HOW TO SPOT A CRACK HOUSE

If you think there's a crack house in your neighbourhood, chances are
you're right, a detective with the Hamilton Police drug squad says.

Police get most of their tips about crack houses from neighbours who
see odd activity and lots of traffic at one location at all hours,
Detective Bob Gauvin said yesterday.

Just recently, Hamilton resident Tanya MacPhail started two Facebook
groups, one called "Get rid of all the crack house's (sic)" and
"Let's clean up the crack off our Hamilton Streets."

By posting photos of homes they allege to be crack houses, members of
the group hope to push council and police to rid the city of a crack problem.

But crack houses are much more difficult to target than a grow-op
house, Gauvin explained.

At grow-ops, marijuana and other drugs are found in mass quantities,
and the owners or tenants can be charged criminally.

At crack houses, police only ever find minimal amounts of crack
cocaine, a cheap version of powdered cocaine that produces a
15-minute high, Gauvin said.

A majority of crack houses operate out of rental properties, so the
landlord may not even know what's going on under his or her roof.

"Crack cocaine addicts lead a transient lifestyle," he added.

"A major indicator is that the traffic is out of place with the area.

"Crack cocaine is extremely addictive and the need for it and want
for it is a permanent motivator.

"Addicts will repeatedly return to an address for short periods of a time."

After receiving tips from community members, the drug squad gathers
information and can present it in civil court.

As in the case of the Sandbar Tavern on King Street East, and at a
house at 13 Beaconsfield Dr., the province can freeze, seize and
forfeit all proceeds or instruments of unlawful activity -- like a
crack house -- under the Civil Remedies Act, said Brendan Crawley, of
the Ministry of the Attorney General.

If you know of any illegal activity in your neighbourhood, call Crime
Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or the Hamilton Police vice and drug squad
at 905-546-4925.