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 One of the major reasons I decided to run for City Council in the 9th District was Public Safety. There is a desperate need to preserve and increase the number of officers on our streets. The cry, "More cops won’t help" is wrong. The Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) has proven that rapid response to emergency calls saves lives. I believe LBPD to be one of the finest in the nation and doing a great job with the manpower and resources they are given. That said, we must make a greater investment in support of our dedicated officers and Public Safety. Three to four people a month lose their life in Long Beach. Three to four people a month are murdered in Long Beach. While several Elected Officials and Senior Management staff in this City continues to say Crime is down, the posted LBPD Crime statistics don't agree. We just closed the year 2009 with 39 murders, 125 forcible rapes, 1257 robberies and 1515 aggravated assault. The year 2008 closed with 40 murders, 120 forcible rapes, 1484 robberies and 1507 aggravated assault. Added to the year-end data, I learned of veteran officers leaving due to retirement incentives. Regardless of tough economic times we can not afford to lose veteran officers or any officers for that matter. Our citizens and our police officers deserve better. They need the seasoned veterans and an increase in officers for both their protection and ours. Our Mayor has stated that the number of officers is going down, actually staffing is nearing the early 1990s levels, yet he promised when he ran for office in 2006 to add 100 new officers. So, what’s the correct staffing level? I say, pick the year with the lowest crime, duplicate it and stick with it. In our case it happens to be 2008. In addition, a Police Chief and the replacement of these seasoned officers should be chosen from within the ranks. The internal candidates have proven themselves. It has also been proven in the past that bringing in officers from outside, harms the morale of those who have been dedicated to protecting us; they deserve the promotions for their dedication and seasoned knowledge of our City. We cannot go back to the 1990's where we had to bring in the Sheriffs to protect the Ninth District or any other District. In closing, one murder, one forcible rape, one robbery and/or one aggravated assault in our City is ONE too many. "Change Happens! Shore for Long Beach" Shore for Long Beach City Council 2010/ FPPC#1319617
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