From years of working with police groups, I know that police staffing “shortages” can arise from a combination of factors: scheduling procedures, strict background checks, insufficient employee compensation, how and when work is assigned, excessive restrictions on interagency jurisdiction and so on. It can result from either an inadequate number of staff, an inefficient deployment of existing staff, or both.
I don’t know what the truth is for Clark County. But I do know one thing: Sheriff Chuck Atkins’ decision to announce nonresponse to certain “low-level” crimes due, he claims, to insufficient staffing reflects exceptionally poor judgment and an abdication of responsibility. By his widely publicized pronouncement that there would be no response to certain crimes he has rolled out the red carpet to every porch pirate in the region, along with other “low-level” criminals. He has also elevated the risk of confrontation between angry victims and the perpetrators. Sooner or later a gun will come out and there will be blood on the street — and on the sheriff’s hands.
That is a poor legacy for someone who, for all I know, may have had a long sterling career in law enforcement. He should polish that sterling by withdrawing this bad, bad policy.
