BURLINGTON, VT - Back in 2020, the Burlington Police Department (BPD) was partially defunded by the town and now, four years later, they are struggling with recruitment during a time where the town is dealing with high levels of homelessness, drug addiction, and crime.
According to Fox News, community leaders are urgently looking to boost the city's police presence. Pomerleau Real Estate CEO and President Ernie Pomerleau as well as Burlington City County President Ben Traverse, spoke to Fox News Digital about the defunded police department and its struggle with recruitment. Pomerleau said, "And so, they allowed attrition to take down the police force. That was a mistake. We need to support the police."
Pomerleau's concerns are driven by a serious uptick in homelessness, drug addiction, and crime that has taken a hold on the beautiful New England town that sits on the edge of Lake Champlain. Large numbers of homeless people congregate downtown with many of them addicted to drugs like fentanyl, a drug that has led to a 1,000 percent increase in overdoses. First responders are having a hard time keeping up with the demand that comes with these types of overdoses.
Additionally, violent crime is up significantly, with crime data showing that aggravated assault has increased 40 percent and gunfire has gone up nearly 300 percent. Some local residents said that they find it "dangerous" to be out at night. Pomerleau and Traverse said that the town is looking to replensih the police department that was depleted in 2020 in an effort to combat the issues the town is seeing.
In 2020, after the death of George Floyd and the push for racial justice, the city council approved a resolution that supported the reduction of the police force by 30 percent through attrition. In addition, the resolution declared that racism was a citywide public health crisis and as a result, the previous cap of 105 officers was lowered to a mere 74.
In the wake of increasing homelessenss and crime, the city has voted multiple times to boost police numbers. Back in 2022, the council raised the cap to 87 officers and then in 2024, voted to increase the police budget by $2.47 million, which would provide funding for "10 additional armed cops, 5 lesser-armed cops (Community Service Officers), and allocate $100,000 toward recruiting efforts that have been a complete failure to date."
As 2024 comes to an end, the BPD has still struggled to fill the vacant positions. Currently, there are only 68 officers in the department. Pomerleau said that he disagreed with the initial decision to defund the police back in 2020 and expressed that adding more police is urgent. He said, "But look, everything is 2020 looking backwards. At the time, there were people that defended that and thought it was the right choice, so I'm not going to double guess everything at that moment, but right now I'm saying we need 20 more people and we need them now."
He also admitted that he doesn't believe the city is being tough enough on those committing crimes. He said, "We have to address some of the legislative changes that occurred that diminish the consequences of some serious crimes." Pomerleau outlined the city of Burlington's recent initiatives to promote "Community Safety with Human Dignity."
The plan includes authorization to staff an additional 20 officers and a Division of Community Service Office that assists with Social Services. Burlington Fire and Rescue has also dedicated personnel to deal with the part of the population that is addicted to drugs and the city of Burlington created a new position, known as the Officer for Community Safety.
The Urgent Care Mental Health Clinic in the area is opening and will be expected to deal with those suffering from psychological illnesses. The BB Downtown Ambassador Program also cultivated a new program to support retailers with ongoing issues and help those addicted to drugs to find help. Traverses acknowledged the struggles the city has had in recent years with having enough police around to deal with drug usage and "some increased criminality" that they have been seeing.
He said, "I think like a lot of police departments around the country, Burlington is working to address recruitment and retention within our police department. But we're working through these issues and I trust that things are getting better."
When talking about what crimes the city is plagued with, Traverse said, "I think we've seen increased drug trafficking and drug use. You've seen increased circumstances of retail theft as well and a lot of crimes that revolve around that; increased gun-related crimes and other violence that comes with an increase in drug trafficking. Those are the kinds of issues that we've been dealing with here."
He said that the council has "really been working to support" their police department in light of those circumstances. He said, "You know, we love our police here in Burlington. Burlington is a great place to live and raise a family. It's where I've chosen to live and raise my family and we're working to address recruitment retention challenges through things like increased pay, hiring, bonuses, great benefits. We're looking at a new police station here in Burlington and other supports."
He added, "You know, if you have folks that are out there that are looking for a career in policing, Burlington's a great place to be and we could use you." Both Pomerleau and Traverse believe the city is taking these issues very seriously and that it will "overcome" these significant challenges.
According to Fox News, community leaders are urgently looking to boost the city's police presence. Pomerleau Real Estate CEO and President Ernie Pomerleau as well as Burlington City County President Ben Traverse, spoke to Fox News Digital about the defunded police department and its struggle with recruitment. Pomerleau said, "And so, they allowed attrition to take down the police force. That was a mistake. We need to support the police."
