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Crosscurrents

Life of the Law: Commuting Cops

Have you ever had a police officer from your town, live on your block? The answer is likely, no. And there’s a good chance that your local beat cop doesn’t even live in the city they patrol—they likely commute out to the suburbs when their shift is over.  

Only 9 percent of Oakland police actually live in the city. And this isn’t just a local phenomenon it’s true for cities around the country. But what to do about it is complicated.

To counter this pattern, some law enforcement agencies actually require officers to live in the city where they work. The controversial practice dates back more than a century, but the effectiveness of these laws is questionable, and they are largely being left out of the current conversation about reforming America’s police.

From our friends at Life Of The Law, Andrew Stelzer brings us this piece about “Commuting Cops”.

This piece originally aired on Life of the Law- a national podcast based in the Bay Area. Click here to visit their website and click here to subscribe to their podcast.

 

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Crosscurrents Oakland