In Violent St. Louis, Mayor Wants To Empty Prisons And Defund The Police

No, wait, they should do this, because every experiment needs an experimental group. But, anyone who voted for the mayor should not be allowed to leave the city. They have to live what they voted for

‘More police doesn’t prevent crime’: Mayor of America’s most murderous city vows to shut notorious prison and defund the police

St Louis, Missouri, holds the unenviable record of the highest murder rate in America, ahead of Baltimore, Chicago and Detroit for the sixth year running.

But despite 262 killings in 2020 – more than twice as many as London in a city with the population of Brighton – residents have just voted in a new mayor promising to defund the police and close the city’s most notorious prison.

Tishaura Jones, a Harvard-educated single mother, who once filed for bankruptcy and whose father spent time in jail, is part of a growing progressive wing of the Democratic party making gains under US president Joe Biden. (snip)

Questions have been asked, therefore, as to why she wants to cut $4 million from the $171 million policing budget and shut down one of the city’s two prisons.

“More police doesn’t prevent crime,” says the 49-year-old, speaking from her grand, wood-paneled office in Downtown, near the baseball stadium and train station, just a short walk from the Mississippi river.

“Research done in the police department shows that 50 per cent of calls can be answered by someone other than police.

“So, why not deploy someone other than police, and free up police to do the work that they were trained to do in our academy.”

So, apparently, fewer police means less crime? They’ve been working on this experiment since the Michael Brown incident, with police officers leaving due to the anti-cop mentality of citizens and politicians, and are hard to replace. The crime numbers show that fewer police, and police who are reticent to work hard against crime due to being blasted for doing the job, doesn’t help. Oh, I’m sure that certain neighborhoods are well protected, like the rich ones Tishaura Jones lives in. Others? Not so much.

And how will it work to send non-police to certain calls when the citizens of St. Louis are willing to be violent? What calls will non-police be sent on? They always fail to mention that part. Lots of things seem like badged, gun carrying police are unnecessary. Like a domestic dispute. Ever see one? Lots of cops show up, because a simple argument can turn heavily violent quickly. How about parking enforcement? Yeah, lots of the “meter maids” are now carrying weapons because people can lose their sh*t over getting a ticket, and, since there’s a much lower respect for the authority of police officers, violence can ensue. Will ensue.

But, hey, if these non-cop people are enforcing the law, aren’t they cops? Regardless, those police who are left will still be blasted for doing the job they were trained for at the academy. St. Louis is considered a 1 by Neighborhood Scout, meaning they are safer than just 1% of US cities, but, really, are the highest crime cities. Violent crime is a 19.27. The national median is a 4. Murder is .65 per 1,000. The US rate is .05 per 1,000. Rape is double the rate of the US, and robbery is over 4 times the national rate. Property crime is almost three times the national rate. How will that look with fewer police?