'It diminishes public safety': Josh Stein addresses low hiring rates for law enforcement

State Attorney General Josh Stein spoke at Fayetteville City Hall on Thursday and said more cops retired or moved on from state law enforcement agencies last year than were hired — an issue he said is "untenable."

"We're here today because keeping people safe is job one for all of us," Stein said. "Too many of our cities, towns and counties are facing a real shortage of law enforcement officers."

He said that last year, 428 more officers left the force than were hired in North Carolina.

"This is an untenable situation, and it diminishes public safety," Stein said.

The attorney general was joined by Fayetteville Police Chief Kemberle Braden, Cumberland County Sheriff Ennis Wright, Hope Mills Police Chief Stephen Dollinger and Democratic state Sen. Val Applewhite. The group gathered to address a push to recruit and retain law enforcement officers in the county and statewide.

More: Fugitive featured on 'America's Most Wanted' nabbed by U.S. Marshals in Fayetteville

Stein said his office is championing ideas such as hiring bonuses for new officers, expanding a program that repays community college debt for people who take jobs in law enforcement and allowing retired officers to return to work without impacting retirement pay.

"North Carolina needs trustworthy, public-spirited officers serving our communities and I'm going to do everything in my power as attorney general to make sure that our law enforcement agencies and sheriffs' offices are well staffed and well supported," Stein said.

To retain officers, Stein suggested tailoring mental health and wellness resources to address the "unique and difficult challenges" they face.

"The job of law enforcement is unbelievably stressful. Every day they have to run towards danger when the rest of us seek shelter," he said. "It's incumbent upon all of us to make sure they have the tools to manage their health and well-being."

Fayetteville Police Chief Braden also took the podium and said he looks forward to working with the attorney general to fix these issues.

"I think it's key and reassuring to know that I'm not the only department that is having these concerns," Braden said. "This isn't a local problem, but a problem we have to come up collectively with ideas on how to actually alleviate the problem."

As of Feb. 6, there were 58 vacancies for sworn officers at the Fayetteville Police Department, according to a public record request. Braden said the starting pay for a police officer is $45,000 a year.

Sheriff Wright said that his office has been experiencing the same difficulties in retention and recruitment plaguing law enforcement agencies across the state. He cited two major setbacks in the hiring of new deputies as the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 beating death of Fayetteville-born George Floyd at the hands of Minnesota police officers. Floyd's killing sparked months of nationwide protests against police brutality.

Wright said his office is budgeted for 755 positions across all departments including patrol and the jail and currently only 556 jobs are filled. He said the Sheriff's Office is down 85 sworn officers.

Wright said the starting salary for new deputies is $50,750.

The starting salary for officers at the Hope Mills Police Department is $40,915, Dollinger said.

Public safety reporter Joseph Pierre can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein speaks in Fayetteville