There's been a sharp increase in attacks on mail carriers, according to the local union president for letter carriers. Since then, Ted Thompson says there's been about one a month, and three members have been hurt. He says it's a serious problem.
"Letter carriers have always been a part of the community, no matter what community we deliver in," he says. "We were always kind of 'off-limits.' And that did change in 2022. There's organized as well as unorganized criminal networks that want to try to gain access to the public's mail."
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Thompson says there have been 17 assaults and armed robberies on Cincinnati-area mail carriers since the beginning of last year.
"In my career, prior to January 2022, we have not had a single physical assault or robbery of a letter carrier. In the course of my 17-year career, once that hit in 2022, it's an entirely new issue," he says. "I would say that's pretty serious."
Thompson says police are taking it seriously, but more could be done. He says it's a federal offence to attack a postal worker.
"But they're not always prosecuted federally," he says. "Sometimes the Department of Justice or district attorneys have bigger fish to fry, bigger issues to deal with. We need to bring awareness to them as well, to the prosecutors to set an example for these criminals that local prosecution is not acceptable."
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Thompson says postal customers can also help by keeping an eye out for their neighborhood carrier.
Union members and law enforcement representatives planned to meet at Fountain Square Wednesday evening to raise public awareness.
