Pictured: Acting Globe Police Chief Bob Folker addresses the community during a public law enforcement forum.

In its ongoing efforts to find solutions to the problems of public intoxication and panhandling in downtown Globe, the Globe Police Department invited to public to what it hopes will be the first in a series of community meetings to address crime in the area.

Several concerned citizens were in attendance at the April 18 meeting, as well as representatives from local nonprofits and faith-based organizations attempting to marshal local resources to address the problem at its core, mainly a lack of facilities to deal with homelessness, substance abuse and mental health issues.

The meeting was led by representatives of the Globe Police Department, including acting Chief Bob Folker, Lieutenant Justin Keeling and Support Services Manager Melissa Perez.

“We’re not only dealing with drunkenness and drugs, we’re dealing with mental health issues,” Globe Mayor Al Gameros said. “We’re not going to get any help from the state or the feds, so we have to come up with solutions ourselves.”

Folker reprised a presentation given to Globe city council in March, outlining the challenges to local law enforcement built into the system, due to Arizona statutes that do not allow local ordinances to address public drunkenness or other behaviors that could be detrimental to public order.

Arizona Revised Statutes Title 36, Public Health and Safety § 36-2031 specifically prohibits any county, municipality or other political subdivision from enacting rules against public intoxication. Panhandling is seen as free speech and does not reach enforcement level until it becomes threatening.

But there has been a concerted effort from local business and law enforcement in an attempt to deal with the problems that often affect the operation — and thus the bottom lines — of many local businesses along the Highway 60 corridor.

Enforcement problems include but are not limited to a dearth of social services in the area, insufficient staffing levels at the GPD and a lack of facilities to deal with individuals that are drunk or on drugs at the county detention center.

The detention center can decline to accept arrestees that are intoxicated, due to liability issues, and if an officer engages with an intoxicated person, that officer has to remain until the person receives proper help or care.

With critical staffing shortages, the GPD is loath to commit precious manpower to long nights waiting in the ER.

Additionally, business owners often do not have the time, or the inclination, to follow through with charges against offending individuals, so there is a perception of no consequences for disruptive or illegal public behavior.

Among those in attendance were local realtor Debbie Cox, whose Highway 60 business is next to a wash frequented by drug users and homeless people who have intimidated patrons at her business and urinated or defecated around the building.

Cox said she has had more contact with the police in the past month than in the previous nine years, and efforts have led to increased efforts by city officials and the GPD.

“This goes above panhandling and is borderline threatening,” she said, adding that she sometimes has to escort patrons to their vehicles because of the presence of potential threats.

Others complained about “professional panhandlers” and others told of buying food for them rather than giving money that might be used for drugs and alcohol.

So it is up to the community to figure out how to make the best of a murky situation with whatever resources might be available.

“One of our officers is working with a local church to get a van to give rides,” Folker said. “But this is not just a City of Globe problem: it’s a global problem.”

He added that the police department can only do so much, despite his officers issuing “a lot of citations,” but holds out hope that business owners — particularly those with corporate offices in other states — are “getting it” and following through with complaints.

Also, a number of local organizations are taking initiative, such as the Homeless Coalition of Cobre Valley and Miami Presbyterian Church, which are both acting as information clearinghouses while they lend a helping hand to people who might need help.

But the general tone of the meeting is that existing resources are woefully in inadequate.

The forum followed up on an earlier presentation to Globe City Council and a March 29 “saturation” enforcement effort with the Department of Public Safety Gang & Immigration Team Enforcement Mission (GIITEM) and Gila County Sheriff’s Office.

Folker recently reported the saturation patrol was “a big success, because it netted several arrests.” There were 15 arrests, 12 felony arrests, eight drug arrests, three gang members were arrested, five gang members were identified, and two weapons were seized from prohibited possessors.

At the April 24 city council meeting, Folker further reported that GPD has identified 200 gang members — many under the age of 18 — from three local gangs and that there were 47 gang and drug-related arrests in a 4-week period.