"Officials from Emmett Charter Township, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi and FireKeepers Casino are confident that all public safety agreements needed to ensure that law enforcement and other public safety services are available to FireKeepers Casino are in place.

Since October 2008, the tribe and township have had agreements in place to ensure the readiness of law enforcement coverage and services needed for the opening of FireKeepers Casino. Those agreements include a three-year law enforcement services agreement under which the township has agreed to provide law enforcement, fire protection and first responder services in conjunction with the tribal police department. The tribe is providing $1.1 million to offset the cost of hiring additional officers to meet the coverage requirements.

The existing agreements include a deputization agreement between the township and the tribe, as well as a deputization agreement between the township, the tribe and the U.S. Department of the Interior, that authorizes township public safety officers to enforce tribal and federal criminal laws. Under the current agreements, township officers will respond to requests for law enforcement from the casino and provide a law enforcement presence at the casino until the tribe fully staffs its police department.

The deputization agreement reviewed and discussed at Thursday's Emmett Township meeting does not impact preparations for the casino's opening. It is simply the next logical step in the series of agreements between the tribe and the township."

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Emmett Charter Township, Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi and FireKeepers Casino: Clarifying public safety/casino pacts (The Battle Creek Enquirer 7/12)