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By Pete Rios
Pinal County Board of Supervisors
As many of you know, the Town of Mammoth and the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office are currently in negotiations regarding law enforcement services for the town. The question is whether or not to dissolve the Mammoth PD and pay the County Sheriff for police protection.
While this is NOT a decision for me to make, I want to know what the majority of residents from Mammoth want.
This is where the issue stands at this point. Sheriff Babeu has set a minimum cost of $320,000 for four deputies assigned to patrol Mammoth. The Town of Mammoth has made Sheriff Babeu an offer of $250,000 plus. The Sheriff will not accept less than $320,000.
I need to know if Mammoth residents want me to advocate for one position or another with the Sheriff and the Pinal County Board of Supervisors. If the people in Mammoth want the Sheriff to come in, I will work towards helping secure funding for a fourth deputy to be assigned “at-large” for Mammoth and surrounding communities. If residents don’t want the sheriff coming in and prefer their own police department, I will stay out of the town’s & Sheriff’s negotiations.
I know that times are tough in the eastern part of Pinal County. Budgets are tight and extra funds are hard to come by. I want to help ensure that we have a law enforcement presence in Mammoth that the residents want.
Please send emails to my Mammoth Office Manager: lillian.martinez@pinalcountyaz.gov or call at 520-487-2941 to let us know where you stand on this issue. You may also feel free to walk into the Mammoth Office and express your opinion. I would ask that you leave your name so that we make sure no one is tempted to skew the results.
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