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Eighty Charlotte-Mecklenburg police offices will be headed to Washington D.C. on Jan. 18 to help provide security at the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration parade, inaugural balls and other events, the department announced today.
The police department, one of 92 across the country providing security assistance at the inauguration, is sending officers from its Civil Emergency Unit.
Under a Memorandum of Understanding, the CMPD officers will be deputized as federal marshals. The agreement was made between the federal government, the Washington D.C. police department and CMPD, said CMPD Maj. Dale Greene. The officers will return Jan. 21.
The federal government will reimburse CMPD for salaries, overtime and related expenses for the 80 officers during those four days.
CMPD has trained and equipped more than 300 officers to deal with civil emergencies, domestic terrorism and other incidents where there's potential for large-scale disorder. The department, Greene said, is one of the few in the country that provides such extensive training to its officers.
"Participating in the inaugural events is an excellent opportunity for these officers to apply their training and gain more experience in dealing with large crowds and protestors," Greene said in a statement. "It also establishes a valuable partnership should our need for mutual aid arise in the future."
He said CMPD will make adjustments to officer deployment to minimize staffing levels for the four days the officers are out of Charlotte. The adjustment could result in redeployment of specialized resources or restricting time off.
The request from Washington, D.C. police is based on expectations that 2 million to 3 million people will travel to the city for the inauguration. They anticipate the largest public turnout in American history.
