BREAK THE DOPE-DEALING CYCLE

City of Charleston police are on the offensive against street-level dope
dealers in the East Side community. That's good news for law-abiding
residents in that neighborhood. Yet it's also familiar news -- as is the
depressing pattern that has repeatedly produced a resurgence of the illegal
drug trade after an all-too-brief respite.

This cycle has emerged through the years: Police crack down on drug
trafficking in a neighborhood where it's particularly blatant, then dealers
transfer their criminal enterprise to a different neighborhood for a while
before eventually coming back. Any law-enforcement success in eliminating
the East Side dope-dealing scourge, and the intimidation and violence it
inflicts upon a community, invariably has been undermined by the realization
that it's not gone for long -- and that it hasn't gone far.

However, "Operation Fresh Start," which by late Monday had recorded 23
arrests for the alleged sales of crack cocaine, heroin or other illegal
drugs to undercover officers over the past few weeks, aims to break that
insidious cycle. Police Lt. James Mackey, a narcotics squad supervisor, told
Post and Courier reporter Glenn Smith: "We plan to keep the heat up in the
area we just hit. We're not going to just hit it and let it go."

The community also appears committed to the long-term challenge of turning
this temporary setback for dope dealers into a permanent triumph for the
East Side. A strong turnout for a January forum held by police indicated
widespread concern in those neighborhoods virtually held hostage by the
thugs who thrive on illegal drug commerce -- and a widespread determination
to take positive action.

Latonya Memminger, president of the East Side Community Development Corp.,
hailed the current police initiative: "It's good to see that they are
devoting more time to the area. We could certainly use some more efforts
from the police department dealing with the drug issue. It's very difficult
for people. Nobody wants to feel that where they live is a danger to their
well-being."

And nobody should have any illusions about the difficulty of winning this
long-term battle. But with enhanced cooperation between the police and East
Side residents, this "fresh start" offers fresh hope for the community.