NEIGHBORHOOD GROUP SAYS COURTS ARE TOO EASY ON DRUG DEALERS

The Neighborhood Advisory Commission (NAC) was established by the
Mayor and City Council of Cumberland on Nov. 18, 2003. The commission
is composed of one member from each neighborhood association
recognized by the Mayor and City Council, as well as a member of the
Mayor and City Council acting as an ex-officio member of the
commission. The commission serves to maintain and improve the quality
of life in the city's neighborhoods by coordinating the efforts of
recognized neighborhood organizations with the Mayor and City Council
and the city departments. At present our group represents Chapel Hill
West Neighborhood Association, Inc., Decatur Heights Neighborhood
Association, North End Watch, Rolling Mill Neighborhood Association,
Inc., The South Cumberland Business and Civic Association, and Upper
West Side Coalition of Active Neighbors. Our meetings are held the
third Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. in the conference room of
City Hall and are open to the public.

We invite all persons interested in forming a neighborhood group
within the city to attend.

For three years our group has met to discuss and propose solutions to
a variety of issues, including revitalization and marketing of the
different neighborhoods of Cumberland, beautification and blight
efforts, tackling tough housing problems, and working toward the
creation and enhancement of programs to strengthen families and raise
confident, well- adjusted youth.

All these issues are very important, but the number-one issue that
faces our community continues to be the crime and drug situation in
our city and county.

The city is making headway in tackling the drug problem and will be
instituting a number of changes in the coming months including
property seizure, public cameras and changes to the city code that
will make life for drug dealers much harder in the city.

Although City Hall, city police, and C3I have been very responsive to
community concerns and aggressive in their actions to the drug
situation, there are a number of problems with the legal system and
other recent complexities that undermine these efforts: (a) although
the drug distributors are arrested, the bonds are set so low that they
are quickly released and reinserted back onto our city streets before
a court decision is issued, (b) the court sentences issued to the
arrestees, including ones who have been arrested for repeated CDS
violations, are much too lenient, (c) as they weave in and out of the
court system, these convicts regard themselves as virtually invincible
because of the light sentences they receive by the courts, (d)
recently drug dealers have been found carrying weapons, (e) many have
been found to be involved in some way with one of the 17 identified
national or local gangs in Allegany County, (f) as a result, many
members of our community are increasingly fearful to report drug
violations because of fear of retaliation, (g) increasingly, many
people participating in the drug trade in Western Maryland are buying
property in Allegany County and are conducting "foster homes" for
other drug dealers from Baltimore and New York, and (h) there appears
to be a shortage of judges in the county.

As the NAC we feel there is a need for a new approach, including a
change in court legal procedures that imposes tough new sentences on
drug dealers and gangs in Maryland. We will be meeting with the
District Court Commissioner and members of our legislature soon to
discuss these issues.

If you also feel strongly about this issue, please inform yourself
about the drug trade and gangs in our county. Join or start a
neighborhood group -- they build ties in the community that wouldn't
be there without their support.

Report any suspicious activity you see in your neighborhood to the
Cumberland Police Department. Contact your representatives about the
problems we're facing, and exercise your right to vote for people who
you believe will do the right thing when it comes to Maryland drug and
gang laws.