Source: Washington Post Section: Metro, page B01 Contact: http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/edit/letters/letterform.htm Pubdate: Tuesday, January 13, 1998 Author: Eric Lipton, Washington Post Staff Writer FAIRFAX BOARD PLANS NEW WAR ON DRUG USE BY COUNTY'S YOUTH POLICE, SCHOOL OFFICIALS ASKED FOR OPTIONS Fairfax County supervisors instructed the police chief, county executive and school superintendent yesterday to immediately prepare a new battle plan to combat the growing problem of drug abuse by county youths. Stationing police officers in middle schools and creating a new detective squad specializing in arresting juvenile drug dealers and users are among the options under consideration, supervisors said. "It is shocking how prevalent drugs are among our youths and how easy it is for them to buy them," said Supervisor Elaine N. McConnell (R-Springfield). "And the public is just not aware how severe this problem is." The board's actions came in response to a Washington Post report last month detailing the dramatic growth in arrests of juveniles on drug charges and the role of county youths as both consumers and dealers of drugs. An estimated 12,000 county youths have received drug treatment in the last four years. In the last year alone, 560 juveniles were arrested in Fairfax and its independent towns for drug crimes, nearly 12 times as many as a decade ago. McConnell initiated yesterday's debate by suggesting that the county immediately allocate $300,000 to hire five detectives to strengthen the narcotics squad. But supervisors instead agreed to give the police chief, in consultation with the county executive and school superintendent, a chance to come up with his own plan. "We have got to try to reach out to these kids before they become entrenched in the drug culture," said Police Chief M. Douglas Scott. "Once they are in it, it is like being in a gang; it is much harder to get them out." So far, Scott said, the police department has had a hard time combating the problem. Placing an undercover officer in a school in 1995 produced limited results, he said, in part because it is difficult to infiltrate the drug network among county teenagers. And using a teenager as an undercover informant is risky, Scott said. Also, he said, the department has a policy of making arrests immediately when officers find juveniles involved with drugs, instead of spending time working up the chain in an attempt to arrest the dealers. "It is a complex problem," Scott said. "If we had the answer, we could bottle it and sell it across the nation." Fairfax already has police officers stationed at each of its 23 high schools and secondary schools, but supervisors and Scott agreed yesterday that the county needs to consider putting officers in its 20 middle schools, to reach students at the age when drug use often begins. Scott also said he wants to find the money needed to maintain a gang task force created in the last year, noting that gangs are often involved in drugs. And he said he will consider proposing a new division of the department's narcotics squad to investigate drug activity by young people, a plan praised by the county board. "We need a specialized team of trained professionals to focus on this challenge," said Supervisor Robert B. Dix Jr. (R-Hunter Mill). "There is clear evidence that the need is significant enough to justify the investment." A $1.9 million federal grant will help finance expansion of the county's anti-drug effort, officials said. The money will be used to help hire 25 police officers, adding to the current force of 1,077 and making it easier to shift experienced patrol officers to specialized squads. Supervisors yesterday also addressed two other threats to young people in the county. Dix announced that two alcohol wholesalers -- Guiffre Distributing Co., of Springfield, and King Wholesale Inc., of Chantilly -- had donated $5,600 to buy 28 pairs of goggles that simulate the effect of being drunk. The goggles, one pair of which will go to each county high school, distort the wearer's vision, making it all but impossible to walk a straight line, as was demonstrated yesterday morning by Chairman Katherine K. Hanley (D), who tried them out. "You can't do this," Hanley said, nearly falling over as she tried to take a step along a line that had been taped to the floor in the board chambers. "It is unbelievable." Also, the board voted to ask the General Assembly to pass legislation allowing Fairfax to ban guns from its teen and recreation centers, as well as the grounds that surround them. A judge last month overturned a county regulation banning weapons in Fairfax government buildings, ruling that Fairfax needed specific legislative authority to adopt such a regulation. Five Democrats on the county board said yesterday that they wanted to ask the legislature for the power to ban weapons in all buildings, but Republicans successfully argued that the request was too broad and would never win support in Richmond. The Republicans -- joined by Democrat Gerald W. Hyland (Mount Vernon) -- also moved to amend the proposal to ensure that residents with permits for concealed weapons would be exempt from a ban. "That is probably the most that is going to get through the General Assembly," said Supervisor Stuart Mendelsohn (R-Dranesville). © Copyright 1998 The Washington Post Company