Camden council approves laying off nearly half of police force

[prodigals0n]

More real world results of Chris Christie's draconian cuts (yet magical still rising taxes).

And just as Camden lost the number one spot as the nation's most dangerous city.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/12/camden_approves_layoffs_of_nea.html

Camden council approves laying off nearly half of police force
Published: Friday, December 03, 2010, 9:41 AM Updated: Friday, December 03, 2010, 9:53 AM

"CAMDEN — New Jersey's most impoverished and violent city plans to lay off one-fourth of city government workers, including about half the police department."

...

"The layoffs are to be effective Jan. 18. The state Civil Service Commission has already approved them.

There could be fewer layoffs if public employee unions agree to concessions."

...

"With a tiny tax base, it relies on the state for most of its funding. The state slashed aid this year because of a fiscal crisis of its own."

That state fiscal crisis referred to in the last line is aka "Chris Christie".

[hay rick]

1. Thanks for posting this.

Camden is a mini-Detroit, a laboratory for where our blighted cities are headed.

From another, earlier article: "Camden, a city of 79,000 across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, has the lowest median household income of any U.S. city, at $24,283, according to the Census Bureau. Morgan Quitno, a firm that each year ranks cities by crime rates, listed Camden as the second-most dangerous place of its size in the U.S. in 2009." Link here:http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/08/camden_mayor_may_layoff_police.html

The library-closing plan from a few months ago got more attention. The police layoffs are probably being eclipsed by the smaller percentage/ higher raw numbers in Newark.

The media really wants to keep this kind of news on the back burner as it shines a light on the human price of the deficit control/tax cut meme they are busy peddling.