COUNCIL OKs DRUG ORDINANCE

Opponents Fear Racial Profiling

TAMPA - Not everyone running for city offices agrees with the Tampa City
Council's unanimous decision Thursday to approve a new ordinance making it
illegal to act like a drug dealer.

Mayoral candidate Don Ardell and council hopefuls Kelly Benjamin and Joe
Redner have spoken out against it.

Benjamin, challenging Councilwoman Rose Ferlita in District 2, said he
knows firsthand why neighborhoods want action against drug dealers because
he decided to run for office in part because he was attacked while walking
near his home.

But he opposes the ordinance. It underscores "an already failed drug war,"
he said.

"I would not say it is racially motivated," he said. "But the repercussions
will be racially very disproportionate. We've already seen devastating
effects in the black community."

Last week, Redner, a District 5 candidate, called the ordinance a
"political stunt" by Councilman Bob Buckhorn to get elected mayor.

"This ordinance won't do a ... thing to get rid of drug dealers," he said.

Ferlita dismissed the political charge. "I'm sorry it's coming to us now
because it's not an election stunt," she said.

The council passed the ordinance Thursday with almost no discussion. It
will be scheduled for a final vote Feb. 6.

"We heard some heartfelt cries for help," Buckhorn said.

How It Works

The "precursor law" gives the police the authority to arrest someone for
acting like a drug dealer - exchanging small packages for cash or getting
in and out of cars from the same street corner. Police would have to give
the suspect a written warning before making an arrest.

Assistant City Attorney Gina Grimes said she rewrote the ordinance to make
it enforceable citywide instead of limiting it to neighborhoods with the
worst drug problems.

"I'm pleased with that," District 4 candidate Gene Wells said. "But I still
don't know if it's the right approach."

District 3 candidate Joe Robinson opposed the ordinance a week ago, but he
has changed his mind. "It's best that it's citywide," he said.

District 5 candidate Kevin White agreed. "I think it'll be a great tool for
law enforcement," he said. "But the way it was written before was
unconstitutional."

Tampa police narcotics Capt. Marion Lewis said applying the ordinance
citywide won't make much difference for law enforcement.

His officers know where the drugs are being dealt and what neighborhoods
are homes to such activities. Even though the ordinance covers the entire
city, that doesn't change the neighborhoods where drug sales are at the
highest, he said.

"There would be no reason for us to go up to New Tampa unless we got a
complaint," he said. "There are certain parts of the city where you are
just not going to have these activities going on."

Whether it withstands legal attacks is anybody's guess, Lewis said.

Profiling Predicted

District 1 candidate Curtis Stokes, who is challenging Councilwoman Gwen
Miller, said the the ordinance could be used for racial profiling even
though it would apply citywide.

"I'm uneasy about it," Stokes said. "I could say I support it just to get
elected, but that's not how I really feel."

Stokes says a visible police presence would better deter street level drug
dealers. "There are 40 drug holes in the city. We know where they are," he
said. "Why can't we put a police car in each of them? You can't legislate
crime out of east Tampa."

District 5 hopeful Ali (Jimmy Jackson) Akbar and District 1 candidate
Charles Perkins do not support the ordinance. Akbar says it targets only
drug sellers, not buyers.

"The user never gets picked up and put in jail, only the seller," Akbar
said. "We need to get rid of drugs, don't get me wrong. But we need a
balanced ordinance."

Perkins said the ordinance was politically motivated.

Andrew Baker, also in the District 5 race, publicly supported the early
draft that targeted east Tampa. He said he backs the amended version.

"The police know where the hot spots are," Baker said. But "this is just a
component of what is needed to help revitalize east Tampa."

Mayoral candidates Pam Iorio and Frank Sanchez support the ordinance, based
on an antiloitering ordinance in Tacoma, Wash.

"I think it's appropriate for the city to try new things," Sanchez said.

District 4 candidate Clay Phillips supports the citywide ordinance. "There
are some places off South Dale Mabry that have these problems," Phillips said.

City council candidates John Dingfelder, Carole Mehlman and Barnadine
White- King could not be reached for comment.

Reporters Jan Hollingsworth, Sean Lengell, Keith Morelli and Kathy Steele
contributed to this report.