Pubdate: Sat, 12 Jan 2002 Source: Contra Costa Times (CA) Copyright: 2002 Contra Costa Newspapers Inc. Contact: http://www.contracostatimes.com/contact_us/letters.htm Website: http://www.contracostatimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/96 Author: Kristi Belcamino DRUG DOG GETS BOOTED FROM BART Transit Officials Scrap Plans To Use The Canine On Trains After Criticism Of A Three-Day Narcotics Sweep In December BART has scrapped plans to use a drug-sniffing dog on its trains after a three-day narcotics sweep drew criticism from some Bay Area residents. Officials initially touted the December sweep, which resulted in 13 citations and one arrest, as the first of ongoing efforts to gauge the extent of drug trafficking on BART trains. They said it would help determine whether more sweeps were needed and even whether BART should obtain its own narcotics-detecting dog. Now, Thomas E. Margro, BART's general manager, has said there are no plans to use the dog again. The sweep was only a one-time activity, really a demonstration to build relations between BART and U.S. Customs, he said. The effort drew mixed reviews. "Some feel real strongly it is worthwhile, while others see it as going too far," said BART Director Joel Keller. "It's a balancing act. To the best of my understanding it wasn't an ongoing thing." The sweep was a joint operation between BART police and the U.S. Customs Service. The two agencies have been working together, preparing for a closer relationship once a BART extension to the international terminal of the San Francisco airport is completed later this year, said BART spokesman Mike Healy. Mattie, a small black Labrador retriever, was brought on board Bay Area trains in mid-December. Unlike aggressive narcotics dogs who tear open suitcases, Mattie was trained to walk through the trains wagging her tail and sniffing for drugs. When she scented them, she would sit down in front of the person, said BART police Cmdr. Wade Gomes. During a three-day period, officers cited 13 people on possession of narcotics. A Concord man was handcuffed and held on suspicion of possession of marijuana for sale. Police say the 37-year-old had 13 plastic baggies filled with marijuana stuffed in his pockets. The sweep angered many. One Moraga resident called the sweep a gross infringement of constitutional rights against unreasonable search and seizure. While Joseph Tieger, a former civil rights attorney, was "delighted" the program was discontinued, he said the people cited and arrested deserved an apology. He questioned whether the exercise was a "trial balloon" by the federal government to see what people would put up with. "People should look at what this would open the door to if it were allowed to continue," Tieger said. "Which is why we fought the Revolutionary War. As Americans we have the right to walk down the street without having government, especially using dogs or high- technology sensors, be able to sniff our underpants." Others thought the search was a good idea. Although it was a first for BART, many of the nation's largest transit police departments have narcotics detection dogs patrolling trains, including those in Georgia, New York and Pennsylvania. Detective Gary Padgett of the Metro Transit Police in Washington, D.C., said his agency has a dozen dogs, including ones that sniff for drugs and bombs. Protests against the dog in the Bay Area baffled him. "It's not unreasonable search and seizure because anywhere you as a police officer can be legally, so can the dog. The dog is just a tool that the officer uses," he said. In addition, officers with drug-sniffing dogs usually ask for the person's consent to search them after a dog "hits" on the person, he said. If the person refuses, he or she can be detained until a warrant is obtained, he said. Regardless of how people feel about the dog or why the program was scrapped, officials say they will give it serious thought before Mattie boards a train again. "Because of the mixed reviews, I don't think it's anything we're going to jump into with both feet right away," Keller said. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth