Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jul 2000 Source: Idaho State Journal (ID) Copyright: 2000 Idaho State Journal Contact: PO Box 431, Pocatello ID 83204 Fax: 208-233-8007 Website: http://www.journalnet.com/ GOOD NEIGHBORS HELP KEEP DRUG DEALERS AT BAY It's encouraging to read stories such as the one last week about a group of Pocatellans banding together and ejecting a methamphetamine operation from their neighborhood. Fortunately, stories like that are becoming more common. Area residents are growing less and less tolerant of drugs and the people who make and sell them. Unfortunately, that sort of citizen action is still the exception. Too often, people are willing to turn away while a house down their street operates as a lair for dealers, users and manufacturers. What Pocatello needs is more people intolerant of the impacts drugs are having on our community. We need more people willing to stand up to defend their neighborhoods from drug infiltration. We certainly don't condone private citizens jeopardizing their own safety, nor do we promote the invasion of another's privacy, but when a clear and obvious threat to a neighborhood exists, something should be done. One Harrison Avenue neighbor simply recorded the different license plates on cars visiting a nearby home. Armed with that information, police were able to formally investigate a complaint. The result was ideal - a meth dealer was eliminated from the neighborhood and the once-common criminal element has forsaken that area. Area police are there to help, with information needed on Neighborhood Watch programs and advice on the proper steps residents can take to successfully eliminate shady elements from their neighborhoods. It seems that just about every neighborhood in town is at least lightly polluted by drugs and their trickle-down impacts. Since January, police have cleared out dozens of potentially lethal meth labs operated in basements, kitchens and bathtubs, next door to families with children, near schools and in the midst of seemingly quiet, well-ordered parts of town. While it might seem a bit "Big Brother-ish" to encourage neighbors to spy on those living near them, keeping a watchful eye on surrounding houses can reveal a lot about a neighborhood and the people who live in it. Pocatello needs its caring residents to take an active role in policing their own neighborhoods. Give the police a call for information. Equipped with some advice and a little cooperation from neighbors, a well-meaning resident can do some pretty great things. - --- MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager