Officers on standby: About 22 local officers to be in Newnan Saturday
Published 9:04 pm Thursday, April 19, 2018
On Saturday, multiple law enforcement agencies from Troup County will be in Newnan assisting as backup safety for the planned neo-Nazi demonstration. About 22 officers from the LaGrange Police Department, Troup County Sheriff’s Office and Hogansville Police Department will be helping with safety.
According to a City of Newnan press release, the demonstration is from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Greenville Street Park. About 50 to 100 people are expected to attend.
The City of Newnan requested extra officers from surrounding law enforcement agencies to be present at the demonstration.
Eleven LPD officers will be at the event Saturday, according to LPD Lt. Dale Strickland.
“We’re hoping everything is nice and calm like it should be and we’re not used, but we’re just going in as a standby for potential problems,” Strickland said.
The TCSO will provide eight deputies, and the HPD will have three officers represented.
“They just sent a formal request for some extra hands to assist in the event, and we gladly are helping them,” TCSO Sgt. Stewart Smith said.
A phone call to the West Point Police Department was not returned Thursday.
Newnan Assistant City Manager Hasco W. Craver IV said the city appreciates its partnerships with neighboring local law enforcement.
“Every call that we’ve made in the region has been received and responded to in a great way,” Craver said. “It makes us very happy and very proud of the region and proud of our public safety personnel, not just here in the City of Newnan and Coweta County, but around the region and around the state.”
About 400 public safety personnel from local, state and federal agencies will be at the demonstration, according to another City of Newnan press release.