Should Detroit cops who get trained by the city and quit a short time later have to pay back the city for training?
Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones said Tuesday that's she's interested in an ordinance that would force cops to reimburse the city, which could amount to thousands of dollars, Joe Guillen of the Detroit Free Press reports. She did not specify how long a cop would have to stick around to avoid such a financial penalty.
"That's ridiculous to lose officers we've trained -- and spent money on training -- to another city," Jones said at a council meeting, according to the Freep.
Her push for such an ordinance came after hearing police Chief James Craig talked about his struggle to keep officers from going to other departments, the Freep reports.
Officers have told Deadline Detroit in the past that some officers have been known to train with Detroit and then just go to another department.
The Freep writes:
Craig said uncertainty created by the city's bankruptcy case and officers' relatively low pay caused many of the departures. He said Detroit was losing 20-25 cops a month when the problem was at its worst.
Big cities such as Houston and Atlanta have sent recruitment teams to Detroit, the chief said. Other Detroit cops have gone to local suburbs or joined Wayne State University's police force.
"What's driving many officers to leave, candidly, is uncertainty about the future, pay," Craig told the city council during a scheduled appearance to update the body on the department's activities.
