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Huntsville council renews DEA regional task force MOU and approves outside police recruitment contract
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Summary
Council renewed a cooperative agreement with the Department of Justice/DEA for regional drug-task-force participation and approved a recruitment contract to help fill about 75 police vacancies. Council members questioned ICE involvement and sought measurable recruitment goals.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The Huntsville City Council on April 9 approved renewal of the city's memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Administration to continue local participation in a regional drug task force, and separately approved a contract with Crimson Recruiting Services LLC to assist police recruiting.
John Hamilton, city administrator, explained the MOU renews the city's existing participation in a multi-agency task force focused on drug trafficking. Hamilton told council the agreement is regional — involving local, state and federal partners — and does not facilitate immigration enforcement by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"It does not," Hamilton said when asked directly whether the agreement had any connection to ICE operations. "This is a regional task force. ... They're gonna go to wherever the crime is."
Councilors probed the scope of the task force and its deployment across the city. Hamilton said participating officers are assigned regionally and that the task force is intended to address drug networks and associated violent crime.
Separately, the council approved a contract with Crimson Recruiting Services to augment the city's recruitment effort for the police department. Hamilton said the department faces roughly 75 vacancies compared with positions authorized by council; the city's police academy can process mid-30s per class, and the city hopes the marketing and outreach expertise of an outside firm will increase candidate volume and quality.
Council members asked whether the recruiting effort will be national or regional, how success will be measured, and whether extensions in the contract (two optional one-year terms) would be subject to council approval. Hamilton said the firm has shown success in a similar partnership in Mobile and that the city will assess return on investment before exercising extensions.
The council approved both the DEA MOU renewal and the recruiting contract by voice vote. Hamilton said further staffing, compensation and academy capacity work will return to council as needed.
