Congress moves to address postal carriers' safety concerns amid nationwide robbery trend

Congress will introduce new legislation Wednesday that aims to address postal carriers' safety concerns amid a nationwide robbery trend, the Associated Press reported.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), the legislation's lead sponsor in the House, will introduce the Protect Our Letter Carriers Act this week to respond to a recent uptick in robberies targeting postal workers.

Fitzpatrick stated that the bipartisan legislation "provides resources to protect our dedicated postal service workers while making sure we are punishing criminals to the fullest extent of the law," the AP reported. If passed, it would speed up the replacement of the U.S. Postal Service's mailbox keys, known as "arrow keys," with electronic versions to deter thieves. According to the AP, the updated keys will have no value to crooks.

According to Brian Renfroe, the president of the National Association of Letter Carriers, the bill would also require 93 U.S. attorneys to assign a prosecutor to pursue postal crimes. Renfroe noted that the legislation will reexamine sentencing guidelines for various postal crimes.

Renfroe addressed NALC members and supporters in Oklahoma City last month about the uptick in robberies, calling the incidents "unacceptable ... appalling ... and out of control."

"Nearly every day, we learn of another incident of violence against a letter carrier," he stated. "Targeted armed robbery, assault, shootings — and yes, even murder — has become part of our job."

According to records obtained from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and reviewed by the AP, postal carrier robberies increased 30% last year, and the number of robberies that resulted in injury doubled.

USPS spokesperson Jeff Adams told the news outlet that letter carrier robberies dropped 19% over the past five months. He noted that there has been a 73% increase in arrests for letter carrier robberies so far in fiscal year 2024.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy stated, "We have been unrelenting in our pursuit of criminals who target postal employees and the U.S. mail. The efforts of our postal inspectors and law enforcement partners have yielded positive results."

At a rally held in Jacksonville, Jim Thigpenn, the president of the USPS North Florida Branch 53, explained that the attacks on postal carriers are not random.

"Every single neighborhood [has been affected]; we've had situations where it happened on the Northside, and then a half hour later, it happened on the Westside in one day," he explained. "This is just not tied to a certain side of town or anything like that. It's more of a targeted type of situation."

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