BAYANET drug enforcement should not be cut in Isabella County
The five-county sting that resulted in $4,241,000 worth of marijuana being seized again proves the importance of the Bay Area Narcotics Enforcement Team.
BAYANET should be preserved as much as is financially feasible for Isabella County. Deterring rampant illegal activity, especially drug-related, is extremely important, and the team has made clear progress in cleaning up drug activity in the county.
Isabella County was considering cutting one officer from its branch of BAYANET, which currently has seven full-time equivalents. Eight of the 25 arrests were in Isabella County and more marijuana plants were seized in Isabella than any of the other four counties involved in the sting, proving the money spent on BAYANET in the county is paying off.
If BAYANET was not active in Isabella County, there would be millions of dollars worth of marijuana being distributed.
Sheriff Leo Mioduszewski said despite Isabella County leading BAYANET in arrests, they may leave the team in 2011 because of budget cuts. This news follows considerations last month that one full-time position may be cut from the Isabella team.
At the end of the day, the county only has so much money to use to enforce the law. But the results BAYANET has produced makes their effectiveness and importance clear.
Isabella County houses both a large college community and a large rural area, which makes it particularly conducive to marijuana growth operations and distribution of marijuana and other drugs.
Some may argue Isabella County’s BAYANET team is larger than it needs to be, but their aggressive approach to drug enforcement has paid off in a big way, rather than being excessive.
Isabella County’s team is considerably larger than that of the other five involved counties, but the team’s success makes it logically difficult to argue against its continuation.
Obviously drug enforcement will continue in Isabella County if its BAYANET team is maintained, reduced or cut, but having a team of officers dedicated to narcotics enforcement has created concrete, tangible results.
If the team is cut for budget concerns, drug enforcement will become a greater challenge for general law enforcement in the county.
