Idaho Welcomes Disillusioned Police Officers from Blue West Coast States
The exodus of disillusioned police officers from blue states in the West, opting for conservative Idaho due to supportive communities and robust law enforcement, is a significant trend. Idaho witnessed a notable increase in out-of-state officer certifications, highlighting the dissatisfaction with defunded police departments and softened crime policies in places like Seattle and Portland. The departure of disenchanted police officers from Western blue states to conservative Idaho, attracted by community support and effective law enforcement, is a prominent phenomenon. Idaho experienced a marked uptick in certifications for out-of-state officers, underscoring discontent with defunded police and relaxed crime measures in areas such as Seattle and Portland.
While blue states in the West are losing police officers who are disillusioned with soft-on-crime policies, conservative Idaho is gathering them in great numbers.
The Idaho Peace Officer Standards & Training (POST) reported that between 2019 and 2021, the number of officers from other states applying for certification more than doubled, Fox News reported.
“They come to Idaho where they can enjoy their career and make a difference,” Idaho Fraternal Order of Police President Bryan Lovell stated. “They see that, in large part, our communities are supportive of law enforcement and public safety.” Lovell stated that officers from other states said they were fed up with policies that defunded police departments or decriminalized drugs.
“The Seattle Police Department has lost more than 700 officers in the past five years and is at its lowest staffing level since the 1990s,” King 5 reported in March.
“We’re already at critical levels … We are really struggling to make sure we maintain all the calls that are impacting, not just to maintain the calls, but also investigating those calls and also doing the other type of tactics that actually make for safer outcomes for the community,” Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz said.
“I think if rock bottom was ever a thing, we are probably here,” councilmember Rob Saka echoed.
Regarding Portland, Oregon, which has just 1.26 officers per every 1,000 residents, 48th among the nation’s 50 largest cities, the Manhattan Institute posited, “In the short run, the city’s particularly harmful riots following the 2020 murder of George Floyd, as well as its leadership’s embrace of the ‘defund the police’ movement, dealt a massive blow to police morale, driving mass resignations and retirements, which have continued to hamstring operations.”
“The LAPD is hemorrhaging officers, with more leaving the force than are joining it. Police Chief Michel Moore reported last week that sworn staffing had fallen to 9,103, down nearly 1,000 from 2019, the year that preceded the outbreak of COVID-19,” The Los Angeles Times reported in April 2023.
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Former California Highway Patrol officer Seth Horst, who moved to northern Idaho, commented on the tremendous public support for the police in Idaho, saying, “That is so powerful for the men and women in uniform up here to have that backing. It’s a pretty phenomenal place to do the job.”
He said of the blue states, “The district attorney doesn’t back them, there’s too much liability, so the department won’t let them enforce the law, which is their job. And that bugs a lot of people. They get a job up here, oftentimes taking a huge pay cut because the pay here does not compare to a lot of states. But it’s worth it to them to raise their families in a place that is safe and has those old-school values.”
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