Criminals have it figured out, so why don’t we?
Wednesday, July 9th, 2008 By James Nesbitt
Apparently some residents of Cincinnati’s violence-prone Over-the-Rhine neighborhood are concerned that Cincinnati Police won’t be able to effectively patrol the area without the help of Hamilton County sheriff’s deputies, who ceased patrols in the area in December, although police officials insist that they “have the staffing, and the police presence is there.”
But the number of police present in the area means nothing if those officers are unable to properly enforce the law, a reality criminals seem to have figured out long ago. Last August, the Enquirer reported that deputies inspired a tougher environment for crime in a neighborhood accustomed to more passive law enforcement. As a result, violent crime decreased by twenty-three percent in the patrol zone.
Sheriff Simon Leis may be unpopular for some of his directives, but the important thing to note is that he is able to make them. The Cincinnati Police department, on the other hand, has had its hands tied since the 2001 riots, first by a Department of Justice agreement that gave officers the incentive to overlook certain crimes and limit certain types of enforcement proven to be effective, lest they induce a time-consuming and career-damaging investigation into their actions, and now by a union-supported arbitration system that limits the department’s ability to discipline its own officers.
For effective law enforcement, officers must be able to cite and arrest lawbreakers without being questioned for every action. And to prevent the abuse of this grant of power, department administrators must be able to dismiss officers who misuse it. It is no wonder that Hamilton County deputies produce better results and command more respect from lawbreakers in Over-the-Rhine.
Tags: cincinnati, police
