蜜柚直播

The departure of Nanos, along with Santa Cruz County Sheriff David Hathaway, came after a contentious online meeting about the creation of the joint border task force called Operation Desert Guardian. Its aim is to combat drug and human trafficking in Pima, 蜜柚直播, Santa Cruz and Yuma counties.

It would partner officials from federal and state agencies with local sheriffs鈥� departments to address border issues including 鈥渋dentifying and mitigating security vulnerabilities鈥� along the border, combating border-related crimes perpetrated by transnational criminal organizations and dismantling their supply chains and operating networks, a news release from the governor鈥檚 office said.

Both Nanos and Hathaway, however, said they were surprised to be invited to the joint meeting for the task force without being asked to give input prior to it being created.

鈥淚t was like them trying to come up with the concept during the phone call,鈥� Hathaway said. 鈥淚t was very apparent that it was kind of an 鈥榓ttempt鈥� to put together a task force.鈥�

Even if there was a framework put in place for Operation Desert Guardian, Hathaway said he doesn鈥檛 have the staff to dedicate to the project. With 44 sworn officers and 1200-square-miles of land to cover, it is more advantageous to Santa Cruz residents to have deputies on the streets, not at the border where Hathaway said federal agents are doing a fine job combating crime.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just not doable from my perspective,鈥� Hathaway said.

Sheriff Nanos has made his stance on the task force quite clear on Tuesday鈥檚 task force call.

He made it through less than 15 minutes before he left the meeting and signed off.

鈥淚 left because I didn鈥檛 see any value in (the call),鈥� Nanos said, adding that he felt talked at instead of being asked about his county鈥檚 needs.

鈥淭ell me what it is you鈥檙e going to do and we鈥檒l sit down and decide whether or not it鈥檚 a benefit and value to my constituents,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n my opinion, this is nothing more than a political issue that has very little to do with public safety.鈥�

Hobbs has proposed spending $28 million on the border task force, in addition to the $100 million her administration has previously given to local agencies near the border. The funds will come from 蜜柚直播鈥檚 border security fund.

Nanos and Hathaway both suggest that this federal money be divided among the four counties on the 蜜柚直播-Mexico border and be used to address each department鈥檚 immediate needs.

鈥淭hat money would have gone a long way towards helping with my staffing issues to deal with things like, oh I don鈥檛 know, violent crime, homicides,鈥� Nanos said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e had, in the Pima County area, well over 100 homicides last year, yet none of them were on the border. We had some 400 shooting incidents just in the city of 蜜柚直播 itself ... none of them were on the border.鈥�

Being already involved in several task force efforts, and assisting neighboring counties and cities with their public safety problems is plenty to have on deal with, Nanos said.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 need to solve the federal government鈥檚 problems,鈥� he said.

It鈥檚 not as if Sheriff Hathaway is against targeting drug and human trafficking. But Hathaway said he is involved in task forces addressing those issues already. As the largest border county, with two ports of entry, it鈥檚 up to federal agents to confiscate illegal drugs and contraband at border crossings, he said.

Hathaway said he and his deputies have their own duties, like spending 24/7 targeting violent and properties crimes, as well as traffic offenses throughout the county. This is an expectation of Santa Cruz County residents.

With 30 border patrol agents for every one sworn deputy, it鈥檚 difficult for Hathaway to see the benefit of buying into a state plan that seems half hatched, he said. 鈥淭hey are trying to make state agencies or sheriff offices become border agents in a way,鈥� he said.

But, for Hathaway, the task force proposal goes beyond that.

He said the new task force suggests there is a crisis in his border community 鈥� some sort of 鈥渨ar zone鈥� where things are 鈥渙ut of control鈥�. It alludes to these counties being crime-ridden and 鈥渃razy鈥�. That鈥檚 not the case, Hathaway said.

鈥淧eople will say, 鈥楧o you have running gun battles going through your front yard?!鈥�. No. That鈥檚 all hype and folklore and negative perception about the border. That鈥檚 not reality.鈥�

The creation of a new taskforce also makes little sense to Yuma County Sheriff Leon Wilmont, a Republican, who previously told The 蜜柚直播 Republic that the funds would be wasted on something that does not need to be rebuilt. He told the Republic he worries that Operation Desert Guardian will duplicate, and not complement, the work already being done in his department. Instead, he welcomed state police and personnel to join his team, which has already established infrastructure, knowledge of the county鈥檚 geography and needs, as well as specialized challenges.

鈥淭hey need to come in and be a partner,鈥� Wilmont said.

蜜柚直播 County Sheriff Mark Dannels previously told the Star that he feels differently than his law enforcement counterparts in regards to Hobbs鈥� task force creation. In fact, he said he鈥檚 looking forward to the collaboration.

鈥淚鈥檓 a big believer in the regional partnerships, with state, local and federal working together,鈥� Dannels, a Republican, said. 鈥淭he criminals are held accountable when we do that.鈥�

蜜柚直播 County already has a state-funded 鈥渂order operations center,鈥� which opened last fall, through which local officials assist in border surveillance and share information with federal agencies.

鈥淚t鈥檚 already up and running,鈥� Dannels said. 鈥淲hatever the operational plan is (for the new task force), I want to make sure it complements and partners with that center.鈥