JEFFERSON CITY (KMOX) - Some Missouri lawmakers against defunding the police want Gov. Mike Parson to call a special session to address it.
Rep. Nick Schroer sponsored a bill that would try to limit towns from cutting their police budgets.
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"To keep our Republic, we need to have law and order, not chaos," Rep. Dotty Bailey said. "It has been the number one issue of my constituents about safety. For me, it's mandated by my constituents to back this bill."
A push in St. Louis is to reallocate dollars earmarked for the police to social programs. Republicans in the Missouri Legislature say that won't work.
"There are always going to be evil people out there that are trying to hurt others," Rep. Sara Walsh said. "The way we're going to prevent that is not through more social programs. It's through (police that are) trained well to go out there and face evil."
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Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, who's running for U.S. Senate in 2022, chimed in on 97.1 FM. Schmitt says victims are being forgotten if police budgets are cut.
"It's about law enforcement helping solve those crimes, prosecutors prosecuting those crimes to bring justice for victims. We do not get there if we defund our police department," Schmitt said.
St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones says the call for a special session of the Missouri Legislature to address police budgets is grandstanding by Republicans. She and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas released a joint statement:
“Today’s grandstanding doesn’t make our communities any safer. As mayors of Missouri’s two largest cities, we are committed to collaborating with anyone willing to offer real solutions and investment to address the underlying conditions that lead to crime—poverty, lack of mental health services, housing instability, and more.
“Republican lawmakers on the outskirts of our communities calling for a special legislative session are offering no real solutions. Instead, they are advocating away the right of St. Louis and Kansas City residents to make decisions for our own communities.
“Both of us have committed to visiting each other’s respective cities to speak with those most affected by disinvestment—primarily in traditionally minority neighborhoods—and to discuss solutions to benefit the people of St. Louis, Kansas City, and all of Missouri. We again extend that same invitation to any elected leader who is serious about having truthful conversations about what actually makes our communities safer.”
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