Police dept. is largely spared from budget cuts

The city's police forces have been largely spared from Mayor Michael Nutter's wide-ranging budget cuts, which were announced last week in response to the city's projected $1 billion budget gap over the next five years.

Though there will be about 200 layoffs citywide, none are planned for Philadelphia Police officers.

But downsizing in both police overtime and the city's libraries and recreation centers will have an impact on crime prevention, public safety officials and analysts say.

The largest cut in the police department will come from a reduction in police overtime. Two hundred vacant positions in the department will also remain unfilled.

According to Lt. Frank Vanore, a Philadelphia Police spokesman, this will focus on reducing the number of overtime hours from officers testifying in court.

The Philadelphia Police will create a standards and accountability division to make sure the "strict" overtime policy is being followed, he said.

As for some of Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey's broader initiatives, Vanore said, progress will be temporarily slowed.

In University City, however, the outlook may be brighter.

Penn Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said she is "cautiously optimistic" that the level of Philadelphia Police staffing in the Penn patrol zone and throughout the city will not be changed.

However, she added that when it comes to the economy, "we should expect that this pain will continue for a while" and that Ramsey will have to make cuts if necessary.

Vanore said the possible effects of these cuts on the city's crime rate are still unclear.

"You never can really project how [the cuts] are going to affect crime," he said.

Randall Miller, a St. Joseph's University history professor and political analyst, said Nutter's budget cuts will have a "huge" effect on crime prevention in the city.

Even though Nutter does not plan to reduce the size of the police force, Miller said, he won't be able to hire the number of new officers called for in his initial plan.

"The idea was to be able to attack crime areas and underserved areas very vigorously," he said. "That's less possible when you have less resources."

Both Rush and Miller said the closure of many libraries and recreation centers will have detrimental effects.

Because these places can provide safe havens for children and teenagers, Miller said, their closures will "put more and different people on the street and put more and different people in danger."

Eleven of the Free Library of Philadelphia's 54 branches will be closed, as will more than 12 recreation centers.

Despite these cuts, Nutter still plans to focus on his inaugural goal of reducing crime.

A mayor's office spokeswoman said further police cuts are possible, though they would be a "worst-case scenario."

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.