The New York Police Department is reporting a 400-percent surge in retirements, according to The Hill.
Since the death of George Floyd on May 25, over 500 police officers have filed for retirement from the NYPD, up from 287 who filed last year during the same time period. Last week alone, the department saw 179 retirements, the department told The Hill.
“The increase in detectives and other cops filing for retirement comes as no shock,” Paul DiGiacomo, president of the Detective’s Endowment Association, told CNN. “No one wants to come to work every day and be demoralized and vilified as they risk their lives to protect people.”
New York City approved a $1 billion budget cut to its police department last week, about 17 percent of its 2020 appropriations.
The massive surge in retirements also comes amid a spike in crime rates in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s city, with the NYPD reporting that a man was even shot dead in broad daylight earlier this week.
“When the police are gone—driven away by Biden & AOC & DeBlasio—when they’ve been ‘defunded’ and ‘abolished’ and when they’ve all retired, what then?” Sen. Ted Cruz asked rhetorically on Twitter.
When the police are gone—driven away by Biden & AOC & DeBlasio—when they’ve been “defunded” and “abolished” and when they’ve all retired, what then? https://t.co/GYAZ6jw0J0
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) July 9, 2020
One cop told the New York Post, “Why would you want to stay on this job when people don’t appreciate what you do?”
“You have to be crazy to stay on a job where you are losing money, abused by the people you are trying to protect and not appreciated by the politicians,” said another.