Jacksonville sheriff: 167 officers needed to get to full staffing

Sheriff Mike Williams said the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office is short almost 200 officers and Williams wants to fill that role over the next couple of years.

With more than 840 square miles, Jacksonville is the largest city in the continental United States and the population continues to grow. Williams said JSO needs more officers to keep people safe.

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“In a city our size, we should be around 1,850. That’s a really good number for us. The approved cap right now is 1,683,” Williams said.

Williams said that’s not enough. Right now, JSO is short 167 officers.

“We’re understaffed, and we have been for many years,” said Williams.

When it comes to fighting crime, the lack of officers can be noticed city wide.

“It’s constantly evaluating the crime numbers and putting the resources where we can. We’re in a little robbing Peter to pay Paul situation, sometimes, because we don’t have enough to put in different places,” Williams said.

Jewel Flornoy lives in the Historic Springfield area. She said she has noticed an increase of crime in her neighborhood.

According to the JSO Crime Tracker Map, this year alone, there have been 41 burglaries and robberies in Historic Springfield.

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“I feel that, crime is more on the rise. Even those who are committing the crimes know there is not enough police officers,” Flornoy said.

That’s something Williams is trying to change, with the city’s new pension plan. Williams said this plan allows him to offer new officers more pay and a better retirement plan, which is something they have been lacking for some time now.

“It’s going to be a great recruiting tool for us, to be able to say, here’s the things we can offer,” Williams said.

Williams said there is money in the budget for more officers. He plans on asking for more officers this year.