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MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Tennessee Highway Patrol is looking for a few good men and women who are up for the job of making Memphis safer.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol open house will be underway Wednesday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at their offices at 6348 Summer Avenue with the hopes to attract new recruits willing to help make the streets of Memphis safer.

“We are recruiting, and we are eager for you to come down and see the different divisions and which one best suits you,” said Sgt. Rico Mazique with the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

After Memphis saw a violent uptick in crime earlier this month, Governor Bill Lee came to the Bluff City pledging to hire more members of the Highway Patrol.

“It’s why we have committed to hiring 100 additional highway patrol troopers. Twenty of those will be committed to Memphis. It’s why we’ve funded 100 million dollars in our violent crime intervention grant fund,” Lee said.

Right now, the Highway Patrol has about a dozen troopers stationed in Memphis and Shelby County.

The Memphis City Council last Tuesday requested that the highway patrol provide at least 50 officers in Memphis for at least six weeks to help combat crime.

“Basically, we want to put more law enforcement personnel here in Shelby County, more qualified men and women to patrol the highways and keep them safe in the Shelby County area,” Mazique said.

The THP says the recruitment effort isn’t related to the governor’s plans, but it can still help make a difference in Memphis.

“We are basically focusing on the recruitment aspect of it. If we can more qualified men and women willing to do the job, it’ll be an additional help,” Marique said.

As for the need for more Memphis police officers, Chief C.J. Davis told the City Council dozens of recruits have recently graduated to become the latest class of officers.

“We are looking forward to having those 72 officers assignment permanently, but we are continually and aggressively looking to start another class before the end of the year,” Chief Davis said.

The Mississippi Highway Patrol will also be recruiting Saturday, September 24th at the ‘Troop E. Substation’ in Batesville.