We need more officers, S.L. police chief asserts

Salt Lake City Police Chief Rick Dinse told the City Council on Tuesday that changing demographics in Utah's capital mean more police officers will be needed in the near future.

Dinse, arguing in favor of Mayor Rocky Anderson's proposed $1.4 million property tax increase to fund 15 more police officers, said the city needs more cops to meet the changing face of Salt Lake City.

Those changing demographics include greater immigration, an increase in the number of poorer residents and a general increase in daytime population associated with projected population growth in Salt Lake County, Dinse and his administration said.

"Since we are seeing a change in our city, the ultimate end is we will be seeing increases in crime," Dinse told the council.

"We have people coming into our city that are new," he said after the meeting, adding that the rising need for officers isn't all about immigration, "but we have people that are of the lower socio-economic status, and poverty breeds more crime. To address it to one part of the population, I don't want to do that, but we have to be ready for what we see."

The chief also noted Salt Lake City has more residents per capita that are on probation and parole than other Utah cities.

Still, after the police briefing, it seemed unlikely the City Council will grant Anderson's tax increase for more officers.

Council member Dave Buhler said he definitely would vote against an increase, with councilmen Van Turner and Carlton Christensen saying they expect to vote against it as well.

Other council members were undecided, but all stated they were reluctant to raise taxes and might look to cut other areas of the city budget to find cash for more police.

That said, council chairman Dale Lambert, who has often stressed the need for more officers, said it didn't seem likely the city could afford more officers without a tax increase.

"We are being asked to fund 15 new officers," he said. "I don't think we can get all the way there in some other way."

Across the board, council members are perplexed about the police department's large number of vacancies. Dinse said the department has maintained 10 or more vacancies at all times during his five-year tenure.