N. HARTFORD POLICE TARGETING DRUGS

NEW HARTFORD - Police Chief Raymond Philo makes no secret that New
Hartford has a significant drug problem.

The problem became so bad in the late 1990s the department realized
it needed help, Philo said.

Enter the Oneida County Drug Enforcement Task Force, which New
Hartford joined in 1998.

"Clearly, we do have a drug problem," Philo openly admits. "But
sometimes it's just under the surface, but rest assured it's there.
... It's a problem that isn't going away."

Philo said drugs seized in New Hartford range from marijuana to
hard-core drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy.

He attributed the drug traffic to commercial activity, the number of
roadways and resident use.

"We are not immune to this problem," Philo said.

Impact of Drugs

A school district official and business owner in New Hartford said he
feels the impact of the drug problem.

Dean Kelly, co-owner for Jay-K Lumber, said it's evident when
shoppers steal to support drug habits.

"When we catch them stealing, sometimes they have drug paraphernalia
on them and their eyes are glossy from drug use," said Kelly. "We
estimate that between 80 and 90 percent of our shoplifters steal to
support a drug habit."

Kelly said government officials need to realize the problem leads to
other crimes.

"Drugs play a far bigger role in this community than being just on
the streets in downtown Utica," he said. "The loss for retailers is
tremendous when people come in here and steal for drugs."

Vincent Condro, New Hartford High School principal, said the district
is taking preventive measures to address the issue. One example is
partnerships with the New Hartford Police Department and Insight
House, a drug treatment center in Utica, to train teachers to
recognize the warning signs of student drug use, Condro said.

"We recognize there is a problem and we are very diligent in trying
to keep it out," Condro said. "We try to enforce drug-free school
zones. We brought in a drug-sniffing dog earlier in the year."

Condro said this school year one student was arrested for possession
of marijuana and another was suspended for being under the influence
of drugs.

"It's a country-wide problem - and certainly New Hartford isn't
exempt from it," Condro added.

Task Force A Boost

Joining the drug task force enabled New Hartford to have access to
resources - such as hi-tech equipment - it otherwise wouldn't have
had, Philo said.

"It's a regional problem and it needs a regional approach. It's
important to do it as a region rather than department by department,"
he said. Philo said he estimates 75 percent of the larceny arrests
his officers make are drug related.

"Drug addicts shoplift and do whatever it takes to get money for
their high," Philo said. "A lot of other crimes are committed in New
Hartford because of this."

Philo said his officers made 28 drug arrests so far this year and 85
during 2000. Those numbers don't tell the whole story, he quickly
points out, because all felony-related drug arrests in New Hartford
are turned over to the task force. Philo said his department refers
about 200 drug cases per year to them.

The task force consists of the Rome, Utica, Whitesboro and New
Hartford police departments and Oneida County Sheriff's Department.
Ron Fontaine, a lieutenant of the Oneida County Drug Enforcement Task
Force, said drug arrests are on the rise in Oneida County. In 1998
there were 141 arrests made by the task force compared to 191 arrests
in 2000.

He attributes the rise to task force officers - about 13 of them -
becoming more comfortable with their jobs.

"I think we have done a good job over the past couple of years of
working with federal agencies and keeping drugs off the street,"
Fontaine said. "The longer we stay in existence the more networking
we do with those agencies."

Fontaine said the task force focuses on felony drug arrests.

"The people we target are the major drug dealers," Fontaine said.
"These cases are not something we do overnight. It's kind of
disheartening that we can't help an little old lady that has crack
house next to her right away. We don't turn our backs on them, but I
am sure we don't service them as fast as they would like."

The last major task force drug raid was last summer. Police seized
more than two pounds of cocaine, four ounces of heroin, about
$100,000 in cash, six handguns and two shotguns, leading to 13
arrests. The drugs had a street value of $400,000, police said.

Philo said a lot of residents probably aren't aware of New Hartford's
drug problem.

"Suburbia isn't exempt from drug problems and we are seeing that
here," Philo said. "The drug problem also transcends socioeconomic
boundaries."