Miami Commission approves police force increase

MIAMI (WSVN) -- City of Miami commissioners approved a plan to increase the department's number of police officers, Thursday.

The city plans to hire 100 new law enforcers this year and up to 300 officers by 2015. The commission strives to better align the officer-to-resident ratio to that of other major U.S. cities.

"We are providing the best we can with what we have, but it would be a lot easier and a lot better for everyone if we can get 100 [new] officers and eventually go up," said Miami Police Chief Manuel Orosa.

Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado observed that the city is now in a position to make such a hiring boost possible. "We have the resources to hire more police officers, but what we want to do is to [find] a way hire fast, but to [also] hire meticulously," he said.

Commissioner Marc Sarnoff stressed that there's no time like the present to take action. "This is something that should have been thought of long ago," he said. "Now, it's time to put our mouth and money together."

The Miami Police Department is currently 50 officers shy of what is covered in the city's budget.

(Copyright 2013 by Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)