We Still Need Nanos -
More Than Ever!
"When I was elected in 2020, the Pima County Sheriff's Department was headed in the wrong direction. We've managed to turn things around, but there's still a long way to go and we need to stay the course."
- Sheriff Nanos
Moving Public Safety in the Right Direction
Since taking office in 2021, Sheriff Nanos has delivered on all of his promises to Pima County constituents. Through hard work, difficult decision-making, and collaboration with other agencies and community organizations, Sheriff Nanos has led the Pima County Sheriff's Department in a forward trajectory for a safer and thriving Pima County.
PIMA COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT
CRIME STATISTICS
The safety and well-being of my constituents are my top priorities – after all, this is my community too. Recently, there has been discussion about crime statistics in Pima County. To ensure transparency, I want to provide the public with access to reliable crime data. Anyone can review this data using the link provided below, which is sourced directly from the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS). DPS pulls its data from the Arizona Criminal Justice Information System (ACJIS), a secure network that connects local, state, and federal criminal justice agencies, and serves as a conduit to the National Criminal Information Center (NCIC).
As an experienced leader in public safety, I regularly analyze crime trends and data – it’s what experienced leaders do. However, it’s essential to rely on data from trustworthy sources. I am proud to report that for nearly 4 years, crime rates in Pima County have been trending downward. At the same time, our recruitment and staffing numbers are steadily increasing, allowing us to better serve and protect the community.
Together, we can continue to make Pima County a safer place for everyone - AND THERE IS STILL MORE WORK TO DO!
~Sheriff Chris Nanos
Note - We have several months remaining in 2024 and the % may change, but check for yourself: https://azcrimestatistics.azdps.gov/.../pima-county-so/2024
Sheriff Nanos appeared on Law Matters 1030 AM on September 21st, hosted by Sherry Harrison, who asked tough, pointed questions that Sheriff Nanos' opponent continues to raise in every forum. As commissioned law enforcement officers, honesty, and integrity must be visible at ALL times, especially in leadership.
The public/electorate has grown weary of misinformation, dishonesty, and a lack of accountability. I encourage everyone to listen to the show and judge for themselves the character and leadership of those seeking to serve our community and hear the truth firsthand. Ms. Harrison gets it - thank you Ms. Harrison!
VOTE SHERIFF CHRIS NANOS for transparency, honesty, and an accountable agency.
What We've Accomplished
Regionalization with TPD and Other Agencies
By collaborating with the Tucson Police Department and other agencies we have increased our public safety effectiveness which better utilizes our shared resources in the region.
Critical Incident Team
The Critical Incident Team (CIT) is just one regionalized effort led by Sheriff Nanos in 2021, together with 11 southern Arizona law enforcement agencies. It is designed to have regional partners investigate officer-involved shootings and improve transparency in incidents involving officers' use of force and in-custody deaths.
Active Shooter Response Team
Immediately after the active school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, Sheriff Nanos, together with 11 southern Arizona law enforcement agencies that make up the Pima County Regional CIT, launched an Active Shooter Response Team (ASRT). Sheriff Nanos brought together for the first time, 14 regional school district superintendents and the region’s law enforcement agencies. This team has taken on issues to protect the most vulnerable amongst us, our children, and address the approach to consistency in training, needed equipment, emergency notifications, zero tolerance enforcement, and law enforcement responses to active shooters.
School personnel now are being trained in the event of an active shooter to develop a consistent plan that mirrors the expectations and response from law enforcement in an incident command. This regionalized approach offers a force multiplier and will undoubtedly increase the number of trained law enforcement personnel available to respond in an expedited manner consistently.
Both the CIT and the ASRT are the first in the state, and the ASRT has been recognized as a model that other law enforcement agencies across the country are looking to replicate.
Established a Community Engagement Team
This team is dedicated to engage with school officials, neighborhood associations, business groups and other community organizations to ensure that safety concerns are addressed in a comprehensive manner.
Increased Staffing to 96% (from 77%)
Increased staffing from 1,282 employees in 2021, to 1,450 employees today. This is nearly a 15% increase through innovative recruitment efforts, when all national and local police are having difficulty in recruitment .
Redrew Districts to Shorten Response Time
After conducting a study of calls for service, incident history, location of our resources, and response times, we redrew district boundaries for the first time in 50 years to better meet the needs of our community.
Click on the video below to see the report on the wide range of positive effects from our focus on bringing back staffing levels to where they should be for our Corrections Officers.
Established a Civilian Advisory Review Board (CARB)
This board consists of civilian volunteers who make up a cross-section of the community and have total access to all areas of the department, and make recommendations of protocol in all aspects of the department.
Added New Vail Substation
Built a new, fully staffed substation in the Vail District, and are ready to break ground on another substation in the San Xavier District to better serve Southwest Tucson. This will provide swifter response times to this region of Pima County.
Doubled School Resource Officers (SRO) in
Every Middle and High School
One of the promises made by this administration in 2021 was to increase our School Resources Unit. Today we have expanded this unit and have an assigned SRO in every public school in the county.
Created Wellness Section for PCSD Employees
Developed a Wellness Unit staffed with mental health professionals and utilizes programs that help reduce the impact of post-traumatic stress on personnel in times of need.
Salary Increases for Personnel and Higher Morale
While we have raised staffing levels, we have also managed to provide salary increases across the board to all employees. This cut the attrition rates for Correction Officers and Deputies by more than half.
Addressing Critical Concerns at the Jail
Addressed serious maintenance and security issues at the Jail by completing thousands of neglected work orders to fix structural and maintenance problems, and installed the use of new technology and protocol to reduce contraband.
Delivered on Promise for Body-Worn Cameras
A top priority in transparency and safety has been the acquisition of body-worn cameras for all our men and women in service, and is just one example of the sort of innovation and technologies we have been focused on.
Replacing Aging Vehicle Fleet
This administration has had to deal with aging fleet of police patrol vehicles, some as old as 30 years, which provides for a safer patrol platform - safer for our deputies and safer for the driving public.
Endorsements
Sheriff Nanos is grateful and honored to have been endorsed by the Pima County Deputy Sheriff's Association, the Sheriff's Labor Association of Pima County,
and the National Organization of Women.
Click the images below to read the full endorsement letters.
Click the image below to read Former Sheriff Dupnik's editorial endorsing Sheriff Nanos in the Tucson Sentinel.
