Police budget cut in NYC as illegal immigrant crisis forces women, children to sleep in tents

On Saturday, city officials announced that the New York Police Department's budget would be cut, with that money re-allocated to solving the migrant crisis.

The move comes as New York City continues to deal with rampant crime and an unprecedented influx of illegal immigrants, many of whom, including women and children, may soon be forced out of shelters and into tents on the street.

Budget Director Jacques Jiha revealed in a memo over the weekend explaining that Mayor Eric Adams, who recently said the migrant crisis could "destroy" the city, will soon "issue a directive to implement an overtime reduction initiative for our city's four uniformed agencies."

These include the NYPD, the fire department, the corrections department, and the department of sanitation, all of whom provide vital services to the city and its residents.

Jiha also asked the agencies to "track overtime spending and their progress in meeting the reduction target," and submit monthly reports to the city.

The head of the Police Benevolent Association, Patrick Hendry, slammed the move as out of touch with reality. 

"It is going to be impossible for the NYPD to significantly reduce overtime unless it fixes its staffing crisis," he said. "We are still thousands of cops short, and we're struggling to drive crime back to pre-2020 levels without adequate personnel."

As the Daily Mail reports, New York City is currently spending close to $10 million per day dealing with the surge of migrants, with no end to the crisis in sight. 

The massive cuts to the budgets of essential city services will only cover two-thirds of the projected costs. 

As more migrants arrive, shelters and other facilities have reached their breaking point. During an interview with PIX11 on Sunday, Adams said that those who had been given priority for indoor sleeping areas could lose that privilege.

"We're going to have to eventually move women and children into congregant settings," he said, adding that, "some migrants might have to move into outside tents."
 

"This is not an academic exercise, this is not a utopia," Adams continued. "New York City cannot manage 10,000 people a month with no end in sight. That can't happen, and that is going to undermine this entire city."