According to the Fraternal Order of Police, the Durham Police Department had just over half of its positions staffed over parts of the weekend in which five people were shot.
October 05, 2021
A North Carolina police department’s positions were just over half staffed during part of the weekend in which multiple people were shot, the city’s police union said.
According to the Fraternal Order of Police, the Durham Police Department had only 59 percent of its officer positions staffed, including overtime shifts, WNCN-TV reports. On Friday, the department had 66 percent of its positions staffed, and 61 percent of positions were staffed Sunday.
“Sometime back, we would be concerned if staffing levels were below 75 percent,” said Larry Smith, president of the Durham County Fraternal Order of Police.
Between Friday and Sunday, five people were shot in Durham. That included:
- a 17-year-old boy was wounded and multiple vehicles were struck after someone fired a gun in the air at a high school football game.
- a 33-year-old man was fatally shot in his car in a fast food restaurant parking lot.
- a woman was shot in a drive-by shooting.
- a man wounded at a retail store.
- a man was shot on a street corner.
Smith told WNCN that the low staffing can delay response times. He also said fewer officers are working overtime hours.
“If these officers continue not to come in and work on their days off, we’re going to have really low staffing,” he said.