New officers, technology on deck for police

Cincinnati City Council's Law and Public Safety Committee on Tuesday voted to move up the city's next police recruit class and agreed to infuse $2 million into technology that will free up officers' time.

But, three of the committee's members also informally agreed the number of needed sworn officers is 1,135 -- something FOP President Kathy Harrell has been saying for months. The three are council members Christopher Smitherman, Charlie Winburn and Kevin Flynn.

The number of sworn officers stands at 1,017.

Recruit class approval and technology spending will go to full Council on Wednesday. The technology piece is aimed at helping officers file reports on the road, instead of forcing them to do that work at districts. The improvements mean officers would spend more time on patrol.

"This is just the beginning," said Smitherman, the committee's chairman.

In the wake of the death of Officer Sonny Kim, who was fatally shot last month, there was hope a recruit class would start earlier than January. But since planning had begun for a February class, it could only be moved up by a month. City officials are pursuing a federal grant that would bump the class size from the slated 40 to 55.

At one time the class was supposed to start in September.

Harrell told the committee they need to prioritize staffing.

"You are worried about the streetcar, you are worried about The Banks, you are worried about people moving to Over-the-Rhine," Harrell told the committee. "But there is nobody to answer 911 calls. You need to worry about who is policing the streets."

The city's administration will study a second recruit class for 2016.