NEW HANOVER SHERIFF'S DEPUTIES BRING IN DOZENS OF SUSPECTED DRUG DEALERS

One woman. In seven months, she cruised neighborhoods, bought crack
cocaine 127 times and caught 117 suspected "low-level" dealers on tape.

It was "Operation Clean-up Lady," a quick fix to complaints of
street-corner drug dealing, said New Hanover County Sheriff Sid
Causey. The operation culminated Wednesday with a roundup of suspected
dealers. By Wednesday afternoon deputies had 54 people in custody.

The arrests will continue in the coming days and weeks, Causey said,
as authorities look for those caught on tape during the undercover
operation.

The roundup sends a message that drug-dealing won't be tolerated,
Causey said, though he acknowledged it's hardly a death blow to the
lucrative drug business in New Hanover County.

Some suspects will stay in jail weeks, maybe months, waiting to post
bond, he said. Those with no record could go home sooner. A few with
criminal records could face tough sentences in federal court, Causey
said.

But most will be prosecuted in the state system, which Causey said
imposes penalties that usually don't convince low-level dealers to
roll over on their suppliers. So enforcement is only one part of the
solution, he said.

"You wonder why you can't educate people to stay off things that kill
them. They're killing each other," Causey said. "They're ruining their
lives. . It's a sad situation."

The operation and arrests

Dozens of deputies gathered at the sheriff's office Wednesday morning
and received packets with pictures and warrants on the 117 suspects.

The roundup culminates an operation where an undercover deputy rode in
a van labeled with the name of a fictitious cleaning company. She
bought drugs in neighborhoods from downtown Wilmington to Wrightsville
Beach, Causey said.

The van used audio and video to record the evidence and backup was
always nearby, Causey said, though not needed.

Police bought $5,500 worth of drugs - mostly crack, but also heroin
and a little marijuana.

Most of the suspects are probably three steps from their suppliers and
Causey said he doubts authorities will be able to go up the chain in
these cases.

Still, he said it's important for residents to know their complaints
about drug-dealing are heard.

"We don't give up," he said. "We're going to do what we
can."

Walt Smith of the New Hanover County Public Defender's office said
each defendant's case will be different so he can't predict what lies
ahead. He cautioned that each of those arrested is entitled to due
process.

As dozens of deputies and some Wilmington police officers headed out
to make arrests, Causey held a news conference and discussed the
challenges of drug enforcement.

Each year, deputies seize hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of
narcotics, Causey said. Some of the money seized goes to community
programs aimed at keeping kids off drugs, he said.

Still, high demand fuels a multi-million-dollar business, Causey said,
where one arrested dealer is quickly replaced on the street by another.

If deputies started another "clean-up" operation today, they would
have evidence on 100 suspects by the end of the summer, Causey said.
Some would be the same as those sought on Wednesday.

New Hanover County Commissioner Bill Kopp attended the pre-roundup
meeting to support the deputies.

"It's just not in New Hanover County, it's every county in North
Carolina and throughout the United States," he said later. "We have an
epidemic of illegal drug use and overindulgence in prescription drugs."

Other concerns

The roundup also spotlights crowding at the New Hanover County Jail.
The current situation means some of those arrested will be sleeping on
mattresses on the floor, he said. While the women's section has space,
Kopp said, the men's section is overcrowded.

So County Manager Bruce Shell is looking for a consultant to find a
way to better use jail space.

In addition, crowding at other facilities means 89 mental patients are
in the New Hanover County Jail, a place where they don't belong, Kopp
said.

Robert Moultrie, 53, was on Rankin Street late Wednesday morning when
deputies stopped a car between Anderson and 10th streets. Moultrie,
who has lived in downtown Wilmington since 1974, said he agrees
drug-dealing shouldn't be tolerated, but he worries that felony
convictions that could follow the roundup will ruin young people's
chances of straightening up.

He said authorities should put more resources into creating jobs and
work-skills training for young people. With a paycheck and something
to do, they wouldn't sell drugs, Moultrie said.

He also said the roundup of corner dealers isn't getting those
profiting from the drug trade.

"It's been like this all these years," Moultrie said. "They're going
to wait until it cools off, then they'll be back again."

Kopp also said it seems there's always somebody willing to break the
law for fast cash.

"It's not a matter of people needing to sell drugs to support their
family," Kopp said.

"Ninety percent of those that will be arrested don't have a job and
don't want a job," he said. "This is their job."