| | | | | | | | | TO: | Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee Members |
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| FROM:
| Rickelle Williams, Interim City Manager
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| | DATE: | April 17, 2024
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| | SUBJECT: | DISCUSSION REGARDING THE EFFORTS OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO COMBAT ILLEGAL DRUG DEALING IN THE CITY. |
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| | | | | | | | HISTORY:
| At the November 16, 2022 City Commission meeting, at the request of Mayor Meiner (then Commissioner Meiner), the Mayor and City Commissioner approved a referral to the Public Safety and Neighborhood Quality of Life Committee (PSNQLC) to discuss efforts of the Police Department to combat illegal drug dealing in the City.
The item was heard at the June 21, 2023 PSNQLC and continued to the September 2023 PSNQLC for an update. A meeting was not held in September 2023 and to date, the item has not yet been reheard.
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| | | | | | | | ANALYSIS
| The Miami Beach Police Department’s (MBPD) mission is to “address crime and community concerns”. One of the prevalent issues in a tourism-driven city like Miami Beach is the sale of narcotics. To combat the phenomenon, the Department has created an undisclosed number of squads made up of detectives whose primary objective is to identify anyone who sells, manufactures, delivers or possesses with the intent to sell, manufacture, or deliver illegal narcotics, and strategically develop probable cause to arrest them. The Department strives to obtain substantial irrefutable evidence to ensure the likelihood of a conviction that will result in a long-term sentence. The dedicated detectives work various shifts and days of the week to carry out their investigations.
Most are aware of the inherit risks that come along with being a police officer, and those risks are two-fold in undercover narcotics investigations. It would be a mistake not to acknowledge the hard work put forth by the undercover detectives as well as the detectives of the Strategic Enforcement Team (S.E.T) that work alongside them in many instances to take some of the most dangerous criminals off the street. Despite staffing challenges, which the Department is addressing, the City is energetically pushing to hire and graduate officers through the Field Training Program.
It should be noted that in addition to detectives, officers assigned to the Patrol Division are expected to actively address complaints of narcotics activity by way of directed patrols, consensual encounters, traffic stops and stay away orders and flyers to name a few. These detectives also work operations with federal law enforcement agencies as needed to combat illegal narcotics throughout the City. One of these operations, Operation Lucid Air, was extremely successful in addressing the illicit drug activity as was addressed in Letter to Commission (LTC) #509-2023. In the 2023 calendar year alone, the Department made a total of 957 arrests related to illegal sale, possession, and/or use of narcotics. So far this calendar year, officers have made a total of 177 arrests related to narcotic violations through their dedicated efforts which are expected to continue through the rest of the year and beyond. |
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| | | | | | | | CONCLUSION:
The Administration remains steadfast and committed to reducing and eliminating the sale, possession and use of narcotics within the City of Miami Beach. As one of the Department’s most important priorities, the expectation is to have a significant reduction in narcotics violations over the coming months.
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| | | | | | | | | Is this a "Residents Right to Know" item, pursuant to City Code Section 2-14? | | Does this item utilize G.O. Bond Funds? | | | No | | No | |
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| | | | | | | | Strategic Connection
| | Neighborhoods - Prevent and solve crime for residents and visitors. |
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