Pomerleau's concerns are driven by a serious uptick in homelessness, drug addiction, and crime that has taken a hold on the beautiful New England town that sits on the edge of Lake Champlain. Large numbers of homeless people congregate downtown with many of them addicted to drugs like fentanyl, a drug that has led to a 1,000 percent increase in overdoses. First responders are having a hard time keeping up with the demand that comes with these types of overdoses.
Additionally, violent crime is up significantly, with crime data showing that aggravated assault has increased 40 percent and gunfire has gone up nearly 300 percent. Some local residents said that they find it "dangerous" to be out at night. Pomerleau and Traverse said that the town is looking to replensih the police department that was depleted in 2020 in an effort to combat the issues the town is seeing.
In 2020, after the death of George Floyd and the push for racial justice, the city council approved a resolution that supported the reduction of the police force by 30 percent through attrition. In addition, the resolution declared that racism was a citywide public health crisis and as a result, the previous cap of 105 officers was lowered to a mere 74.
In the wake of increasing homelessenss and crime, the city has voted multiple times to boost police numbers. Back in 2022, the council raised the cap to 87 officers and then in 2024, voted to increase the police budget by $2.47 million, which would provide funding for "10 additional armed cops, 5 lesser-armed cops (Community Service Officers), and allocate $100,000 toward recruiting efforts that have been a complete failure to date."
As 2024 comes to an end, the BPD has still struggled to fill the vacant positions. Currently, there are only 68 officers in the department. Pomerleau said that he disagreed with the initial decision to defund the police back in 2020 and expressed that adding more police is urgent. He said, "But look, everything is 2020 looking backwards. At the time, there were people that defended that and thought it was the right choice, so I'm not going to double guess everything at that moment, but right now I'm saying we need 20 more people and we need them now."
He also admitted that he doesn't believe the city is being tough enough on those committing crimes. He said, "We have to address some of the legislative changes that occurred that diminish the consequences of some serious crimes." Pomerleau outlined the city of Burlington's recent initiatives to promote "Community Safety with Human Dignity."
The plan includes authorization to staff an additional 20 officers and a Division of Community Service Office that assists with Social Services. Burlington Fire and Rescue has also dedicated personnel to deal with the part of the population that is addicted to drugs and the city of Burlington created a new position, known as the Officer for Community Safety.
The Urgent Care Mental Health Clinic in the area is opening and will be expected to deal with those suffering from psychological illnesses. The BB Downtown Ambassador Program also cultivated a new program to support retailers with ongoing issues and help those addicted to drugs to find help. Traverses acknowledged the struggles the city has had in recent years with having enough police around to deal with drug usage and "some increased criminality" that they have been seeing.
He said, "I think like a lot of police departments around the country, Burlington is working to address recruitment and retention within our police department. But we're working through these issues and I trust that things are getting better."
When talking about what crimes the city is plagued with, Traverse said, "I think we've seen increased drug trafficking and drug use. You've seen increased circumstances of retail theft as well and a lot of crimes that revolve around that; increased gun-related crimes and other violence that comes with an increase in drug trafficking. Those are the kinds of issues that we've been dealing with here."
He said that the council has "really been working to support" their police department in light of those circumstances. He said, "You know, we love our police here in Burlington. Burlington is a great place to live and raise a family. It's where I've chosen to live and raise my family and we're working to address recruitment retention challenges through things like increased pay, hiring, bonuses, great benefits. We're looking at a new police station here in Burlington and other supports."
He added, "You know, if you have folks that are out there that are looking for a career in policing, Burlington's a great place to be and we could use you." Both Pomerleau and Traverse believe the city is taking these issues very seriously and that it will "overcome" these significant challenges.
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Comments
2024-10-27T17:54-0500 | Comment by: Chris
Why would anyone want to be an LEO in a woke city is beyond me to figure out. They will just arrest you if you actually do your job, then build a monument to the thug that you dared to stop. Let them reap the rewards of their own corruption.
2024-10-27T23:20-0500 | Comment by: James
It's always the so-called leadership that looks to expand the pigs, for revenue grubbing purposes .... The local public in more rural communities NEVER wants more pigs and knows they DON'T need them, as the parasites bring in more trouble and cost everybody more as well .... Get RID of those so-called leaders .... Keep the OATH violating filth out ........