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Sheriff Coats On State Anti-Crime Panel

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SUNCOAST NEWS STAFF

Published: September 12, 2007

LARGO, Fla. - LARGO, Fla. - Pinellas County Sheriff Jim Coats has been named to a statewide committee targeting illicit drug sales and serious violent crime.

Monday evening, Gov. Charlie Crist appointed Coats to the Violent Crime and Drug Control Council, part of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Pinellas Sheriff's Office announced late Tuesday.

Crist also named Gainesville Police Chief Norman Botsford and Volusia County Sheriff Ben F. Johnson to the council.

Coats' term on the panel will run through June 30, 2009.

The Legislature created the council through the Florida Violent Crime Act of 1993. The act was expanded by lawmakers in 2001 to include drug crimes and multijurisdictional investigations.

The council is made up of 14 law enforcement professionals who meet quarterly to review major cases and crime trends with the purpose of making funding decisions assisting multijurisdictional drug cases, major violent crime investigations and by providing the technical and forensic expertise to complete these investigations.

In a prepared statement, Coats said he is looking forward to applying his 36 years of experience with the sheriff's office to the work on the council "in the continuing fight against illegal drugs and the unlawful sale and distribution of prescription drugs."

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