ALBANY, Ga. – With a recent spike in murders and homicides here in Albany, city leaders and law enforcement are turning to a new special investigative unit that will combine all three law enforcement agencies.
In a unanimous vote, city leaders approved a resolution for the Albany-Dougherty Special Investigative Unit. The unit will combine the Albany Police Department, the Dougherty County Police Department and the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office into one unit that will focus on gang violence, illegal gun possession and illegal drug activity in the community.
It’s something residents like Larry Williford say is needed to curb the senseless violence.
“It’s time for the drug unit to not just go out and change all the drug dealers, all the gang units. They need to educate us about what’s going on first,” he said.
Law enforcement and city leaders said the new unit is not the answer to stopping gang and gun violence, but rather a step toward a larger plan to keep the community safe.
“This community needs a more holistic approach, a more comprehensive plan and strategy. We use those words, but we need to put some action behind what that looks like,” said Albany Police Chief Michael Persley.
Persley says the unit is also another way for local authorities to work with state and federal agencies such as the Georgia Bureau of Investigations Regional Drug Office. He says any drug or gang case that can be prosecuted at the federal level can flow through the Special Investigations Unit to easily go through the court system. That’s something the city’s leaders have been looking for to further improve law enforcement.
“The departments will be merged. They will cross-train each other, and that will certainly make a difference,” said Jon Howard, Albany City Commissioner for Ward 1.
Dougherty County Police Chief Kenneth Johnson said the new unit will enhance the effectiveness of all law enforcement agencies.
“By combining the expertise and resources of the ADDU and the APD Gang Unit, we believe we can create a more robust and unified front against drug-related and gang activity in our community,” he said. “The combined efforts of these two units will not only strengthen our ability to address current challenges, but will also position us for a more resilient and proactive approach to future public safety concerns.”
The unit will also help with staffing issues within the departments. The merger will minimise staffing requirements and cost savings for the Albany Police Department. It will also improve the sharing of data and information between the agencies.
“We are short of staff. Let’s get them all together and work as one. So this is one approach,” Persley said.
Persley says the new unit will bring more enforcement to the community. But he says there has been a lack of prevention methods from community leaders.
“We need more community-based initiatives that focus on intervention and prevention,” he said. “For example, re-entry. We’ve got people coming back from our prison population, and they come back here to Albany. Well, once they get back here, what do they have? If they don’t have anything sustainable, then they’re probably going to do what they did that got them into prison”.
Howard said intervention could come from local church leaders willing to help.
“I would like to see a task force of interfaith ministers from the Islamic faith, the Jewish faith and the Christian faith. The idea is that we all sit down and say, ‘We need to open our synagogues, mosques or churches, at least more than just on Sundays and Fridays,'” Howard said.
With the new unit bringing improvements in law enforcement, city leaders hope that drugs, gangs and guns won’t continue to take over the city.