Crime

Are you as safe as you think you are?  Take a look at these statistics, found at www.bestplaces.net.  We are awaiting requested statistics from the City for comparison.  All figures are incidents per 100,000, so population differences are taken into consideration. 

Could the elevated level of crime be connected to dwindling police staffing?  We do not blame the officers who currently work on the Blue Springs Police Department.  Rather, we commend them for continuing to serve and protect despite not having the resources to do so at the same level as our neighbors.  We have requested documentation from the City for verification, but it is our understanding that Blue Springs Police Department is currently staffing at HALF the recommended levels for a city of our size.  It is no wonder that one of the concerns listed in the Citizens’ Survey is a lack of police visibility.  How can they be visible when there aren’t enough?

It is also interesting that the Police Department used to hire graduates of the Police Academy—graduates who funded their own training and had motivation to not only graduate but to do well in order to be considered for employment.  The current policy is that the Police Department hires potential officers and puts them through the Academy.  Many of these candidates don’t even graduate.  Is this a wise use of Police Department money when we need officers on the streets?  How does this policy affect the morale of officers who did it on their own? 

Why should the city willing to pay for the education of potential officers, yet leave the police department to solicit businesses for defibulator units for their cars?  Why should we spend tax dollars on a skate park when the rate of violent crime in Blue Springs is TWICE that of Independence and ELEVEN TIMES that of Lee’s Summit?

Most importantly, why don’t we know how violent our city has become? 

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April 6--
City Elections