Eighteen officers will turn in their badges in two weeks. Combined with previous layoffs and positions that will be not be filled, the loss totals one-third of the city's police force, 10TV's Glenn McEntyre reported.

Mary Ann Hinkle said her dog, Maxie, is her security system.

"She's very protective, she does let you know when somebody's there," Hinkle said.

She said she fears that pretty soon, Maxie will be the only thing protecting her from criminals.

"What are we as private citizens supposed to do? How can we defend ourselves?" Herman Davis said at Tuesday's meeting.

Mansfield's police chief has called the cuts reckless, McEntyre reported.

"How would you feel if one of our officers goes down because there wasn't proper backup?" Mansfield resident Ron Williams said.

At the meeting, citizens described neighborhoods where drug dealers and gangs run the streets unchecked.

"In my back alley at the very end of my driveway there were three drug transactions within one hour," Rilda Burchfield said.

They worry that criminals will only be emboldened when there are fewer officers on patrol.

"I don't want to see my kid shot in the street, I don't want to see any of your kids shot in the street," Claude Byrd told council members. "But unless you live in our neighborhoods and see what we're going through, you have no idea."

"I'm not doing this because I want to, I'm doing this because I have to," Mayor Donald Culliver said.

The mayor said he simply has no other options, McEntyre reported.

"The bottom line is you cannot spend $10 if you only have $8," Culliver said.

Burchfield said that if the city can't protect her, she is prepared to do it alone.

"I have always advocated not having a gun in my house," Burchfield said. "But within the next two weeks I'm going to take a gun safety course and I'm going to pack and carry."

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