Detroit Shifts Desk Officers To Patrol To Lower Murder Rate

Detroit Police officers assigned to desk duty will be required under a new initiative to put in eight hours of street patrol each week to help the department halt a rising murder rate.

The officers would be assigned to problem areas such as liquor stores, gas stations, and other high-crime areas. The force of about 2,800 sworn has about 1,000 officers on desk duty.

As of July 10, the city had 182 homicides, on pace for 350 slayings in 2011. There were 366 homicides in 2003, when the city had at least 205,000 more residents.

Source: Detroit News