Vallejo is a city of 116,760 residents in the San Francisco Bay Area. About two years ago, the city opted to declare bankruptcy, becoming the first California city of over 100,000 pushed into insolvency. Now with so many other cities in California, including Los Angeles, facing severe budget pressures, Vallejo provides a case study in what services a city should cut and, more importantly, what not to cut.

KALW, the highly respected NPR affiliate in the Bay Area, has taken an in-depth look at the correlation between cuts to the Vallejo police force and a wave of violent crimes now gripping the community. As we have been preaching for much of the past year, a city’s economic recovery is dependent on a safe city. Vallejo proves our point.

Read or listen to Reporter Adelaide Chen’s story for yourself. It is recommended for every resident of Los Angeles – especially those elected officials wrestling with L.A.’s budget crisis. Let's learn from the experience – and frankly, the mistakes – of Vallejo. Keep public safety first in Los Angeles!