JCSO goes JOINTless
From our weekly issue dated October 22, 2008
For more than 20 years the citizens of Grants Pass and Josephine County have received drug enforcement services from an interagency squad, the Josephine Interagency Narcotics Team, known as JOINT.
It was comprised of personnel from the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO), the Grants Pass Dept. of Public Safety (GPDPS), Oregon State Police (OSP), and Josephine County District Attorney’s Office.
On March 3 JCSO informed its JOINT partners that due to budgetary constraints it no longer was able to participate, and that it would conduct its own narcotics investigations in the communities it covers.
As a result, during the past several months, the remaining team members have worked together to restructure the team without JCSO participation. Because the sheriff’s office had provided office space, a supervisor, and clerical support, the withdrawal from JOINT required restructuring of the squad.
The restructuring resulted in a new interagency agreement, a new member agency on the team, the award of a grant, and a new name for the team: Rogue Area Drug Enforcement Team, referred to as RADE.
The team is composed of representatives from OSP, GPDPS, county D.A.’s office, and Josephine County Community Corrections (Adult Parole & Probation). Each agency provides support through the provision of personnel or equipment or facilities; or a combination. RADE recently moved into its new facility and is available for narcotics investigations within the city of Grants Pass and immediate surrounding areas.
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The team also reported that it has been selected by the Edward Byrne Grant to receive $93,000 to assist in drug enforcement efforts. The grant provides for training, specialized equipment, safety equipment, overtime for detectives assigned to drug investigations, and some clerical case management.
Anyone wishing to report illegal drug activity can contact RADE by phoning GPDPS at 474-6370. In the future the team will provide additional phone numbers for a tip line for citizens wishing to report drug activity and information.
The sheriff’s office telephone number is 474-5123. (Editor’s Note: Information for the preceding article was from Laura Zeliff, GPDPS deputy chief.)
