San Diego County CA– A multi-agency enforcement and probation compliance sweep occurred in the City of Lemon Grove centered around the trolley platform at 3443 Main St. Deputies, Probation and Parole Agents and Code Compliance Officers from MTS conducted 3330 contacts to determine trolley fare compliance.
From that, approximately 100 probationary searches and searches incident to arrest occurred. This operation dubbed ‘Operation Lemon Drop’ was conducted in support of the Sheriff’s Operation Safe Communities. The goal was to identify and contact prolific offenders and their associates. Deputies and investigators looked at who was arrested and when possible, they looked to see if the offenders are linked to known existing crime cases. This information and enforcement aided in determining when and where to devote resources to address safety issues in our neighborhoods. Many of the arrestees fell into a category of realigned offenders.
Realignment went into effect in 2011, in response to a federal court order for California to reduce overcrowding in its prisons. It shifts responsibility for non-violent criminals from the state to local level by sending some offenders to county jails instead of prisons. The Probation Department and State Parole are active partners with the Sheriff’s Department in the monitoring of the offenders in our communities.
The following is a recap of the operation:
Total Arrests: 53
Felony: 22
Misdemeanor: 31
Field Interviews: 73
Trolley Citations: 119
Probation Violations: 9
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department worked with the following agencies in conducting the operation: MTS Trolley Enforcement, San Diego County Probation Department, and State Parole.
The Sheriff’s Department’s efforts in making our communities safe are best realized with community involvement. Anyone with information on local crime should call the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (888) 580‐8477. Anonymous email and text messages can be sent in via www.sdcrimestoppers.org.