Conservative Actor James Woods mocked West Hollywood’s “brilliant idea of replacing police officers with unarmed ‘safety ambassadors’” Thursday, by tweeting out video of a recent incident of assault and vandalism.
“Let’s take a peek at how that’s worked out during an assault in progress,” Woods tweeted, introducing a video clip from a report by West Hollywood station ABC 7. In the video, two so-called “security ambassadors” passively stand around and watch while a man repeatedly kicks a vehicle and attacks the driver in broad daylight.
Notoriously liberal West Hollywood had the brilliant idea of replacing police officers with unarmed “safety ambassadors.” Let’s take a peek at how that’s worked out during an assault in progress… pic.twitter.com/Qa48aZ8z4o
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) April 28, 2023
Ethan Reynolds, the local citizen who took the video, told ABC 7 that he feels safer with actual police officers around:
“I’m absolutely petrified of someone holding a gun to my head, or holding a gun to my husband’s head, or stealing my dog.”
…
“Having a police officer around makes me feel safer. I know not everyone feels that way.”
In an effort to make citizens feel safe with fewer police, the city has deployed 85 unarmed security ambassadors on residential streets and in commercial corridors. Their presence is meant to deter crime, but they do not intervene at the sight of trouble. Instead, they are supposed to notify the police.
Business Owner Larry Block agrees with Reynolds that West Hollywood’s decision last year to cut its police force was a bad idea. Block told ABC 7 that the feckless security ambassadors are no substitute for police officers:
"Armed people can do something, they're intimidating, the security ambassadors walk around aimlessly, not really knowing what to do."