EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio — There's a social media post circulating right now that claims the city of East Cleveland is down to three patrol officers and one detective. The mayor said that's not true.
Over the weekend, two Instagram users collaborated on a post that has now reached more than 10,000 shares and 5,000 likes.
The post states, "The reported staffing level is raising concerns about emergency response times, criminal investigations and the department's ability to maintain consistent police coverage."
When I asked Mayor Sandra Morgan for an interview this week, she initially agreed, but then told me Tuesday afternoon that she was no longer able to and would send a statement instead.
The City of East Cleveland is issuing an official response to clarify inaccurate rumors currently circulating on social media regarding local police staffing levels. In short: the rumors are untrue. The Administration explicitly assures residents, business patrons, and visitors that East Cleveland is safe, secure, and actively welcoming. Public safety remains one of the highest operational priorities of this Administration.
When asked about specific staffing numbers, Morgan said municipal policy prohibits the public disclosure of that information.
An East Cleveland officer told News 5 photographer Mark Durdak off-camera that there are only two patrol officers per shift. That officer said more than a dozen officers have left this year.
Morgan told me there is adequate patrol coverage, but said over the phone that the number of patrol officers is lower right now than this time last year.
She said the city has a multi-tiered safety strategy:
- Adequate Patrol Coverage: Active-duty officers maintain consistent, dedicated coverage across all city shifts.
- Strategic Enforcement: Core police operations are actively augmented through established mutual aid partnerships with regional law enforcement agencies.
- Expanded Resources: Targeted overtime and creative modern policing approaches ensure uninterrupted emergency response times.
- Active Recruitment: The city is actively hiring and processing new personnel pipelines for both the police and fire departments.
The Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office confirms it does provide regular assistance to East Cleveland.
Morgan also said the commitment to safety coincides with civic and economic developments across the city, including:
- An upcoming $10 million infrastructure renovation of Euclid Avenue.
- Ongoing negotiations for substantial public and private real estate investments.
- Hosting upcoming economic forums bringing together regional public officials, developers and business leaders.
"The Administration remains firmly focused on moving East Cleveland toward a stable, prosperous future and stands fully behind the men and women protecting our streets," Morgan told me.
Matthew Perry, a visitor from Dayton for the last two months, told me East Cleveland feels like a "war zone," though, saying he and his kids have never felt more unsafe than there.
Perry has been staying at an East Cleveland apartment since June 9 due to experiencing stroke-related symptoms days prior. He's now being treated by the Cleveland Clinic.
He said he was carjacked Saturday night, just a few days before his birthday.
"Saturday night, I was just sitting out in my car and trying to think," he told me on Tuesday. "I'm looking out the corner of my eye, I see a guy... sticks his hand out the window, and I see flames coming from a pistol, and it's like, boom, boom, boom, boom."
Perry said he jumped out of his black 2016 Dodge Charger and ran back to the apartment he's temporarily staying in for safety.
"I start banging, and I'm yelling, 'Hey, let me in, let me in. Somebody's trying to shoot. Somebody's trying to shoot.' My son opens the door and lets me in, and I'm sitting there telling him like, 'I don't know what's going on, but somebody just shot,'" Perry said.
Perry said he phoned 911 for help. Then, he drove to the East Cleveland Police Department because he was put on hold for too long.
In the department, Perry said he filed a report but was waiting a while for someone to collect it.
"He [an East Cleveland PD representative] eventually comes back out and says, 'All I can do is I can take this paper, but we only have two police officers out here in East Cleveland, and they really can't do much anyway,'" Perry said. "This ain't how the police works."
Perry said he left the department and spotted two East Cleveland patrol cars on the side of Euclid Avenue.
He stopped to talk to them about his situation.
Perry told me one of the officers wrote down a phone number for him and said someone would be in touch.
Since then, Perry said he has called multiple times for updates and hasn't heard anything.
Perry said a man reached out to him on social media after he posted about what happened, claiming he'd seen his Charger for sale by a young man.
The man allegedly rattled off Perry's exact VIN number as proof that he'd seen the car.
"He either really is a concerned citizen that was trying to help me, or he may have been one of the people that shot at me because he had to know my car some way because he had my VIN number. I wasn't going to take that chance and say he was a concerned citizen, you know what I mean, especially after getting shot at," Perry said.
With no information from the police now, Perry said he's on the verge of giving up.
"Mentally all the way up through last night, I was like just not there," he told me. "I try to stay strong for my son. Sunday, I walk in to use the bathroom, and I see him, and he's bawling out his eyes and stuff like that, and I ask him what's going on. He tells me, 'Dad, you really could have got killed out there and I don't want to lose you or nothing like that.' We don't have no car or anything and we ain't getting no help by the cops."
I told Morgan about Perry's situation on Tuesday. She told me she has forwarded the information to East Cleveland's police chief, lead detective and the Sheriff's Office.
"I think they need to be more concerned for the people out here that are looking for help. I'm sure I'm not the first person that probably happened to," Perry said. "You gotta do something for the city, you know, you gotta do something for your people because your people, that makes the city."
Perry has created a GoFundMe in hopes of being able to replace his car. If you'd like to donate, click HERE.
If anyone sees a 2016 black Dodge Charger with orange paint on the trunk and specks of white paint on the front hood, please call 911.
I have filed a Freedom of Information Act request with Morgan for a roster of the officers working at the East Cleveland Police Department.
