DRUG MONEY WILL LET DARE BE DEBT FREE

PURVIS - The Lamar County Sheriff's Department will keep its DARE program
solvent, buy several new cruisers and pay for other expenses - all without
asking taxpayers for a dime.

The money to pay for the projects will come from the seizure of a large
amount of cash during an August 2004 traffic stop on I-59.

Derryle Smith of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency on Friday gave Lamar
County Sheriff Danny Rigel $195,315 of the original $244,220 that was
seized in the stop. DEA will get the remainder of the money.

"The best thing about this is we can use drug money, or money that was
gotten illegally, to help fight drugs at no cost to taxpayers," Rigel said.

During the Aug. 17 traffic stop for improper lane usage, improper equipment
and an expired registration, deputies searched a 2000 Honda Civic and found
the money packed in shoe boxes in the trunk.

The DEA is still pursuing a case against the Canadian citizen who was
driving the vehicle, but would not identify him because his case has not
yet been considered by a grand jury for possible indictment. Smith said
forfeiture of the money was not contested.

The money will allow the sheriff's office to continue to provide the DARE
program, or Drug Abuse Resistance Education, at Lamar County's four
elementary schools.

At Sumrall Elementary, where the fifth-grade class graduated from the DARE
program Friday, Principal Danny Sumrall said he is pleased the program will
continue.

"If they can find anything to fund this program, I would be more than happy
to have it back in my school," Sumrall said. "The more information these
kids have, the better the chance they will choose to not follow along this
path."

Rigel said the DARE program, which is in its first year, was started with
one-time funding from DARE International.