Pubdate: Thu, 23 Jun 2005
Source: Times, The (Shreveport, LA)
Copyright: 2005 The Times
Contact:  http://www.shreveporttimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1019
Author: Vickie Welborn

LOGANSPORT SEES PROGRESS IN ITS WAR ON DRUG DEALERS

About 60 Arrests Recorded In Area Since July

For help Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous meets at 8 p.m.
every Thursday in a separate building at First Baptist Church in
Logansport.

LOGANSPORT -- Sissy Morris was a mother on a mission in July. Tired of
the rampant illegal drug activity in her community and anguished over
her adult son's addiction to the substances, she rallied friends and
neighbors into waging their own war of sorts against drug dealers.

Fast-forwarding almost a year finds Morris just as determined but now
more low-key. She can relax now that she sees visible results from the
heightened emphasis on ridding neighborhood streets of drug
traffickers.

"I'm not seeing them on the sides of the roads anymore. I think this
woke people up. People are not afraid to pick up the phone and report
things," Morris said. "When we started this, some people didn't want
to believe that we had a problem. But we did. Oh, we'll never get rid
of it. But it's a whole lot better than it was."

Sprinkled over the past year have been numerous community meetings on
topics ranging from drug identification to organizing neighborhood
watch areas. No community meetings are scheduled over the summer, but
Morris anticipates starting neighborhood get-togethers in late summer
or early fall.

So far, 40 signs designating neighborhood watch areas dot the
riverfront town.

Booklets guiding neighborhood watch activities are being published. An
Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous group formed with weekly
meetings attended regularly by 15 to 19 people.

"When the community got involved, we were able to do a lot more,"
DeSoto Sheriff Rodney Arbuckle said. "We're only as good as the
community lets us be, and we can only give the community as much law
enforcement as it wants."

Logansport, he said, is an example how a community reacted and made a
difference. The willingness of Morris, husband Rusty and their close
friends to spearhead the effort paved the road for law enforcement to
be more effective.

Phoned-in tips coupled with undercover investigations and routine
traffic work contributed to the 60 drug-related arrests recorded in
the Logansport area since July. Even more arrests such as weapons
charges and theft can be traced to investigations stemming from those
drug arrests.

Playing a big role in the investigations is the Tri-Parish Drug Task
Force. The narcotics agents from DeSoto, Sabine and Red River parishes
have made 215 drug arrests in the past year and routinely have
concentrated their efforts on DeSoto's west side. Investigations are
ongoing, Arbuckle said.

"I had one man tell me that you can still buy drugs, but it's not as
near as bad as it once was," he added.

Another plus is the assistance now coming from neighboring Texas.
Logansport's position at the state border makes it the first stop for
drugs flowing over the Sabine River bridge. And that made it important
for Arbuckle to build up allies in Center, Texas, and elsewhere in
Shelby County, Texas.

Shelby County Sheriff Newton Johnson already has worked close with the
DeSoto sheriff's office. And Center Police Chief Walter Shofner, who
took office June 1, is on board.

Task force agents assisted Johnson's and Shofner's departments, along
with other Texas constables, troopers and the district attorney's
office in searching two Center residences Friday night where two
adults and five juveniles were arrested after cocaine and PCP were
seized. The investigation started four months ago.

"As long as we can work together, we're going to keep on doing it,"
Shofner said. "The city is willing to support us. And we want to try
to be more aggressive than we have in the past. We'll do what we can."

"I think they're all doing a great job," Morris said of the combined
law enforcement effort.

And on a personal note, her son is improving. Michael Morris has found
help for his addiction and a job at a halfway house in Texas -- only
because Louisiana's facilities are woefully limited.

Funding for rural mental health clinics needs to be increased, halfway
houses must be expanded and judges should be tougher on repeat
offenders, Sissy Morris said. "But that's a whole other battle," she
said with a laugh.
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