The Village of South Jacksonville may be getting their own very special puppy soon.
One of the things South Jacksonville Police Chief Tim Mann has told the Village Board of Trustees is the fact that he wants a K9 Unit for the department.
Chief Mann told the trustees that though this position is not necessarily needed at the moment, it would bring a great benefit to the Village.
During the most recent Committee of the Whole meeting, Mann asked trustees to approve the hire of a part-time officer at the next official Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday, August 2nd at 7 p.m. Mann explains the best path he sees to having a full-time South Jacksonville K9 officer.
“One of my priorities since coming back full-time is to have a K9. We’re not in the position to have a K9 at this time. Not because of the K9 or because of the vehicle. We do not have an officer that is capable of taking on that duty. I’m looking for your permission to hire a part-time officer. It’s the only position we have open.”
Mann has someone in mind for the job who is proving to be very qualified for the task.
“That’s his goal is to have a K9. He’s currently a drug officer in another department. A K9 would be detrimental to the drug operations in and around our area, with Loves and the other truck stops and different breeding grounds for this stuff. If you’ve heard about what we’ve seized recently, that number would triple or quadruple with a K9 unit.”
Mann says a full-time officer position is almost guaranteed to be opening in the near future. Chief Mann explains why, and offers high praise for a current Village police sergeant.
“We have one of our full-time guys that has been with us for a long time that has tested for Jacksonville Police Department and, according to their administration, is 99% sure that he is going to get in.”
In addition, Chief Mann announced that the E-Commerce Exchange area of the department is currently open and under regular surveillance for anyone who wants to transfer items bought and sold over the internet and across other means of sale by technology.