No, the police should not be defunded
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The police should not be defunded because they need funds to prevent crimes
If police are defunded, their presence is intended to be diminished, leading to them responding to a crime after it occurs rather than preventing the crime.
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The Argument
The first programs to get cut if the police are defunded will not be for personnel and equipment. It will be for the basic police services, such as crime prevention programs.
Community policing and prevention programs would be the first to go, which would be detrimental. For example, budget shifting could reallocate funds to solve homeless challenges for skilled unarmed outreach staff, including conflicts in neighborhoods and community retail.[1]
Additionally, emergency services such as 9-1-1 could change in its determining whether a police officer should attend to the said "emergency". Defunding the police could impact the determinants of emergency services.[1]
Counter arguments
There is not a lot of evidence that proves that police surveillance results in lower crime rates and greater public safety. Instead, it just perpetuates injury and trauma by funneling cops into neighborhoods of color and forcing officers to make arrests.[2]