St. James Board of Aldermen voted on May 11 for the city to become an associate member of the Rolla Area Drug Enforcement (RADE) Task Force, which will give the St. James Police Department additional resources for narcotics investigations.

“I think this is a great opportunity for us to show that we’re making an impact on drugs here in our community,” Police Chief Ron Jones said. 

RADE is an interagency narcotics task force that includes officers from the Rolla Police Department, the Phelps County Sheriff’s Department and other state agencies. It specializes in narcotics investigations and serving warrants to seize illegal substances.

Joining the task force provides the city with access to specialized equipment and advanced training. Local officers can also request support during drug investigations when needed.

“When we have narcotic issues in town, we’re able to reach out to them,” Jones said. “They have more resources than we do, equipment, things like that we don’t have.”

The city is joining as an associate member, meaning a full-time officer is not currently assigned to the task force, but this could be down the road.

“I’m hoping in the future, as we grow, the city grows, as our department grows, we can have an officer assigned primarily to that task force,” Jones said.

The agreement is renewed annually and will cost the city $4,000 per year. Jones said his department is already focused on addressing narcotics issues in St. James, but the membership will expand those efforts.

Aldermen also approved a mutual aid agreement with Cuba, which will allow the two cities to assist each other with public works support during times of emergency or staffing shortages.

“Cuba reached out to us here a couple months ago. They had some employees quit and leave, and they were in a bind for some help,” Mayor Rick Krawiecki explained. “So they called us and asked us if we could help support them.”

The agreement outlines that each city agrees to respond to requests for help to the best of its ability. St. James will be providing natural gas, water and wastewater certified operators, as well as journeyman linemen.

The cities will reimburse each other for labor and equipment costs. The agreement remains in effect until next July, and either city can terminate it at any time.