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SLCPD Liberty Patrol Division HRC Squad Conducts Safety Operation at Jefferson Park

SALT LAKE CITY — The Salt Lake City Police Department’s Liberty Patrol Division Homeless Resource Center (HRC) Squad recently conducted a safety and drug interdiction operation in the Ballpark neighborhood.

“Our neighbors deserves safe and accessible parks for everyone,” said Salt Lake City Police Chief Mike Brown. “While accessibility is essential, it doesn’t allow, and we will not tolerate, illegal activity in our parks. We very much appreciate the help and support we have received from the Ballpark neighborhood to address recent crime issues effectively.”

In August 2024, community concern grew about drug dealing at Jefferson Park, particularly during events hosted at the nearby baseball stadium.

Officers assigned to the Liberty Patrol Division have tailored their enforcement approach at Jefferson Park recently after noticing drug traffickers would take advantage of high vehicle and foot traffic to conduct their illegal activity out of view of police officers.

On Friday, August 30, 2024, HRC officers conducted an operation to observe, identify, and arrest people engaged in illegal conduct inside and around Jefferson Park.

The effort resulted in HRC officers developing important information that will benefit them in future operations and with general investigations.

Officers also arrested 63-year-old Gary McCamey during the operation for being a registered sex offender in a protected area. When officers arrested McCamey they found him in possession of open containers of alcohol.

Officers booked McCamey into the Salt Lake County Metro Jail.

Charges are only allegations, and every arrested person is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Salt Lake City Police Department is not the custodian of record for jail booking photos. Utah Code 17-22-30 mostly prohibits the release of jail booking photos. Generally, a jail booking photo can only be released by the custodian of record after a conviction or when law enforcement determines the person is a fugitive or an imminent threat to a person or public safety. In Salt Lake City, the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office is the custodian of record for jail booking photos.

The Salt Lake City Police Department’s Homeless Resource Center Squads are designed to enhance the safety and well-being of both the unsheltered population and the surrounding communities at, and around, the Gail Miller Resource Center and the Geraldine E. King Women’s Resource Center.

The department aims to balance its duties of enforcing the law, prioritizing public safety, and reducing victimization while showing compassion and empathy for the city’s unsheltered community.

Each homeless resource center is staffed with a squad consisting of one SLCPD sergeant and five SLCPD officers. These officers respond to service calls in the areas surrounding the resource centers to assist patrol officers, connect individuals with essential services such as healthcare, mental health support, and substance abuse treatment, and help foster positive relationships between law enforcement and the unsheltered community.

The two squads became fully operational on July 9, 2023, and are funded through a grant from the State of Utah.

Photo: A Salt Lake City Police patrol pickup blocks traffic with its emergency lights on (SLCPD photo – File).

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