Pubdate: Sat, 19 Jun 2004 Source: Birmingham News, The (AL) Copyright: 2004 The Birmingham News Contact: http://al.com/birminghamnews/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/45 Author: Dawn Kent PASTORS SEEKING CRACKDOWN ON ENSLEY SLUMLORDS Pastors across the Birmingham area plan to call on lawmakers to toughen the penalties for slumlords as part of an effort to clean up the streets in the Ensley community where three Birmingham police officers were fatally shot Thursday. T.L. Lewis, moderator of the Peace Baptist District Association, said slumlords should be treated as druglords, because slums are a haven for drugs. "If you will provide a haven for drug pushers, then you are a druglord," he said. Residents say the scene of the shooting, 1619 18th St., was a drug house, and they had recently alerted police about the problem. The officers were serving a misdemeanor assault warrant when they were killed. Records on file at the Jefferson County Board of Equalization list H.G. Clark as the owner of 1623 18th St., which is in the same building as 1619 18th St. Clark, who lives in Homewood, acknowledged that he pays taxes on the property and has managed it for about three years but says he is not the owner. He declined to name the owner. Clark said he had no knowledge of any drug activity on the property. "Nobody told me that this was going on." Lewis said the Peace Baptist District Association includes more than 50 congregations across the Birmingham area, including First Baptist Church of Ensley and Abyssinia Missionary Baptist Church, which are both close to the shooting scene. Abyssinia's pastor, R.L. Patterson, said parishioners want to reclaim their neighborhood. "We want our community to have a safe place to live." Abraham Woods, pastor of St. Joseph Baptist Church and president of the Birmingham chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, said everyone should be a part of the solution. "We must go into action against slumlords that have residences where druglords will set up," he said. "We're asking all of our citizens to join hands and hearts and minds with the police department." - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin