ST. LOUIS — How much money could the city divert into social service programs to address the root causes of crime by eliminating the approximately 150 vacant police officer positions from the city’s budget?
That’s a question the Board of Estimate and Apportionment asked Budget Director Paul Payne to research Friday during its meeting.
The board includes Mayor Tishaura Jones, Board of Alderman President Lewis Reed and Comptroller Darlene Green.
About 40 people made public comments during the two-hour meeting, including many who called for the elimination of the entire police budget.
One woman said to continue to fund the police department would be to continue to fund “state sanctioned murder.”
Several other people suggested the elimination of the department’s audio detection equipment known as the Shotspotter system, SWAT team and the Real Time Crime Center that tracks hundreds of surveillance cameras throughout the city and other intelligence efforts.
Emilia Hinckley, a St. Louis resident, told the board St. Louis police officers are “inept and brutal failures,” who “routinely fail” at their job and are “one of the deadliest police departments in the country.”
“They will continue to murder residents with impunity,” she said.
Green read several other names of residents who submitted written comments.
“I do intend after hearing the comments to definitely move to recommend to the other members of the Board of Estimate and Apportionment to look at substantial reductions when it comes to police positions that have gone vacant for several years,” Green said.
She also recommended increasing funding for the Affordable Housing Trust as well as more mental health workers.
“This is our time, this is the place and so I don’t want us to miss the moment to make clear that this is how we’re going to do it,” she said. “Reducing those police positions that have gone vacant for several years, that is something that can help inspire the increases I’m speaking of so we can move this community and neighborhoods throughout the city forward."
She continued, "We understand the call from the community to look at what we intend to do and how we intend to repurpose what we’re calling public service."
Jones replied, “Agreed, I look forward to working with you on those amendments.”
Reed didn’t comment, other than to call the meeting, "One of the most productive Community Engagement sessions we’ve had" since he joined the board.
Police Chief John Hayden has advocated the fulfillment of the vacant positions — supporting the removal of the residency requirement in the hopes of attracting more recruits.
His spokesman Sgt. Keith Barrett said Hayden was unavailable for an interview Friday about the Board of Estimate and Apportionment's meeting and did not have a statement on the matter.
The board's discussion infuriated St. Louis Police Officer Association leaders, who say eliminating the vacant positions would eliminate the pool of money the department is using to pay officers overtime due to the officer shortage.
“If you take away our ability to hire new officers and overtime, we’re seriously concerned about 911 calls can be answered,” said Jane Dueker, attorney for the police union. “People talk about the number of officers, how much money there is, (but) what needs to be focused on is how many times police were called for services by the citizens of St. Louis.”
Dueker said the St. Louis Police Department responded to more than 500,000 calls for service in 2019 alone.
“What citizens need should be what drives this debate, not arbitrary budget numbers,” she said. “If they want 911 calls to be answered a half-million times in a year, what is that going to take to keep people safe in this city?
“When you decrease and defund in the way they are proposing, not only are you making citizens unsafe, but you are inhibiting the safety of our officers.”
Green’s spokesman Tyson Pruitt said it would be “premature” to say the elimination of the vacant positions will happen, as the comptroller’s request means that the Board of Estimate and Apportionment must still come back for its final vote with specific reallocations for the savings from the vacant positions.
Once the Board of Estimate and Apportionment votes on its budget proposal, it must go before the Board of Aldermen for final approval.