Californian official who called for ‘defunding the police’ complains about lack of cops protecting people
Rachel Lang
Featured Image Credit: PBH / Alamy Stock Photo. REUTERS / Alamy Stock Photo
A San Francisco-based government official has lashed out at a lack of cops on the streets to keep residents safe, despite previously pushing to defund the police.
Supervisor Hillary Ronen voiced her frustration at the city's police force after she claimed they were prioritizing retail robberies over the safety of her district's residents.
During a Budget and Appropriations Committee hearing on March 15, Ronen roasted the San Francisco police force.
"I've been begging this department to give the Mission what it deserves in terms of police presence, all year long," she said, according to Yahoo News.
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"And I've been told time-and-time-and-time-and-time again there are no officers that we can send to Mission. And then I see these numbers protecting shoppers, and it hurts. It hurts.
"And I feel betrayed by the department, I feel betrayed by the mayor, I feel betrayed by the priorities of this city."
She added: "We want our residents safe."
Yeah, as a politician we can see how that would be frustrating. She just wants to keep her patch safe, right?
Well, people tend to have memories.
And people remembered her stance and calls to defund the police in the wake of the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police officer Derek Chauvin in Minnesota.
Some took to social media to fire back at Ronen for her 180 degree backflip on police numbers.
One user said: "How it started… how it’s going."
They also shared a clip of her mid-committee rant alongside a previous tweet of hers calling for less cops patrolling city streets.
A second tweeted: "Didn't Hillary Ronen call for defunding the police? I hope her constituents remember."
A third person, who claimed to be from her constituency, said: "What a disgrace. Hillary Ronen has been front and center on her calls for defunding the police, and now here she is expressing false outrage due to lack of police presence in the Mission.
They added: "D9 (my district) deserves better than this feckless bulls**t."
In 2020, Mayor London Breed redirected $120 million from San Francisco's law enforcement to fund other city initiatives.
As a result, crime in San Francisco - shockingly - worsened.
In 2020, homicides increased by 20 per cent compared to the previous year. In 2021, they increased a further 17 per cent.
By December 2021, the San Franciscan Mayor clearly realized he'd made a bit of an oopsie daisy and made an emergency request to the Board of Supervisors to seek more funds for the city's police force.
But, apparently, defunding the police force has a trickle-down effect. Who knew?