Today at 11:30 a.m., three city leaders hosted a conversation and Q&A on the mayor’s 2023 Estimate Budget for public safety and police staffing.
Watch a replay of the meeting below:
Tune in to News 5 this evening for a full breakdown of the city's public safety budget and police staffing issues from investigators Tara Morgan.
The meeting was hosted by City of Cleveland Chief Director of Public Safety Karrie Howard, Chief of Police Wayne Drummond and Chief Finance Officer Ahmed Abonamah.
The conversation comes one day after News 5 learned that Mayor Justin Bibb proposed reducing the already-understaffed Cleveland Police Department by 142 positions to help balance the city’s budget.
“None of these decisions are easy,” said Howard said in an interview with News 5 Investigator Sarah Buduson Thursday. “But none of these decisions are being made without thoughtful consideration to being fiscally responsible with taxpayer dollars, keeping this city safe, and making sure that the officers who we do have, the people who actually field positions have everything they need to do their job."
READ MORE: Cleveland cutting 142 police positions
News 5 covered staffing issues at CPD throughout the year in 2022 in our “Dangerously Understaffed” series of investigative reports. Read and watch them here.
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