SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom said that new teams of California Highway Patrol officers will be deployed to several of the state’s largest cities to target crimes such as auto theft and drug trafficking, Politico reported.
The deployments will include expanded patrols in Los Angeles, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay Area and other inland regions, including Bakersfield, San Bernardino and Oakland, according to the report. Newsom emphasized the effort is being conducted in collaboration with local governments..
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According to the governor, CHP will partner with local law enforcement agencies, sharing intelligence and increasing patrol visibility in neighborhoods most affected by crime. The strategy is designed to enhance local capacity without federal intervention, Newsom said.
Newsom’s announcement comes as California awaits a federal court ruling in a lawsuit challenging the deployment of federal troops to Los Angeles.
Should federal intervention be used to reduce crime in California cities, or will state initiatives be effective?
Police1 readers respond
- I believe at this point in time, any and all resources should be used in all areas, not just California, where help is needed to provide safe communities for our citizens and their families. Every night on the news you see shootings in the major cities throughout the U.S. and most of the times it ends with serious injuries or death to innocent people. There are a lot of areas that have complete lawlessness. These incidents need to be stopped so that our decent law-abiding citizens have a chance to live a normal life, free from the fear of being killed while out walking their dogs.
- If a governor or mayor will not protect its citizens, then the federal government must! Crime is outrageous in San Francisco. You cannot leave anything in your car. Even if your car is empty, someone will break a window to get in. We have normalized this behavior as a way of life. We should never normalize criminal behavior. The norm should be that no one breaks into your car, not “I must get everything out of my car so it is not stolen and/or damaged.” When a mayor tells you to leave your car keys by the door so it can be stolen without the criminal coming too far into your house, something is wrong. It should be break into my house and you will get shot. Help these cities!
