Pubdate: Mon, 22 May 2006 Source: Pensacola News Journal (FL) Copyright: 2006 The Pensacola News Journal Contact: http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1675 TASK FORCE ARRESTS REFLECT UNRELENTING WAR ON DRUGS Two major drug busts within the past two months in the area reflect two certainties: cocaine trafficking and consumption still abound, and law enforcement officers working hard to rein in on the activity continue to need the public's support. Both police operations -- one that went down in early April in Pensacola, and the other that took place last week in Milton -- involved task forces composed of multiple local, county and state law enforcement agencies. And each resulted in the impoundment at least $100,000 in drugs, guns and cash. The two law enforcement actions, coupled with local and state drug-education programs aimed at school-age youngsters, provide exactly the kind of two-pronged approach the Pensacola Bay Area needs to show that officials and the law-abiding public mean business when it comes to no tolerance for drug abusers. Unfortunately, the downside of enforcing drug laws is the immense cost. To be successful, anti-drug task force operations consume many man hours and much expense -- diverting tax dollars away from other needs in the community, such as health care for the indigent, housing assistance, job-training programs and rehabilitation efforts for those who get hooked on illegal drugs in the first place. Moreover, the investigation and resulting arrests constitute only part of the expense of carrying out this war. The costs of adjudication, sentencing and imprisonment follow. The upside of policing drug activities is that the arrests of the suspects involved often cut down on other criminal activities such as assault, burglary, transportation of stolen property, gang activity, even rape and -- as suspected in the Santa Rosa bust -- drive-by shootings. The continuing war against drug abuse is formidable. Studies by the National Institute on Drug Abuse indicate that in 2004, the most recent year for which statistics have been compiled, more than 34 million Americans age 12 or older had used cocaine alone. Results of a 2005 study by the institute showed that cocaine use among youngsters appears to have leveled off. But still, an estimated 8 percent of all U.S. high school seniors had experienced cocaine, while 4 percent had used crack cocaine (named for the sound its crystals make when heated). Progress in the war could come faster if more people stepped forward to steer police toward criminal drug activity. However, most people don't want to "get involved" because snitches could face repercussions from the drug abusers and the abusers' friends -- or because the abusers are family members, and family "loyalty" trumps everything else. Those contribute to the reasons it costs so much to pursue and prosecute those in the drug trade. The men and women who put on badges and bring drug suspects to justice have earned public commendation. And today's reality is: The battle against illicit drugs likely will never end, as long as there is a criminal element among us. But the vast population of law-abiding citizens is grateful to those who take an oath and risk life and limb to keep society honest. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman