Newest Fort Lauderdale Police Unit … Shock and Awe !

     The ‘good ole days’, when you could leave your doors unlocked in Fort Lauderdale are ancient history. 

                            
                         Fort Lauderdale Police in safer times


     And this year, things have only gotten worse. Fort Lauderdale’s crime is on the rise. Robbery is up 8%, burglary up 17%, and vehicle burglaries up 21% over this time last year.

     Something has to be done. And the responsibility falls on the shoulders of the new Police Chief, Frank Adderley, who has only been on the job for a matter of months.

                                  
                                   Chief Adderley

     But a new effort by a new Chief might be just the ticket. And that is what’s happening.

     So local thugs beware; Fort Lauderdale’s new Street Crimes Unit is on the job! And Chief Adderley has picked one of the toughest and most respected Cops on the force to lead the new unit, Captain Luis Alvarez. 
                                            
                                                    
                                                      Alvarez 

     The creative team is made up of Forty Police Officers….all hand-picked…the tough and assertive kind…. often dressed in all black…. criminal intimidators!…. ready to roll……… they’ll probably take prisoners, but only because they’re required to!

     And it might be just in time. With the economy tanking everywhere, and even harder in Florida, many experts believe crime could spiral totally out of control.  

     This hand-picked Special Force was cobbled together by combining positions from numerous “Special Teams” that have been around for quite some time, but many felt had lost their effectiveness. They were the “Raiders”, the “Tac Team”, and the “Special Problems Unit”. Now, the new name is not splashy, but their firepower, and make-up, is impressive.

     Chief Adderley released the stats today of the first month of operation for the new team.

     a small sample of their 350 Arrests this month – 

      ….. a Cocaine dealer, dealing outside a school in Dorsey Riverbend
     ….. a thug with a gun in Edgewood, arrested after attacking a Police Officer
     ….. a child molester on the beach
     ….. a man arrested after stabbing a man on Broward Blvd.
     ….. a carjacker arrested in South Middle River
     ….. a burglar who held a knife at a homeowner in Flagler Heights

     ….. and so it goes. Chief Adderley thinks this new effort, with it’s ability to swarm an area and make substantial progress – quick, is the way to go.
      It’s proven Police strategy that if you fix the “broken windows”, in this case the street thugs that prey on our community, crime rates fall.

      We hope he’s right!