Pubdate: Fri, 16 Jan 2004 Source: Lexington Herald-Leader (KY) Copyright: 2004 Lexington Herald-Leader Contact: http://www.kentucky.com/mld/heraldleader/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/240 Author: Jack B. Gross Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n041/a08.html STUMBO SHOULD FIGHT DRUGS WITHOUT ADDING NEW UNIT I had to smile upon reading state Attorney General Greg Stumbo's Jan. 5 commentary. He spent almost 20 years in the state House of Representatives, most of that time in a leadership position that gave him an opportunity to influence where tax dollars were allocated and what new laws and regulations were considered or adopted. Stumbo has declared war on the drug epidemic in Kentucky with a plan to create a new investigative unit called the Kentucky Bureau of Investigation. We already have investigators in every county in Kentucky. They are called sheriffs, city and state police and county and state prosecutors. If Stumbo wants his office to have a "renewed emphasis" on fighting drug crimes, he should just do his job to the best of his ability. If the state is not funding its agencies sufficiently to carry out their duties, then the attorney general should investigate and recommend a solution. If new regulations, laws or tools, such as the KASPER drug-tracking program, have deficiencies that limit their ability to accomplish their intended purpose, the attorney general should intervene. If police or prosecutors are not doing their jobs, the attorney general should intervene. Stumbo should just do his job. Jack B. Gross Harrodsburg - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin