Yakima Police Down 19 Officers Hoping for a Better 2022

It’s a new year and the Yakima Police Department is starting the year with a smaller force and no traffic unit.

Yakima police lost 18 officers in 2021 and one so far this year

For a variety of reasons, including new police reform laws, passed by state legislators, the Yakima Police Department lost 18 officers last year who left the force, including several retirements. An officer has left the force this year.
Captain Jay Seely says replacing officers will not be an easy task as the state mandated academy only accepts a handful of officers from departments across the state each year. Departments have been informed that current wait times are up to 7 months. Seely says they hope to attract more wing officials this year. Lateral officers are those who are currently working in other departments and would already be qualified as full-time officers if hired in Yakima.

With a shortage of officers, those on the job are working overtime.

Seely says the YPD continues to maintain coverage of the city, but they rely heavily on overtime. Currently, the department has 112 full-time officers who can be deployed to the streets of Yakima, but they are budgeted for 143 officers. The department has 19 additional officers who are employed but unable to patrol the streets due to the fact that they are awaiting academic training and others have various long-term disabilities.

The shortage means the city has no traffic unit

That shortage forced the department to cut its traffic unit last year and transferred the traffic control function to patrol. With 12 officers in various phases of the training process, by the end of 2022, staffing levels are expected to increase. Captain Seely says, “YPD is committed to public safety and the chief and I are proud of the success our officers achieved in 2021 and look forward to more of the same in 2022.”

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