Pubdate: Wed, 21 Jul 2004
Source: Dowagiac Daily News (MI)
Copyright: 2004 Dowagiac Daily News
Contact:  http://www.dowagiacnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1554
Author: John Eby

LAW ENFORCEMENT LEADERS LOBBY FOR MILLAGE

Prosecutor Victor Fitz, Sheriff Joseph Underwood and Dowagiac Police Chief 
Tom Atkinson presented a unified front Tuesday in pressing for passage of a 
half-mill of property tax to combat Cass County's worsening drug problem.

The four-year request approved by the county Board of Commissioners for the 
Aug. 3 primary ballot would generate $615,500 annually to support a team of 
five detectives, an assistant prosecutor and a clerical position, a 
capacity crowd heard July 20 at Community Policing's and Neighborhood 
Watch's forum organized by Ed and Jackie Goodman at Silver Creek Township Hall.

Nobody knows better than Fitz the impact approval could have on eradication 
efforts.

Before becoming Cass prosecutor in 2003, Fitz's 21 years of experience 
includes eight years trying Muskegon County drug cases.

"This is a very important component of law enforcement," Fitz said. 
"Everybody is here because we love the community. It's a safe place to 
live, a safe place to work and it's a great place to raise families. 
Another good thing about Cass County is that we're pro-active. We don't 
just let something overwhelm us. I've seen many communities let that 
happen. They let the problem get out of control. We want to act before the 
problem overwhelms us. Crack cocaine was and still is a terrible drug, but 
I can tell you methamphetamine is two or three times worse.

"We see in Family Court now," Fitz continued, "meth mothers coming in with 
their kids who are being raised in hellish households. It's a terrible 
place for kids to live. We had a case just today where we had to take a 
mother's kids away from her because she made drugs, alcohol and boyfriends 
her priority. I counted today at that jury trial and there were about 20 
people involved that the taxpayers had to pay so we could take care of that 
case and get those kids to a safe haven. It's very costly to the community 
and very dangerous."

The prosecutor said during his eight years exclusively as a narcotics 
prosecutor he witnessed that a tough stance can produce a positive impact.

"In Muskegon, when I first got there, they had a drug problem that was out 
of control," Fitz recalled. "They weren't prosecuting the cases. We got 
tough on it and we stayed tough on it, year after year after year. The 
homicide rate went down from 10 to 20 a year to about three to seven 
homicides per year, and those are human lives. Tough prosecution you pool 
with other things, such as our Family Drug Court, which brings people who 
are sincere about getting off methamphetamine. If you have all the 
components, you can do it."

"From my experience, this team is so crucial," Fitz said. "If you have a 
small team like we do right now, they're doing a great job with what they 
have. But drug dealers aren't stupid. They know what's going on. They read 
the papers. When you get a good bust, and get some of those drugs off the 
street and shut down a house, they have to write police reports and go to 
court and testify. That takes a week or two, and those drug dealers know 
it. They know when they've got a green light where they can operate with 
impunity and they do it.

"On the other hand, if you have a team of five officers," they reinforce 
each other so there aren't gap weeks. "They continue to push and to put 
constant pressure on the drug dealers," he said. "Just like it's worked 
successfully in other communities, it sends the message that we don't 
tolerate it here. If you're going to do it, there will be a real severe 
price. We don't negotiate these cases. You plead guilty as charged and go 
to prison on these cases -- and if you don't want to, you'll go to trial 
and we'll convict you and send you to prison. The message is loud and 
clear: No drugs in our county, particularly methamphetamine."

Not only must local authorities knock out grassroots drug dealers, Fitz 
said, "but you also climb the chain. In Muskegon we got 13 major drug 
kingpins -- the most outside of the Detroit metropolitan area. That also 
helped to bring that crime rate and that homicide rate down. If we have a 
fulltime drug prosecutor to concentrate exclusively on crack cocaine and 
methamphetamine rings, we'll get the bigger players, too. We'll send them 
to prison and send a message to other places outside of Cass County that it 
is not a place to do business. It's our community and we're not going to 
let drug dealers have it."

Half a mill equals 50 cents of tax for every $1,000 of taxable value. If 
the taxable value -- half of its market value -- of your home was $50,000, 
the drug millage would cost $25 a year, or less than seven cents a day.

Revenue generated by the millage would be spent only on drug enforcement, 
prosecution, education and treatment.

These funds would augment the current three-member Cass County Drug 
Enforcement Team (CCDET) created in 1999 and consisting of two county 
detectives and a Dowagiac detective. The team is funded in part by federal 
grant money which is drying up along with state revenue sharing.

CCDET was established to police county marijuana and crack cocaine 
offenses, but narcotics problems intensified with the mid-1990s advent of 
the powerful man-made stimulant, methamphetamine, or meth for short.

Larcenies of common chemicals required to "cook" meth, such as anhydrous 
ammonia, have escalated steadily. Injuries have been sustained by citizens 
exposed to chemicals left over from the manufacture.

Even death can result from overdose, exposure to toxic chemicals or fire 
from clandestine "Beavis and Butthead" labs.

In Cass County in 2003, uniformed officers reported 20 meth incidents, 
including four in Marcellus, two in Edwardsburg and one each in Dowagiac 
and Cassopolis. In addition, the 28 meth incidents involved the drug team. 
The drug team made 116 arrests from Jan. 1, 2003-March 18, 2004.

Woodlands Addictions Center had approximately 260 admissions and spends 
approximately $260,780 a year on counseling.

"You need to know what's going on in your community and you need to know 
what you can do to help," Sheriff Underwood said. "It's our community, and 
it's only going to be as good as we make it. I need your help. The 
community needs your help."
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart