CALERA MAY JOIN SHELBY DRUG UNIT

The Calera Police Department likely will become the newest member of the
Shelby County Drug Task Force after the County Commission included the city
in its 2005 grant application this week.

Police Chief Jim Finn said his department now has the personnel needed to
join the county-wide agency.

"We signed an agreement saying that if it is passed and the City Council is
OK with the figures, then we will join," Finn said.

He said he expects to receive a response by December from the Alabama
Department of Economic and Community Affairs, which distributes the federal
grant money.

The task force consists of members from the Sheriff's Department and the
Montevallo, Alabaster, Pelham and Columbiana police departments.

The ADECA grant, matched with county funding, pays the salaries of task
force members. Each participating police department commits officers to
work full time in the task force office, provides a vehicle and pays
overtime and benefits.

Finn said Calera declined an earlier invitation to join the group because
of limited personnel.

"We wanted to do the same thing last year, but we were so short-handed that
we would have had to send a seasoned officer," he said.

Such a move would have left a void in the department's daily operations,
Finn said.

Task Force Commander Ken Burchfield said the task force