CRACK COCAINE SEIZURES RISE IN HAWAII

The amount of crack cocaine seized in Hawai'i this year has far
surpassed totals for the previous three years, a trend law officials
attribute to heavy enforcement pressure on crystal methamphetamine
operations, crack's relatively low cost and other factors.

Through September, authorities seized 671 grams of crack, compared
with 442 grams in 2006. In 2005, the haul was 47.91 grams, and 159.2
grams were seized in 2004, according to statistics released by a
state, county and federal drug task force.

"We have been noticing the resurgence of both powder cocaine and
crack cocaine to our Islands. Virtually all of these
drug-trafficking groups who were bringing in crystal meth are also
either now bringing in both ice and coke, or have switched over now
to bringing in only cocaine," said U.S. attorney Ed Kubo.

"This trend is due to several factors, the first being our efforts
against 'ice' are aggressive and continue to be so successful that
there is a concern by criminals about dealing in ice and getting
long prison sentences."

Another factor is an "ice" shortage, Kubo said. "Dealers are aware
that many users of ice will also be willing to use cocaine when
there is a shortage of ice," he said.

In addition to an increase in crack, authorities also are seeing
more powdered cocaine.

Through September, agents have seized roughly 49 pounds of cocaine,
crack's main ingredient, compared with 78 pounds in 2006, 26 pounds
in 2005 and 38 pounds in 2004.

Cocaine arrests in Honolulu hit a five-year high last year, when
Honolulu police made more than 200 cocaine arrests, compared with
135 in all of 2005 and 214 in all of 2004. This year's arrests were
not available.

By comparison, crystal meth-amphetamine seizures have tapered off,
with agents confiscating 111 pounds of ice through September,
compared with 179 pounds last year, 265 pounds in 2005 and 226 pounds in 2004.

Other statistics cited by law enforcement include a reduction in the
number of meth labs discovered in the state, which decreased from 17
in 2005 to two this year.

The figures are from the Hawaii High Intensity Drug Trafficking
Area, a task force consisting of state, county, and federal law
enforcement agencies.

In addition, "ice" use in the workplace has dropped by 25 percent in
the third quarter of this year, according to statistics gathered for
the state by Diagnostic Laboratory Services, the state's largest
drug-testing company.

MORE SEEKING HELP

Another cocaine indicator is the number of adults entering
state-funded drug treatment programs seeking help for cocaine and
crack addiction, a number that increased last year for the first
time in five years.

There were 370 adults who sought such treatment in fiscal year 2007,
compared with 316 in 2006, 338 in 2005, 385 in 2004 and 392 in 2003.

By comparison, 3,270 adults received treatment for crystal
methamphetamine addiction in fiscal year 2007, compared with 3,363
in 2006, 3,538 in 2005, 3,136 in 2004 and 3,013 in 2003.

The Salvation Army, which runs a substance abuse treatment program
for longtime users, many of whom ended up in the criminal justice
system, has seen its percentage of admitted methamphetamine addicts
decline from 78 percent in 2005 to 73 percent last year and 72
percent so far this year.

"We've seen a leveling off and slight decrease in methamphetamine
and a small increase in crack cocaine," said Larry Williams,
executive director of Addiction Treatment Services at The Salvation
Army. "I expected to see a significant increase in crack cocaine but
it hasn't happened yet.

"What we see is not necessarily a reflection of what is out there on
the street. We see a lot of people who have been addicted for quite
a few years so there is usually a lag between us and what law
enforcement sees."

Crack cocaine, a form of cocaine base, is derived from powdered
cocaine, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Powdered cocaine is dissolved in a solution of sodium bicarbonate
and water that is boiled, and a solid substance separates from the
boiling mixture. This solid substance, crack, is removed and allowed to dry.

The crack cocaine is then broken or cut into "rocks," each typically
weighing from one-tenth to one-half of a gram. One gram of pure
powder cocaine will convert to approximately 0.89 grams of crack cocaine.

The current influx of cocaine and crystal methamphetamine is coming
to Hawai'i primarily from San Diego and Sacramento, Calif.,
according to the DEA.

"You still have the flow of crystal methamphetamine but now we are
seeing a cocaine flow," said Anthony D. Williams, assistant special
agent in charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's
Honolulu district office. "It's the same distribution networks, via
parcel or human body carriers, and at this point, our issue is the
dope coming in from the West Coast. Our focus remains the
distribution networks and the suppliers."

LIGHTER PENALTIES

Another factor behind the increased supply of cocaine could be that
federal penalties for cocaine possession are far less stringent than
those that apply to crystal methamphetamine. Users and dealers may
be turning to crack as a way to dodge stiffer sentences, said
Janet L. Kamerman, special agent in charge of the FBI's Honolulu division.

"Recently, we've seen cocaine and crack sales increasing in Hawai'i.
It's possible that drug dealers and users are turning to drugs they
think are less likely to attract law enforcement attention,"
Kamerman said. "While the sentencing guidelines for
distributing cocaine are less severe than the guidelines for
crystal methamphetamine trafficking, the federal punishment
for crack and ice possession is similar, so there's no benefit for
the dealers in terms of reduced penalties.

"At any rate," she said, "we will continue to work with our local
and federal law enforcement partners to identify and arrest those
people responsible for poisoning Hawai'i's neighborhoods by pushing
illegal drugs."

Ronald F. Becker, an attorney and director of the criminal justice
program at Chaminade University, said there are societal reasons for
crack's resurgence.

"Methamphetamine and crack cocaine are the preferred drug amongst
the depressed, dispossessed and self-destructive poor. The purity of
crack cocaine is very close to 100 percent, but yet costs less than
does powder cocaine, which is only at best around 5 percent cocaine
and the rest mannitol (baby laxative)," Becker said.

"Smokable drugs provide a euphoric relief ... (that) comes on
quicker, is more intense with a heightened sense of well-being and
the feeling of being in control, which for many of these people is
absent in their worlds."