Cincinnati 'Desperately Short of Officers,' Says New Chief

New Cincinnati Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell, who was hired just before the November council election, said changes will be coming after a series of town hall meetings and a senior police staff retreat next week. “We are desperately short of officers,” Blackwell said.

New Cincinnati Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell, who was hired just before the November council election, said changes will be coming after a series of town hall meetings and a senior police staff retreat next week, reports Cincinnati.com. He plans a reorganization to tackle the rising homicide rate before warmer spring weather brings more violent crime.

“We are desperately short of officers,” Blackwell said. “Additionally, we need to improve our technology platform.”

At the same time, he noted: “We can’t stop homicides by having more cops on the street – there’s not a one-on-one correlation there.”

Mayor John Cranley campaigned on putting more police on the street and he remains committed to doing so, according to Chief of Staff Jay Kincaid.

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