NOPD gets mixed reviews in new survey
9th October 2017 · 0 Comments
Fewer residents are satisfied with the New Orleans Police Department overall but more feel safer in their own neighborhood, according to a new survey conducted by WWL-TV and The New Orleans Advocate.
Overall satisfaction with the NOPD, which is in the midst of a federally mandated consent decree, dropped 13 percentage points since last year, the survey found.
Fifty-one percent of respondents said they were satisfied with the NOPD, down from 64 percent of those surveyed in March 2016 by the New Orleans Crime Coalition.
The drop in overall satisfaction with the NOPD can likely be attributed to the sharp rise in murders and gun violence over the first six months of 2017. Satisfaction with the way the NOPD handles violent crime dropped 20 percentage points to 39 percent since last year, the survey found.
The New Orleans Crime Coalition attributed the drop to the fact that the survey of 601 residents aged 18 and older was conducted September 5-7.
“High-performing police departments in other cities typically score no lower than 70 percent citizen satisfaction ratings,” said Loyola University professor Michael Cowan, chairman of the Crime Coalition, told WWL. “We should expect nothing less.”
NOPD Supt. Michael Harrison said in a prepared statement that the survey was conducted before his department could publicize a drop in the number of homicides this year compared to last year.
“The impact those positive developments had on public safety and perception of the police cannot have been reflected in this data, and may have painted a different picture,” Harrison said in the statement.
“Perception is very different from reality in some instances,” Harrison continued. “As the report notes, dissatisfaction tends to correlate with a rise in murders.”
Harrison said the murder rate and violent crime overall have begun to decrease. The homicide rate is 6.25 percent below where it was this time last year. “Murders are down, but that’s not immediately reflected in public understanding,” Harrison said.
While the city was once on pace this year to surpass last year’s murder total of 175 homicides, the most recent projection for the 2017 murder total was 164, thanks in large part to a major dip in homicides over the months of July and August.
Cowan recognized that factor but also pointed out that results in several other areas are up compared to 2016.
“Not only are we seeing a significant feeling of safety in respondents’ own neighborhoods, but for the first time, we’re seeing a majority feel safe visiting areas outside of their own neighborhoods,” he told WWL.
Eighty-two percent of the NOCC survey respondents said they feel safe in their own neighborhood, a slight increase from 78 percentage points last year.
The survey also found that 63 percent of adults are satisfied with the NOPD’s performance in their own neighborhood.
And for the first time since August 2013, 51 percent of those surveyed said they feel safe visiting neighborhoods outside of their own, according to the survey. One exception, though, was Algiers, where 60 percent of those surveyed said they do not feel safe outside of their neighborhood.
Those in Algiers also had lower marks when asked about police performance in their neighborhoods. The survey found 44 percent of residents were happy with that, a steep drop from 77 percent last years. Dissatisfaction rose from 19 percent to 37 percent from last year.
Across the river in the 8th District — which encompasses the French Quarter, Marigny, Central Business and Warehouse District — satisfaction with police performance rose from 66 percent to 79 percent, while dissatisfaction fell from 25 percent for 14 percent compared to last year.
The survey also found that 64 percent of those in the 8th District feel comfortable leaving their neighborhoods, while 36 percent do not feel safe leaving their neighborhood.
Satisfaction remains high among those who have had interaction with officers — 71 percentage points — but that interaction with police is down 12 percentage points.
The survey has a margin of error of +/- 4 percent.
In other police-related news, two Louisiana state troopers were demoted in rank after taking an expensive excursion on the taxpayers’ dime. The fallout from the trip, which led to the retirement of Louisiana State Police Supt. Col. Mike Edmonson, resulted from a FOX 8 News investigation.
FOX 8 News reported last week that Derrell Williams and Rodney Hyatt were the two highest-ranking officers investigated for a trip that four troopers took to San Diego last year for a work conference.
An internal affairs investigation revealed the troopers racked up at least $19,000 by taking detours to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. They also claimed unsubstantiated overtime hours.
Williams was demoted from captain to lieutenant. Hyatt was demoted from lieutenant to sergeant.
FOX 8 News reported that the investigation also revealed that Williams sent sexually explicit messages through email while he was supposed to be working.
This article originally published in the October 9, 2017 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
