City would gain by federal agency

Deepa Bharath

The budding Homeland Security Department, a massive central agency

to counter terrorism, would likely keep local public safety agencies

better informed than ever, local officials said Wednesday.

Newport-Mesa officials are not yet sure how the new agency will

affect their respective departments, but said they’re sure it’ll help

keep them up to speed on the latest news from around the world, as

well as trouble brewing in local communities.

Costa Mesa Police Chief Dave Snowden said the information from

such an agency is more likely to be firsthand and accurate.

“It’ll be a closer source, more informative,” he said. “And it

will help us train our officers on such issues.”

Snowden said the agency itself is not likely to have an effect on

his department, but added that it could become a future source of

funds for training officers.

The new department, still in its fetal stage, is expected to

overcome government intelligence failures. Federal officials say the

agency’s analysis unit will process intelligence information from the

FBI, CIA and other security agencies, assessing terrorist threats and

how to take action on them.

Costa Mesa and Newport Beach have assigned one officer each to the

Orange County antiterrorism task force.

“When local investigations surface, we have a detective who will

participate in it on an as-needed basis,” Newport Beach Police Lt.

John Klein said. “We constantly address general concerns, for

example, threats relating to apartment buildings or water treatment

plants. We get warnings and other information out to our patrol

officers.”

The U.S. Coast Guard would come directly under the Homeland

Security Department. Coast Guard officials in Los Angeles declined to

comment about their involvement with the proposed agency, stating

that it is too premature for them to speak on the subject.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol stationed in Newport

Beach has remained on a heightened state of alert since the Sept. 11

terrorist attacks, Sgt. Jim Thomas said.

“We’ve tried to be vigilant,” he said. “The new department has not

been fully developed. It’s not clear how it’s going to affect us

ultimately.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at [email protected].