County Attorney and Mayor, for first time, voice support for solutions proposed by Tucson Crime Free Coalition & Pima County
The Tucson Crime Free encourages its membership to read and share the op-ed in Sunday's Arizona Daily Star written by County Attorney Conover, Mayor Romero, and Supervisor Grijalva in which, for the first time, they acknowledge and accept ownership of the single most pressing issue facing our community, the toll the fentanyl crisis is taking on our community. This acknowledgement and acceptance marks their first-step in battling this crisis.
TCFC has been working for a year with various government leaders and stakeholders, community groups and associations and non-profit organizations to accept and acknowledge the reality that we all see today: the fentanyl crisis is ravaging our community. We thank the County Attorney, Mayor, and Supervisor for this vital first step. They must take action and provide leadership by delivering solutions.
TCFC has been advocating multiple solutions for nearly a year and has met resistance at every turn. We are appreciative that the Mayor is now supportive of the Transition Center at the jail site, a solution championed by TCFC.
We now ask the Mayor and County Attorney to partner with Pima County and TCFC to deliver the following solutions:
- Replicate the “Say No Panhandling” signs promoted by TCFC and executed by the County within the City limits! This should be implemented without delay!
- Expand the use of the Transition Center and services at the jail-site!
- Implement TCFC’s Fentanyl Operations Command Center- a multi-jurisdictional emergency command center that serves as a coordinating body focused on fentanyl.
- Start enforcing the law by making arrests when needed and mandating drug treatment when appropriate.
- City of Tucson, give us our parks back so we can use them for their original intent.
- City of Tucson, fund your fair share of the transition center.
- City of Tucson, give back authority to TPD Officers to do their jobs and use the transition center when it opens.
- City of Tucson and County Attorney, stop implementing policies that promote the furtherance of crime and lawlessness!!
To our elected leadership, you have now accepted the challenge. Now it’s time to lead. The battle began long ago but we are brothers and sisters in arms and we welcome you with open arms. Join us in delivering solutions to restore law and order, restore our quality of life, and provide the economic security that allows our families and small businesses to flourish.
TCFC is now looking for concrete steps taken by the County Attorney and City of Tucson. We will be reporting on any new serious results by our new partners.
Wow that op-ed by these three leaders is full of mistruths and nothing.
1- Still blaming the Covid pandemic.
2- Our leaders like you to only focus on the fentanyl and not the meth. 95% of our fentanyl users also use meth daily. In the last 5-6 years meth is now stronger and like before there’s no successfully recognized drug counseling or medicated assisted treatment (MAT program) for it. So our leaders pour our tax monies into their fentanyl programs only telling us they need more money, the cure will be around the corner. Sorry not yet. The drug users tell our beat cops what saved their lives, that was detoxing in jail and prison. We can arrest our way out of this, only need our courts to support WE the citizens and business folks who get victimized over and over. Our mayor and council appoint our city court judges, prosecutors etc. Our local politicians are only at fault for this.
3- You say your “laser focused” on fentanyl. How? when our city court judges at jail arraignments drop TPD officers charges and Conover doesn’t issue a good percentage of their felony cases in her office. Conover sometimes issues fentanyl possession charges but only if TPD gets 10 or more pills on their arrestees 10!. Back to our city court judges at their jail arraignments – judges immediately release them, “No Cash Bond” out almost all of TPD arrestees, even their repeat offenders. When our judges at arraignment and Conover dumps TPD cases in great numbers; in our arrestees minds “Crime Does Pay in Tucson” and they pour it on…
4- They wrote “Considering Court Ordered Detox”. Watch on You Tube – “Seattle is Dying” and “Seattle is dying two”, in this documentaries there has been other jurisdictions who have found great success with mandating detox court ordered programs. But since 2018 City of Tucson has copied City of Seattle’s holistic policing policies that created all the crime and TCFC – not the pandemic or two years of fentanyl hitting our streets locally.
5- Conover states she’s in daily review of the jail population? Tell us why Sheriff Nanos has not opened all his pods? reason- he mismanages his low staffing levels. There are state laws on correction officers vs. inmates ratios, that’s why he can not hold that many as he use to. No new jail for him. Ask Nanos why he makes his arrestees sit in the booking area for 5-7 hours without giving them water (might be a reason for the uptick in deaths in there). That is the direct result of under manning his booking agent numbers. What’s he spending all his money on?
6- Tpd’s new Instituted place network investigations? You mean “PNI”. Three locations in three patrol divisions focusing on gun violence. ONLY? Very few select TPD employees are involved in that program and TPD patrol is not dialed into it either. WHY? because its only fancy window dressing.
7- Pima County Health Dept. – recipient of opioid settlement. City of Tucson Mayor and Council spent millions and millions of our Covid monies on their “Free Crime Bus”. We need Watch Dog groups on these new opioid monies. Govt has a habit with giving the people who need it 15 cents on the dollar historically. “The Money is in the Treatment and not the Cure” the old saying goes.
8- These three said in this article they need to get ideas from others and come together on this crisis which is just as equal a crime crisis locally. TPD chief Chad Kasmar does not solicit ideas from his own rank and file troops (detectives and patrol officers), why would our mayor, county attorney and county supervisor/ TUSD board member…. This is fluff for the upcoming elections and the next one. Recalling all three of them needs to start up yesterday
Without the implementation of these thoughtful and practical solutions, Tucson could become another San Francisco or Portland or Minneapolis or any number of mismanaged cities which are hemorrhaging jobs, businesses and people. This is truly an urgent problem demanding immediate action to protect the citizens of Tucson and our quality of life.
Great news guys !!!!
Thank you for all you do.
The homeless camps are back at Juhan Park and along the wash. The cars are parked underneath the trees inside park property. There are tents on the east side and west side of the park. The homeless are still begging for money at the Grant & I-10 intersection. There are people camping up the side underneath the highway. Trash at east side of the intersection. Beggers going both ways on every corner. It’s like a toll road. You want to go fast so you don’t get stopped at the light. Lots of beggars.
There’s now more than just a glimmer of hope and it’s due to your ongoing efforts, persevering through the resistance. Looking forward to some more, real results. Thanks guys.
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