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| District Attorney, Sheriff Ask Legislators for Funding to Establish Dedicated Joint Drug Task Force in Lewis County 08/08/18 01:00pm |
requesting Lewis County legislators to provide funding for two part-time investigators to establish a dedicated Joint Drug Task Force in the county. One of the positions would be through the Sheriff's office, while the other would be through the District Attorney's office. The request was first presented to the legislative Courts and Law committee during their June 14 meeting. Sheriff Michael Carpinelli and District Attorney Leanne Moser both provided committee members with an assessment of the current drug situation in the county. Both indicated that guns are becoming more prevalent with the drug population, with gang activity also increasing in neighboring counties. The Sheriff and DA insisted that a proactive approach needs to be taken to avoid further penetration of these elements into our communities. "What we've cracked open so far makes us worried," the Sheriff told the committee in June. The committee asked that a rough annual budget for the task force to be provided before moving forward with any decision. This was presented at the July 12 meeting of the committee. The task force would initially run on a budget of around $74,800 annually. Prior to yesterday's meeting of the full board, DA Moser made a presentation to lawmakers, requesting they approve funding the task force through the remainder of this year, in addition to including in next year's budget. No action was taken by the board at yesterday's meeting. In 2017, Lewis County had the highest per capita rate of opioid overdose deaths in New York State, according to preliminary data from the NYS Department of Health. In addition, Lewis County tied for second in New York State, with Oneida County, for the total number of meth-lab busts, trailing only Jefferson County. County Manager Ryan Piche noted during the June committee meeting the personnel additions during the past year of 4 correction officers, 3 dispatchers a FT investigator and PT Assistant District Attorney. There have not been any personnel additions to any other County department. Full video of the District Attorney's presentation yesterday is included below: |