Pubdate: Wed, 30 Oct 2002
Source: Hartford Courant (CT)
Copyright: 2002 The Hartford Courant
Contact:  http://www.ctnow.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/183
Author: Tracy Gordon Fox, Courant Staff Writer

TAKING A LOOK AT HEROIN PROBLEM

Nation's Drug Czar Visits Willimantic With Rowland; Governor Vows More Funds

WILLIMANTIC --Gov. John G. Rowland came here Tuesday with the White House 
director of national drug policy and promised to allocate more money and 
police to fight the community's intractable drug problem.

"We are availing ourselves to the city of Willimantic," Rowland said, 
announcing that he was giving an additional $100,000 to the statewide 
narcotics task force "to make sure they have the resources" to fight heroin 
trafficking and abuse.

"We are going to be committing some resources and manpower," said state 
police Capt. Peter Warren, who supervises the task force. "We will be 
committing some additional people above and beyond, as far as manpower and 
equipment." While he would not elaborate on what steps the task force would 
take, most of the group's officers work in undercover operations targeting 
mid-to upper-level dealers.

The task force consists of state and local police officers. The Willimantic 
Police Department had assigned an officer to the task force in previous 
years, but didn't this year because of budget constraints and staffing 
problems, town officials said.

Windham First Selectman Michael Paulhus said Tuesday that the town has 
begun discussions about reassigning a local police officer to the narcotics 
task force.

"We're going to talk about every possible resource they have. I don't want 
to leave anything out of the equation," Paulhus said.

Police, town officials and treatment providers will hold a community forum 
tonight from 7 to 9 p.m. to discuss the heroin problem in town and to 
discuss forming a task force to come up with solutions.

John P. Walters, the director of national drug control policy, had planned 
to visit Connecticut for a while, but Rowland said Tuesday the visit was 
moved to a treatment center in Willimantic in light of a five-day series 
last week in The Courant.

The series detailed the history, scope and human toll of heroin trafficking 
and addiction in Willimantic. The articles depicted heroin use of unusual 
scope for a community of fewer than 16,000 people and how it has persisted 
largely unabated for more than 30 years.

As part of the visit, the governor, Walters and U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons, 
R-2nd District, toured the Perception House facility in Willimantic, 
meeting some of the addicts in treatment there.

Rowland said the heroin problem in Willimantic was no worse than in any 
other community.

"Willimantic is a great town, a beautiful community, with beautiful 
buildings," Rowland said. "It's just a classic, classic New England mill 
town. This is not a unique problem in Willimantic. The Hartford Courant 
could have gone into any city or town and written that article."

In a debate Monday with Bill Curry, Rowland highlighted Walters' visit 
during a discussion of his positions on drug laws and drug-treatment 
programs. Curry, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate, accused the 
governor of "being more than a day late and more than a dollar short" in 
responding to the state's drug problems.

Rowland said Tuesday that for Curry to suggest he has not been working on 
drug issues before The Courant's series on Willimantic was "disingenuous."

Earlier in the day, Walters said the drug trade in the U.S. is a "herd of 
elephants" that the government needs to do a better job of controlling. He 
said officials are working to improve treatment and enforcement programs, 
and he praised Connecticut, saying the state has "made exemplary efforts" 
to take a team approach toward drug treatment.

Walters made no promise for additional federal funding, but said more 
emphasis should be placed on treatment in Willimantic.

"Heroin addiction is particularly difficult," he said. "We've had years of 
research. We know the best way is to get people in sooner, rather than later."
- ---
MAP posted-by: Beth