SHERIFF PUSHES MACON CITY COUNCIL FOR JOINT DRUG TASK FORCE

At Monday's Macon City Council Public Safety Committee meeting, Bibb
County Sheriff Jerry Modena advocated for a drug task force like the
one the city and county shared until 1995.

Modena said the task force could cost up to $500,000, but details --
such as the number of officers or its location -- haven't been worked
out between police and his office.

Councilmen James Timley and Larry Schlesinger, who co-sponsored a
resolution in support of a joint drug task force, said they hoped
their resolution would expedite the process, but Modena noted that the
two agencies rarely communicate. "We are almost completely independent
of each other," he said. "Not even (Macon Police) Chief Burns and I
talk often." Deputy Police Chief Mike Carswell relayed concerns from
within the police department that the task force could harm the
department's accreditation because the sheriff's office isn't accredited.

Council members urged the two agencies not to get bogged down in a
"turf war."

The committee passed a resolution to authorize Macon Mayor Robert
Reichert to negotiate for the task force.

The measure will go before full council for a vote next week.