About 12,000 police officers will have been laid off by the end of the year, USA Today reports, citing a Justice Department report. This is the first time in 25 years that U.S. law enforcement, as an "industry," has seen a drop in its employment numbers. (And that's not counting the 30,000 open positions that many agencies are carrying.)
Naturally, there's a political element involved here. The White House's jobs plan includes money for local police, but some Republicans are arguing that -- given the nation's declining crime rate -- maybe it's not the end of the world if there are fewer positions for police.
(The L.A. Times has more about the trend here.)
What do you think? Should police and sheriff's departments be protected from government budget cuts?
