Fairfax County Police Department Experiences “Shocking” Decline in Size

The war on police in America is beginning to have grave consequences.

It’s not enough anymore that cops put themselves in danger every day to ensure we feel safer; the war on police has also affected morale in the force.

Underpaid and underappreciated, “why would anyone want to do this job?

The reverence this country once had for the men in blue who represent and defend us is now a distant memory, and in another decade, it might not really exist.

But here’s the most recent development…The Fairfax County police department are facing an exodus of officers and a very low amount of people interested in replacing those vacancies.

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Here’s more on this story:

Fairfax County Police Department sees 'horrific' drop in numbershttps://t.co/w9EfLlbDhx

— National Fallen Officer Foundation (@nationalfof) April 29, 2021

Fairfax County Police Department sees 'horrific' drop in numbershttps://t.co/TeM4cKD2Js

— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 29, 2021

Fox News reported:

Fairfax County Police Department is down 188 officers, according to Sean Corcoran, president of the Fairfax County Coalition of Police. Officers eligible for retirement are leaving, others are getting out to join higher paying federal agencies like the Capitol Police.

“The numbers are horrific,” says Corcoran.

According to the Fairfax County Fraternal Order of Police, the average starting salary for a Fairfax County cop is $52,000. The median household income in the county was $124,831 in 2019.  

“We have a huge portion of our department that is significantly below where they should be when it comes to pay, and that contributes to this overarching sense that if it is not going to happen here, I’m going to go somewhere else,” says Corcoran. He says many of his cops are forced to live two or three counties away to afford a decent home.

Fairfax County is just the latest of many communities across the country facing an exodus of law enforcement – places like Portland and Baltimore face similar problems.

“We’re getting squeezed from both ends,” says an active duty 20-year veteran of the department speaking on the condition of anonymity. “We’re getting political pressure, and then we’re getting it from the general public with the current situations going on around the nation.”

Violent interactions with police are on the rise in Fairfax County and across the country, putting departments and officers under intense scrutiny. 

“Officers are scared to do their jobs,” says the 20-year vet. “We don’t even know what the rules of the game are anymore.”

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Across the Potomac from Fairfax County, the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The bill seeks to enact sweeping police reform, including limits on qualified immunity, which protects police from civil lawsuits.

“Something that’s very critical to law enforcement across the country is the fear of losing qualified immunity,” says Brad Carruthers, president of the Fairfax Fraternal Order of Police.

Cops on the street say eliminating it would make it impossible to do their jobs, comparing it to a doctor working without malpractice insurance.

Here’s a link for anyone interested in a career in Fairfax PD:

Interested in a career in law enforcement? Visit https://t.co/wASKtFg4Nu to talk to a recruiter LIVE now through 1 p.m. today! #FCPD #BeFCPD pic.twitter.com/YCMswc3brF

— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) April 28, 2021