NEWBURGH – Two years ago the City of Newburgh laid off a number of police officers from the force as a budget-cutting measure, but now, the city council wants to add members to the department.
Mayor Torrance Harvey said it is part of the strategy of the new departmental leadership to fight crime in the city.
“The only way we are going to continue that trajectory is to continue to look to increase our rank-and-file and look at increasing the numbers and making sure that they are diverse and that they reflect the demographic that they serve and also looking how we can get city residents who live here into our rank-and-file,” he said.
Some city residents believe the answer is not to hire additional cops, but rather to invest in social programs as a means to fight crime.
