Pubdate: Sun, 07 Jan 2007
Source: Asheville Citizen-Times (NC)
Copyright: 2007 Asheville Citizen-Times
Contact:  http://www.citizen-times.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/863
Author: Adam Behsudi

COUNCILMAN KEEPS AN EYE ON DRUG DEALERS

Mayor: Mumpower's actions are 'overstepping' boundaries

ASHEVILLE -- A city councilman who does his own drug stakeouts has
found himself at odds with more than just dealers.

Armed with pen and paper and still wearing coat and tie, Councilman
Carl Mumpower has taken to parking near drug hot spots at night and
jotting down notes of what he sees through the windshield.

Mumpower says he's gathering proof that police are doing too little
to combat drug crime. In two days last week, Mumpower says he saw 11
drug deals in public housing developments. Dealers approached him
eight times, he said. "We're losing, we're not winning," Mumpower said.

The councilman's tactics have riled some in City Hall, despite
agreement that drug crime is a major issue for Asheville.

Some city officials say the councilman is meddling in police
investigations and overstepping his boundaries as a
policymaker.

Police Chief Bill Hogan denied Mumpower's request to observe drug
enforcement operations. The chief last week asked to meet with the
city attorney for guidance on Mumpower's involvement in police work.
Hogan declined to comment for this article.

A personal crusade Mumpower serves as chairman of the Asheville
Buncombe Drug Commission and is on City Council's public safety
committee. He has made drug crime a personal issue in recent years,
creating a program encouraging drug informants and tacking up posters
himself to promote the incentives. Mumpower said he's trying to "shine
a light" on drug crimes in the city's public housing and troubled
neighborhoods.

Despite Mumpower's criticisms, city police have made changes to combat
drug crime. Asheville police in 2004 pulled out of a drug
investigation partnership with county and state agents so officers
could focus more on the city's drug problems. The Drug Suppression
Unit was formed through an initiative from Hogan. City police made 911
drug arrests in 2005, down slightly from 959 arrests in 2004 but an
increase from the 764 made in 2000.

A report from city police shows officers seized more than $1.6 million
in drugs from 2004 to 2006.

The Metropolitan Enforcement Group that Asheville police is no longer
part of seized $1.7 million of drugs in 2005.

Mumpower said the initiatives are not enough, and that the city has
given in on some fronts.

An example of that, he said, was the city's decision to buy the
100-unit McCormick Heights subsidized housing development and
redevelop it. Instead of dealing with the problems of drugs and
violence that plagued the development, it was easier to board it up,
Mumpower said. "I'm getting no sense of urgency from our police and
city administration that we just lost a public housing development to
drugs," he said. The other six council members approved the purchase
of the development and discussed plans of building even more
affordable housing units in the same spot. It was argued that buying
the development would keep it from going to a high-dollar
development.

Letting them do their jobs But for some city leaders, Mumpower's
crusade is close to stepping out of his legal bounds as a
policymaker.

"I'm 100 percent behind him in reducing crime," Mayor Terry Bellamy
said. "I'm not supportive of him overstepping the boundaries and
breaking the law." Bellamy said Mumpower is close to violating the
city charter, which prevents elected council members from dealing
directly with city business unless it's through the city manager.

"We set policy. We can't go out and do the work. That's what we hire
staff for," Bellamy said. "As policymakers, we need to make sure they
(police) get all the tools they need to be effective." City manager
Gary Jackson said City Council members are welcome to observe the work
of city police and other departments. But, he added, the observations
are welcomed on more of an occasional basis. Hogan declined to comment
but wrote in an e-mail to the city attorney and city manager that he
has "security and confidentiality issues related to direct involvement
with certain police operations." "We operate on a need-to-know basis
for the purpose of security and officer safety," Hogan said in the
e-mail.

The view from the ground Public housing resident Trina Boyd said
police aren't the only ones to blame for drug problems at the city's
developments.

"Why blame it on the police officers?" she said. "We have different
organizations that say they want to target public housing." The
Livingston resident and president of the Housing Authority's Residents
Council said police seem to be doing as much as they can with the
resources they have. "Even in the development, you have different
opinions of how things are," she said. Pisgah View resident Henry
Jones recognizes the drug problem in his neighborhood.

"I do feel that more police presence would be suitable, but these
dealers have their own language," he said.

Jones said police have a challenge and more work is needed to minimize
the problem. But he's hopeful.

"If they don't get 'em in the wash, then they'll get 'em in the
rinse," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Derek