SMALL TOWN BIG FIGHTER IN DRUG WAR

POCATELLO, Idaho -- Although Soda Springs is a small spot on the map,
its police officers statistically outpace all of Idaho's other
departments for drug arrests. Most important, they are catching the
dealers and drug traffickers who frequent U.S. Highway 30.

The department started the Soda Springs Narcotic Investigation Force,
which was only one man and a dog named Jet in 1996.

But four years later, four officers are part of SNIF, and the program
is working, despite limited funding and manpower.

Officers have an ability to chat with motorists, but with that they
made more than 165 drug busts in 1999.

This year they have already made 130 arrests and charged criminals
with more than 200 drug-related offenses.

For a larger town that is not a huge number, but for Soda Springs,
with a population of about 3,500, it is significant, said police Sgt.
Jon Bunderson.

How do officers from a small town in Caribou County do it? It is not
magical, Bunderson said.

"You can call it progressive law enforcement, but it's not
complicated. There's no big secret. We're doing our job, and we pay
attention."

If motorists drive erratically, cross the center line, speed or commit
other offenses, they are pulled over, Bunderson said.

After that, it is just a matter of asking, "Are you carrying any drugs
today?"

Officers recognize that U.S. 30 is a corridor for traffickers moving
dope from east and west, through the center of town.

Jet, a 5-year-old black Labrador, often is put to use to sniff out the
vehicles. "Sometimes I wonder, 'What did I miss before we started
this?' 'What are we missing now?' and that keeps me going," Bunderson
said. "The more cars we stop, the better chance we have."