Chattanooga Police Officer Aaron Williams, left, brings in robbery suspect Jeremiah Miller at the Amnicola headquarters. Officer Williams captured the suspect in the Woodlawn development during the second night of a citywide crime saturation effort under the direction of Police Chief Bobby Dodd.BY THE NUMBERSIn recent saturation roundup by Chattanooga police:• 10 gang members arrested• 21 felony arrests• 49 misdemeanor arrests• 34 field interviews with gang members• 43 grams of crack cocaine seized• 8 people with federal indictments apprehended• 113 moving citations• 116 traffic stops• 1,012.6 grams of marijuana seized• $4,854 seized in money and property• $21,658 in drugs seized• Participating agencies included Chattanooga Police Department, Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, FBI, ICE, ATF, U.S. Marshals Service, Chattanooga Housing Authority Police and Hamilton County 911Source: Chattanooga Police Department
“Hey, you guys didn’t get the hint the first time?”
Investigator John Patterson, his arm propped on the window of his patrol car, polarized glasses shielding his eyes, is speaking to men huddled along the sidewalk near Sandy’s Mini Mart on Glass Street.
It’s his second time rounding the corner near Latta Street and, once he speaks, the men begin to disperse in hurried steps. Some men who linger on the corner have drug convictions and are suspected of dealing, Patterson said.
He is one of 10 officers on the Chattanooga Police Department’s Crime Suppression Unit, which specializes in proactively tackling crime trends and, in recent years, has grown to track gang intelligence.