The District of Columbia police union chief on Wednesday said he supports the mayor’s plan to put more foot patrols on the street, but not at the expense of response time.
Mayor Adrian Fenty called for the extra foot patrols in response to shootings this weekend that left four dead, including a 15-year-old. Fenty said each police district will find extra police officers to patrol on foot. It is unclear where those officers will come from, or how long the plan will be in place.
Kristopher Baumann, head of the Fraternal Order of Police lodge that represents more than 3,600 Metropolitan Police Department officers, said taking officers out of police vehicles slows down the response to calls.
“I’d love to have more officers walking the beat,” Baumann said, “but not at the expense of being unable to respond to people who have been robbed or shot or need police assistance.”
Having more officers walk the beat may make the public feel safer, but Baumann said there is no evidence that foot patrols reduce crime.
Baumann said the foot patrol officers should have access to police vehicles to be able to respond to more urgent calls, an initiative called for by Fenty’s public safety transition team last year.
He said he doesn’t know of any plans to provide cars for foot patrols.
Police response on the east side of the Anacostia River is already backed up sometimes 20 and 30 calls, Baumann said.
Fenty’s office did not respond to attempts to reach it Wednesday afternoon.
Putting more foot patrols on the streets was one of Fenty’s major platforms while he was running for office.
