TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Tucson police are using targeted deployments to address criminal hot spots around the city, but staffing shortages can make it difficult for officers to respond to every quality-of-life complaint.
The Tucson Police Department's VIVA program deploys officers to areas where real-time data shows higher levels of crime and other problems.
After previously reporting on the program, I returned to the Tucson Police Department's Westside Service Center to tag along with officers during one of their deployments and see some of the issues and shortages they face.
"We hear the residence's complaints about the quality of life issues and so that's what we're trying to address," said Lt. Alfredo Mesa with TPD West.
One of the areas officers frequently focus on is the Circle K near Fort Lowell Road and First Avenue, which Mesa described as one of the city's hot spots.
Officers there typically encounter shoplifting and drug activity, including fentanyl, which Mesa said TPD is finding more of recently.
"With the minimal staffing we do VIVA deployments."
Mesa said staffing shortages play a role in how the department conducts the deployments. Officers assigned to VIVA operations work overtime, allowing the department to place additional officers in areas identified as hot spots.
"We deploy officers strategically using real-time data in our hot spots."
Some of those areas include Fort Lowell and Miracle Mile.
But limited staffing can create additional challenges when officers make arrests. Several officers may have to leave a deployment area to transport someone to the county jail, leaving fewer officers available to handle other calls and complaints.
Mesa said the department tries to limit the number of officers taken away for a long time from deployments by using community service officers, or CSOs, to handle some responsibilities.
"What we do to try and minimize that is that we bring in a CSO to take the property into evidence."
Those CSO's usually handle the evidence found at the scene of an arrest.
During one deployment I joined, officers made a couple of arrests at the first location they visited. The officers then went to the county jail, leaving an even smaller crew to handle the remaining workload.
"We don't have a ton of staffing so we have to be strategic on how we place our officers."
The VIVA program also has an extension called Operation Relay, which deploys officers to some parks throughout the day.
Officers working those deployments encounter issues including drug use and trespassing.
The targeted deployments are designed to address some of the city's most persistent problem areas, but staffing shortages continue to make it a challenge for TPD to address every quality-of-life complaint across Tucson.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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Marc Monroy joined KGUN 9 as a multimedia journalist after moving from KGUN 9’s sister station, KXXV, in Waco, Texas. He graduated from California State University, Northridge, in 2024 with a degree in journalism. A native of Southern California and a bilingual reporter, Marc is excited to serve Southern Arizona and looks forward to connecting with neighbors in the community. Share your story ideas and important issues with Marc by emailing marc.monroy@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.
