By Sarah Thompson
The South Tucson Police Department will be the home for a new crime- and gang-prevention officer if the Pima County Board of Supervisors approves its application for $92,000 in community development block grant (CDBG) money this month.
The department, along with the Weed and Seed program, submitted the application to the South Tucson City Council for recommendation last February.
According to the application, the $92,000 will fund a police officer as a crime- and gang- prevention specialist. The CDBG money will cover the officer's supplies, training, operating costs, travel, salary and benefits over the next fiscal year.
"If it (the CDBG application) is approved, I envision a resource officer that will deal with the community in programs for crime and gang prevention, neighborhood watch and school issues," said Sixto Molina, South Tucson police chief.
The officer will take gang resistance education and training programs into South Tucson's schools and safe havens.
"The chemistry has to be just right going into this position," Molina said. "The officer will need to be versatile in his skills. He will have to deal with everyone from the tiny kids to the school principals. He needs to be approachable."
The police department has already begun training officers in gang resistance education. However, the training process is ongoing, Molina said.
South Tucson has not had a full-time resource officer for the past two school years, said Ernie Mejia, assistant chief of police in South Tucson.
Part of the job of a crime and gang prevention officer is to work as a school resource officer. The officer will visit schools in South Tucson on a regular basis to help to prevent criminal and gang activities.
The idea is to break the cycle of neglect that pushes children into gangs and criminal behavior, Molina said. A school resource officer will help break that cycle.
"Unemployment, alcoholism, domestic violence and homelessness are all problems that gnaw away at our community," Molina said. "Many of South Tucson's children live with problems like these in their own home. We want to break the cycle. That's why this position is so important."
During the Feb. 12 city council meeting, the council voted to recommend its approval for the application to the Pima County Board of Supervisors.
"The council applies for the money but the county may make adjustments," said Gerald Porter, South Tucson's grant administrator. "Rarely do we get everything we apply for."
The application for crime and gang prevention money was one of 12 applications submitted to the council for recommendation. Other applications recommended for approval included $55,000 for neighborhood restoration, $63,000 for administration, and $100,000 for South Tucson youth programs.
The Southern Arizona Center Against Sexual Assault applied for $34,574 and Aztlan Academy applied for $250,000. Neither applications received recommend-ations for approval by the council.