WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE NOPD ?

Recounting the "three major reasons" cited in the UNO study for the shrinking NOPD--poor pay, lack of consistent promotions, and the city's strict residency requirement--the Foundation then offered three more contributing factors for the reduction in force:

• "Housing costs are higher in Orleans Parish than other Parishes in the metro area, and the residency requirement forces our police officers to bear these higher costs."

• "NOPD officers do not consider the Orleans Parish School system adequate; 84 percent send all or at least one of their children to school elsewhere, usually at additional expense."

• "NOPD officers make less (money) than their peers in other agencies; they have not been promoted as promised. This is especially crippling when coupled with the negative impact of the residency requirement, higher housing and education expenses."

Thus, the Big Easy became the country's murder capital. "For New Orleans to have a murder rate that is on par with New York City's, our city would have to record only 36 murders per year," the report found. "This is 221 fewer murders than the 257 murders recorded in 2002."

Opinion Journal