Detroit Police Department To Close Offices After 4 P.M., Offer 'Virtual Precincts'

A budget shakeup is forcing some drastic changes in the Detroit Police Department. Effective Monday, the city's police precincts will no longer remain open around the clock.

According to a document obtained by the Detroit Free Press, the department plans to eliminate numerous desk jobs and transfer police working in office positions to street patrols during night-time hours. Between 4 p.m and 8 a.m., the public must make reports through a call center, under a new system of "virtual police precincts," the Detroit News reports.

"I think it's going to work," Detroit Police Commander Steve Dolunt told the Free Press. "I think it'll get the officers more involved [with citizens]."

A supervisor and another staff member will be present at physical precincts to handle basic functions, as will officers who deal with prisoners, the Free Press reports.

Another new policy will reassign police detectives to a central Criminal Investigation division starting Feb. 6.

The department will make a formal announcement about the policy changes Thursday. They come on the heels of an earlier announcement this week that the department plans to lay off 108 officers.

Lower-seniority police personnel should receive pink slips in a few weeks, but according to Fox 2, a high-ranking police source said the officers would not ultimately lose their positions.

The layoffs are coming because Police Chief Ralph Godbee needs to reapply for a federal grant, the source told Fox 2, and those officers must be off the books in order to qualify for funding.

In November, Mayor Dave Bing announced plans to cut 1,000 city employees to shore up Detroit's budget, and some City Council members suggested further layoffs in the police and fire departments. The city will begin announcing layoffs starting the week of Jan 21.

Comments

[1oldhippie]

06:53 PM on 01/09/2012

Michigan passes their pot laws and you can send them all home!

[JohnHopwood2]

06:39 PM on 01/09/2012

If the police are anything like the police in nyc then I feel sorry for the people in Detroit who will have to deal with them in the streets. They are like thugs.

[snewell]

07:39 PM on 01/09/2012

Believe it or not the cops in NYC really suck compared to Detroit's finest!!!! This is based on my own personal subjective empirical experience but what else can i go by?

[JohnHopwood2]

09:02 PM on 01/09/2012

Well that's good to hear.

[Deirdre Pride]

05:58 PM on 01/06/2012

http://unlimitedwhispers.com/2012/01/06/detroit-police-stations-to-close-16-hours-each-day/

[klwarner]

04:55 PM on 01/04/2012

I don't think it's wise to be closed for this many hours a day, especially in a city like Detroit. I think the idea is right though, get the cops out of their taxpayer provided chairs and into the streets.

[susanbsbi]

04:01 PM on 01/04/2012

This allows the criminals to roam the streets from dusk to dawn. People so you pay a few extra dollars in property taxes, to keep your police and fireman on the job. Everybody remember that you cities run on your tax dollars from property taxes. Fight to cut the mayors and city councils pay in half and give that money to the police and fire departments.

[klwarner]

04:54 PM on 01/04/2012

No this is saying the policemen will actually be out in the streets during these hours, not behind a desk. Response time is going to be faster, most likely.

[Israel4Ever]

03:34 PM on 01/04/2012

Man, this just begs for the scenarios of armed hold-ups of near-empty police precints. Fort Apache the Bronk, anyone?

How are you going to hold a drug dealing gang memeber in lockup with a "supervisor and another staff member" holding down the fort?

How are you going to stop any group of, say, three guys from coming in and helping themselves to the various tempting items in a police station: weapons, siezed assets, communication equipment, cars, etc.

I see bad things arising.