GADSDEN COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) — Gadsden County is cracking down on crime as we head into the holiday season.
Starting this week through Jan. 3, people will see increased patrols in areas known to be trouble spots in the county.
In October, the county reported more than 30 shooting cases and out of those, at least two people were killed.
Deputies say they are seeing an increase in teenagers and young adults contributing to the violence.
With students out of school, they are prioritizing patrols at parks and other recreational spaces they could hang out.
Sheriffs office spokesperson Anglie Hightower said they are using more deputies from across the entire sheriff's office for this initiative.
"This season we have more bodies. What I mean by more bodies... school is out so our SRD's are out our school patrol deputies are out as well as our court services. Those deputies and bailiffs that are normally inside the court house we're using them on patrol operations and also our criminal and also our criminal investigations division," Hightower said.
The Sheriffs office plans to meet with small business owners to go over best practices when it comes to keeping customers and employees safe.
Businesses can request more law enforcement presence if needed.
