HATS OFF TO TAMPA POLICE

Local law enforcement officials weren't taking it easy this holiday week -
and that's good news for residents.

Tampa police launched two operations that show they're willing to use all
available resources to combat drug peddling, prostitution and street crimes
that destroy neighborhoods.

The get-tough approach is important because allowing even minor crimes
encourages further lawlessness. In contrast, clamping down hard on those
crimes, as New Yorkers found under Mayor Rudy Giuliani, gives cities a
sense of order and safety and reduces the crime rate.

So Tampa officers were wise to target the operators of strip clubs believed
to be a front for prostitution. In the past, detectives went after the
dancers, charging them prostitution or drug use. This strategy failed.

Tuesday they charged six club managers with aiding and abetting
prostitution. Five also stand accused of racketeering.

If convicted, they will face stiff prison sentences. The message from Tampa
police is clear: We're after the big guys.

Similarly, Tampa police this week also cracked down on what Tribune
reporter Valerie Kalfrin calls an "open-air drug market" in an east Tampa
neighborhood. Police arrested 19 people Sunday and Monday and were pursuing
more than 20 others.

Police said the Rainbow Heights community was under siege.

Local and federal officials conducted a six-month investigation before
launching the massive raid.

Many of those arrested were charged with felonies. Police are hoping
convictions will put them behind bars for a good while. But if nothing
else, the arrests give dealers notice they no longer control the neighborhood.

One resident told Kalfrin drug dealers and prostitutes had made the area
"like living in a war zone."

We are glad to see the Tampa Police Department under new chief Steve Hogue
make a powerful end-of-the-year warning to these thugs.

Too often, street predators intimidate residents of poorer neighborhoods
and brazenly do whatever they want. That should never happen. All
neighborhoods, regardless of how big the houses, are entitled to be safe.