of life, a lower cost of living, and a good education system. All of these assets are depreciating quickly.”
He then goes on to compare Minneapolis with Portland which he claims is falling into decline due to similar issues however, he mentions that our city still has time for reform before it reaches such levels.
It seems like every week there’s another news story about criminals running wild in Minneapolis streets without fear for repercussion from authorities.
It appears Minnesota lawmakers have yet again failed its citizens by refusing take proper action against those who break laws instead punishing those who uphold them with excessive force.
