LTC 254-2021 Summer Police Enhancement - Miami Dade Schools Police Department MIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
NO. LTC# 254-2021 LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO: Honorable Mayor Dan Gelber a mbers of the City Commission
FROM: Alina T. Hudak, City Manage
DATE: June 21, 2021
SUBJECT: Summer Police Enhancement— Miami Dade Schools Police Department
The purpose of this Letter to Commission is to provide an update on the additional
measures being taken by the Miami Beach Police Department (MBPD) in the Art Deco
Cultural District (ADCD) to enhance visibility and deter criminal activity. The MBPD has
partnered with various law enforcement agencies during the first half of 2021 to address
this effort and will continue to do so throughout the summer.
At various times during the year, Miami Beach experiences an increase in visitors that
has exceeded what would be considered normal. This influx at times has challenged the
department's ability to respond to and/or deter criminal activity. MBPD consistently
evaluates these time periods, which often coincide with holidays and events. During the
first six months of 2021, we partnered with Miami-Dade Police, Miami-Dade Schools
Police (MDSPD) and other municipalities to augment police capabilities. This has
resulted in a substantial law enforcement presence in the ADCD area.
With the increased presence of tourists in the ADCD, we have also noticed an increase
in calls for service along the Collins Avenue corridor (5 to 15 streets). From January 1 to
date, there have been 872 case reports generated associated with criminal activity
and/or law enforcement efforts, including: 124 narcotics-related arrests, 38 arrests
associated with quality of life ordinance violations, and 25 weapon offenses. The
underlying issues show no signs of slowing down but have been minimalized by the
consistent presence of law enforcement. As MBPD is anticipating a busier-than-usual
tourist season this summer, it is our recommendation that this presence be maintained
to suppress criminal activity.
MBPD is moving forward with a plan to provide an additional uniform presence in the
Collins Avenue corridor of the ADCD. The department will partner with MDSPD to
provide and maintain increased visibility. This strategic partnership has, in the past,
proven to be fruitful. It allows the MBPD to reassign police officers to other parts of the
ADCD. The plan is to have MDSPD work every Friday and Saturday evening beginning
on Friday, June 25 through August 21, 2021 from 7 p.m. until 3 a.m.
The inclusion of the MDSPD into the crime prevention effort will be accomplished in an
off-duty capacity. The estimated costs associated will involve the remuneration of 25
officers per day, two days a week as aforementioned, for eight-hour shifts. The total
projected fiscal impact over the eight-week period is $180,000.
On June 3, 2021, Chief Clements along with police chiefs from across Miami-Dade
County and personnel from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
(ATF), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), as well as State Attorney Katherine
Fernandez Rundle and Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, gathered to announce
the creation of Operation Summer Heat. The purpose of this law enforcement operation
is to increase manpower and intelligence gathering/sharing with a specific focus in
curbing increased gun violence around the County where more than 30 people have
been shot and several killed over the last few weeks.
MBPD serves as a key stakeholder in this operation. We recognize that many individuals
travel to Miami Beach and specifically to the ADCD to partake in what is perceived to be
a "party atmosphere." Apprehensions and arrests made over the past six months
indicate that most of these individuals reside outside of Miami Beach, and specifically in
other parts of the County and other neighboring jurisdictions. Since November 30, 2020
when the department organized a proactive street crimes unit (now named Strategic
Enforcement Team —SET), MBPD as a whole has been very proactive in tackling quality
of life crimes, narcotics violations, while also focusing on the removal and seizure of
illegal firearms from our streets. Since this date, MBPD has made 3,347 arrests in the
ADCD while seizing 358 firearms of all sorts.
Beginning on June 7 of this month and over the next 12 weeks ending on August 29, the
department's SET will focus on arresting violent offenders, deterring violent criminal
behavior and continuing the mission of removing firearms from the streets of Miami
Beach as part of Operation Summer Heat. The intelligence gathered from arrests, field
interviews, and firearm seizures will be tracked and shared with our federal partners and
local Miami-Dade Schools Police to help in curbing the violent crime that is affecting the
ADCD.
At the conclusion of this summer deployment, MBPD will assess its effectiveness
through strategic crime analysis information. We will compare this data against historical
data from 2019 and from the eight-week deployment in 2021.
ATH/RMC/PA