The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) broke ground on the city’s ninth precinct this week, which will be located in Southeast Nashville.
“We need a police station here and this is going to help a lot,” said MNPD Police Chief John Drake reportedly said.
“South Precinct is 70 square miles,” he said. “Hermitage is 90, so that’s 160 square miles between the two. So when you divide it into thirds, that’s about 53 square miles each…so that’s going to help response times tremendously right there.”
Drake said new recruits are training to join the force, which has been depleted in the past two years as crime has soared.
“We have 75 recruits in the training academy right now with four more classes this year, and then eight next year, so we’re going to be for the first time fully staffed and go above,” said Drake (pictured above). “We’re going to have staffing for this precinct, and it’s going to be the first time ever and it’s going to be amazing.”
The commander of the new precinct, which will be built in a 24,000 square-foot facility that used to be owned by K-Mart, will be Carlos Lara, who will be the first Latino precinct commander in MNPD history, according to the report.
“We need more officers that represent these communities that we serve,” he reportedly said. “I think when you have those officers that represent the communities, you’re going to have better interactions and you’re going to have more trust.”
MNPD has faced intense scrutiny over the past two months in the wake of The Covenant School shooting.
The department is in possession of a manifesto left behind by Audrey Elizabeth Hale, The Covenant School shooter, which it has refused to release. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also has possession of the manifesto.
Such writings are typically released hours or days after mass shootings, but Hale’s has been kept under lock and key for unknown reasons. MNPD said the investigation into the shooting could take up to a year to complete.
MNPD has denied a records request for toxicology reports submitted by The Tennessee Star.
The Star News Network also sued the FBI, claiming that the law enforcement entity is breaking the law by refusing to release the manifesto and seeking a court ruling to that end.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter.
Photo “John Drake” by Metro Nashville Police Department.
