The New York Police Department has announced that they will be scrapping their homeless outreach units. In addition, the department will be reshaping its traffic congestion units. However, enforcement agents who write parking tickets will be not be affected.
The officers within the two units will now be shifted towards gun violence prevention forces. This move will affect approximately 200 officers. In recent days, Brooklyn, Bronx, Harlem and South Jamaica have seen an uptick in gun violence.
“You will see increased foot patrols, as well as officers in uniform in marked police cars. We will also be overlaying that with increased technology, everything from cameras that are mobile to license plate readers and everything in between,” New York Police Department Commissioner Dermot Shea said on Friday.
In Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump has gone as far as to threaten to send federal agents to the city.
“New York was up 348 percent — the crime rate. So the governor has to do something about it. And if the governor is not going to do something about, we’ll do something about it,” he said.
At this time, there is no word if these officers will be assigned back to the homeless outreach unit once these initiatives are carried out.
