Cops blast ‘click-bait study’ naming California best place for police
Law enforcement unions in California are criticizing a recent report calling the Golden State one of the best places to be a police officer in the United States.
The report, released by the personal finance website WalletHub, based its findings largely on compensation and training, though it also included metrics like police deaths per 1,000 officers and state and local spending on law enforcement agencies.
“Unfortunately, the authors of this study didn’t survey rank-and-file police officers or sheriff deputies about the realities of law enforcement in California prior to releasing this click-bait headlined study,” a news release representing several state police unions stated.
President of the Los Angeles Police Protective League Craig Lally pointed to low police staffing levels in L.A., San Francisco and San Jose that he says have created slow emergency response times, dangerous safety conditions for officers and mandatory overtime that wreaks havoc on department morale.
“We don’t see any of these metrics in this ‘study’ but that is the reality law enforcement officers face in California,” he added.
The unions also took issue with the report’s findings on officer compensation, saying WalletHub failed to consider the high cost of living in the state, especially where housing is concerned.
“As of March 2024, the median price of a home in California is $793,600, and in San Francisco, it’s $1,415,000, said Tracy McCray, president of the San Francisco Police Officers Association. “In order to find an affordable place to live, our officers, especially new recruits, are forced to live further and further from work, adding hundreds of hours of commute time, added stress, higher travel costs, and causing them to spend much less time with their families.”
Next on the list of grievances was “the well-known contempt and frustration police officers have for California’s revolving door criminal justice system.”
Steve Slack, president of the San Jose Police Officers Association, recalled a recent gunbattle with a repeat offender who had several warrants out for his arrest. Two San Jose police officers were shot during the confrontation.
“California no-bail policies make their jobs much more dangerous, and many California politicians support a catch-and-release mentality that protects the criminals at the expense of victims, the public and police officer safety,” he said.
Another challenge called out in the criticism of the report is the difficulty police departments face in recruiting. President of the Sunnyvale Public Safety Officers’ Association Devon Klein said the department has successfully recruited candidates from out of state for several years, but the problem is retaining those officers.
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“Once they get here and face the reality of housing costs, the demoralization of constant legislative efforts that degrade or vilify the profession, and the overall declining moral in our Department, too many return to their home state or go elsewhere,” Klein said.
KTLA has reached out to WalletHub for comment on the unions’ criticism of the report and is waiting to hear back.
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