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Home > Leadership > Mayor > Archive Press Releases > 2007 Archives > December 2007 > Mayor Brown Announces 102 New Police Officers For Buffalo

Mayor Brown Announces 102 New Police Officers For Buffalo

Source/Contact
Office of the Mayor
Peter K. Cutler
Director of Communications
716-851-4841

Ninety new police officers to attend Police Academy class in January

Fulfilling his pledge to add 100 new police officers to the Buffalo Police Department, Mayor Byron W. Brown today announced that a new Police Academy class will begin January 21, 2008, which will ultimately put 102 new police officers on the streets of Buffalo in 2008.

Mayor Brown and Police Commissioner H. McCarthy Gipson announced that the ninety new police officers will join the twelve former Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority police officers that were added to the Department November 19th following their successful completion of the Police Department exam and a three-week “refresher” training course.

The new Police Academy class will begin January 21, 2008 and will conclude July 3rd. Prior to entering the Academy the recruits are sworn in as Probationary Police Officers, added to the Department’s payroll and, upon leaving the Academy, they will be immediately available for assignment.

“My commitment has been to grow the ranks of the Police Department and continue our goal of reducing crime and improving the quality of life for all Buffalo residents,” said Mayor Brown. “To that end, I have submitted to the City Council a $1.2 million budget appropriation request, supported by the City Comptroller, that will fund the new police officer positions.”

The Mayor’s budget request accounts for 44 of the 90 new police officers and will be supported by the state-funded Aid Incentive to Municipalities (AIM) program that was secured in the 2006 New York State Budget.  The remaining 46 police officer positions had already been accounted for in the City’s 2007-08 budget.

"The new police officers will allow us to be creative as continue to bring crime down in the city of Buffalo,” said Commissioner Gipson. “With over a hundred new officers, we can enhance some initiatives we've already begun and begin a few new ones".

Crime in Buffalo continues to go down, particularly in violent crime.  To date, violent crime has decreased 13% (Homicide, -29%; Rape, -14%; Robbery, -13%; and Assault, -11%).  So far, Homicides have decreased 33% (49 through 12/7/07 versus 74 through 12/7/06) and, overall, since January 2006, crime in Buffalo is down 4%.

“We continue to see positive trends in reducing crime in Buffalo and I commend the dedicated men and women of the Buffalo Police Department for their dedication to duty and for serving the residents of Buffalo with such professionalism and skill,” said Mayor Brown.