Staff and Wire reports
Carson City Sheriff Kenny Furlong said Carson City and Lyon and Douglas counties will use a $350,000 grant from the Office of Criminal Justice Assistance to create a regional gang initiative.
Furlong said the gang issues in the three counties have been a concern for some time. He says officers are often doing double duty by serving on patrol and working on gang enforcement.
He says they also face jurisdictional boundaries and that creating a three-county team will help with information sharing and cooperation.
"The grant acknowledges that gangs do not recognize our county lines. They often live, function, and create discord in many different areas at the same time. By their nature, they are often transient and move to areas with the least gang enforcement presence," he said in a news release. "This characteristic requires intense multi-agency cooperation and communications."
In July 2007, the Carson City Sheriff's Office increased staffing to combat street level narcotics. These two deputy positions were newly funded.
In 2008, the two man team was expanded to include two additional full time gang enforcement officers and a supervisor. Furlong said the enhanced effort was the result of a reorganization of operating positions and was intended to target illegal gang and drug activities.
The Recovery Act Grant Application was submitted in July 2009 requesting $1,047,019 for a three-year period. According to Furlong, funding for one year was approved.