Marian Orr: We Need More Police Officers

Cheyenne mayoral candidate Marian Orr says the Cheyenne Police Department needs more officers to keep up with the city's growing population.

In a Friday release, she cites a study based on 2014 FBI statistics showing Wyoming is the 8th most overworked state for law enforcement officers.

She also cites a Benchmark Cities Survey that shows the average police officer in the United States handles 30 percent fewer calls than the average Cheyenne police officer.

Orr also said she has had numerous conversations with Cheyenne Police Chief Brian Kozak that lead her to believe "We need to staff up."

She says the city has grown by about 6,000 people since 2010, while the number of police officers in the city over that time has decreased. She said of the situation ''That doesn't make sense."

Orr said another stress point for police is the new Cheyenne Walmart off of Interstate 80, which generates several calls a day for police.

She said Kozak has told her that Walmarts across the country located near main corridors experience spikes in crime. But she says many other Walmarts have agreed to contribute to the costs of law enforcement.

"We're in the middle of an economic downturn," Orr said in the release. "We need  a leader who understands why we need to place needs before wants and staffing our police department is an absolute need."

Orr has made the idea of prioritizing wants before needs a cornerstone of her mayoral campaign.

She faces Amy Surdam in Tuesday's general election. The winning candidate will become Cheyenne's first-ever female mayor.