The Associated Press
Alexandria, Tenn.- In the small Middle Tennessee town of Alexandria, Chief Mark Collins is building a small police force. When he was hired recently, Collins was the only officer in town.
Collins says his department isn’t staffed around the clock yet, but soon will be. He’s hired one full-time officer and plans to hire another. He says the city will also add a part-time officer. About 860 people live in Alexandria, which is in Dekalb County, about 40 miles east of Nashville.
Collins was hired after the town’s former three-person police force quit. It was a protest over a now-defunct plan to save money by having only enough police to patrol after dark.
The Regions Bank office in town hired a private security company.
City Councilman Eddie Tubbs says it may be hard to find the money to pay for it, but the townspeople want police protection day and night.