(WWJ) Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said there've been more cops on city streets this summer, it's working, and it's what the people want.
At the Mackinac Policy Conference on Tuesday, Duggan was asked by WWJ's Jason Scott about a University of Michigan survey that found a majority of Detroiters said more police officers around would make them feel safer in their neighborhoods.
"You don't need a poll to know that Detroiters want more police presence. Every single neighborhood meeting I hear that," Duggan said.
"I look at the disconnect between some of the stuff I see reported in the media — 'defund the police' — and talking to the average Detroiter who had no interest in that at all."
Duggan said this summer he gave the DPD the aurthority to maximize overtime in every precinct throughout the city; spending around $10 million to increase police officer visibility.
"To put more officers on the street, to be in the parks, to be in the areas where there's crowds, and there was more visible presense. I told them to continue that in the fall," the mayor said.
"It was the equivalent of having an extra 300 police officers on the street all summer, and I think it served us well."
Duggan said he thinks the city's new police chief, James White, is deploying these additional officers is a "really effective way."
This comes as Detroit's murder and violent crime rates rose in 2020 even as overall crime declined during the COVID-19 pandemic. The city recorded 327 homicides in 2020; up 19% from 274 the previous year, according to police statistics released early in 2021.
But violent crime isn't the only pressing issue on the mayor's mind.
Going forward this fall, Duggan said heavy emphasis will be placed on putting more traffic officers on the streets.
"The amount of speeding in the city is ridiculous," Duggan said. "...We have way too many hit-and-runs, way to many speeders, and I think most people in the city want to see more officers in patrol cars on the street."
Former Detroit Police Chief James Craig left his post in June following criticism over the DPD's handling of Black Lives Matter protesters in the city the previous summer. James White, a 24-year Detroit police veteran, was named the city's 43rd police chief last month.
The Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference continues through Friday. Stay tuned to WWJ for live reports from the island by WWJ's Charlie Langton and Jackie Paige.
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