Report Shows That Police Officers Are Not as Bad as Media Suggests

Police officers often take a bad rap – and it’s genuinely undeserved.

There are so many people out there calling for the defunding of the police, including politicians and members of city governments, merely because they’re more of a burden than they would prefer. But here’s the thing – they’re not. Especially at a time when crime is at an all-time high in cities like Chicago, Seattle and New York.

And if you need further proof than that, pay close attention to a new report put together by the U.S. Department of Justice. As reported by Law Enforcement Today, it not only indicates that the bad rap police are getting isn’t just unwarranted – it’s flat out untrue.

Gallup data backed up the DOJ’s numbers, noting the following: “An estimated 40 million U.S. residents age 16 or older, or about 17 percent of the population, had a face-to-face contact with a police officer in one year. Among people who had face-to-face contact, about nine out of 10 residents felt the police were respectful or acted properly.”

This is a far cry from what those “defund the police” people will have you believe, indicating that the police are nothing short of hostile and even unfair to citizens. But given the numbers above, they’re just trying to do their job – and do it properly, at that.

The report continues, “Less than half of White Americans (44%) and Black Americans (42%), and about half of Hispanic Americans (49%), say they have interacted with police in the past 12 months. The majority in each of these groups report that the interactions were generally positive.”

These are good numbers, and will shake the foundation of any of those naysayers that believe police have a negative presence.

Statistics also show that 88 percent reported that they were truly satisfied with the police response they received, and 93 percent were open to contacting police again in the future. That’s good news to hear, especially with social media abuzz with every sort of complaint you can find against police officers.

The report continues that approximately four percent of residents experienced some form of police action, mostly from traffic related accidents. Even less – around one percent – saw any form of misconduct.

Continuing the ongoing negative press given to police officers (with help from certain politicians that want nothing more than to keep that “defund the police” train going), these numbers are great to see. While there’s still a slight bit of work to be done with misconduct (it should be zero percent), the overall positive numbers from police interactions are much higher than most people may expect.

Because of this, it startles me that there’s not more media coverage on this. I know, they’re usually fans of bad news anyway, and all over it like flies on food when it does take place.

But police need every bit of positive reinforcement that they can get right now. The past couple of years have been incredibly rough, to say the least. Several have left their post willingly, retiring early or outright leaving their job due to the pressure surrounding it – and, more importantly, the lack of any kind of support. Some have even committed suicide, including a handful of officers in Chicago – one of the most poorly supported cities for police right now.

That’s why it’s vital that we get that appreciation out there. These officers are risking their lives to keep us safe on a daily basis; and even if there are instances where you might disagree with something they’re saying, at the end of the day, they’re still working with your best interests in mind. Complain all you like online, but you’re in a much safer place with them around than you are without.

I hope we see more appreciation for our men and women in blue as the new year goes around. We need every one of our officers right now, more than ever before. And reports like this may reassure them that the job is worth doing.

Here’s to you, officers!

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