Feds, AZ state police merging for 'force multiplier'


The Arizona State Police are merging with a local service of the federal U.S. Marshals in order to "save money" and track a growing convict population in the state.

Sadly, this will not be anywhere nearly as cool as that Tommy Lee Jones movie from 1998.

From Arizona Central:

"Basically, it's getting everyone in one room in one building working together instead of occasionally discussing cases of mutual interest. It's a great force multiplier," U.S. Marshal David Gonzales said.

The aggregation of acronyms brings together the state Department of Public Safety's Violent Criminal Apprehension Team, called VCAT, and the Arizona Wanted task force of the U.S. Marshals Service. The merger formalizes a relationship among agencies to share information and manpower to track the 60,000 wanted fugitives in the state.

[...]

Tempe Police Chief Tom Ryff said another goal of the new system is to minimize politics and maximize results. "What this means to the cop on the street is they come to work every day with precise information about individuals who have committed crimes in our community," he said.
Do you think this will give Arizona cops an advantage over runaway criminals? Or is this a federal encroachment on state authority? Furthermore, how would you feel if your state announced a merger between it's police and federal marshals?

-- Stephen C. Webster

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Are these not the threat fusion centers? This is a step towards total police state, IMO.