GETTING DRUG DEALERS OFF THE STREET

Bob Buckhorn has proposed a municipal ordinance that would make it easier
for police officers to arrest street-level drug dealers.

The city councilman and mayoral candidate says that residents in too many
of Tampa's neighborhoods, particularly in the inner city, "are held hostage
in their homes."

To set them free, Buckhorn and city lawyers crafted an ordinance modeled
after one in Tacoma, Wash., which makes certain behaviors by dealers
leading up to illicit drug activity unlawful. It criminalizes actions
typical of drug dealers - repeatedly entering and exiting different cars,
transferring small objects for cash, loitering.

The ordinance would give officers the ability to arrest the dealers and,
more importantly, give reason for law enforcement to detain them.

"There are 47 drug holes in the city," police Officer Eric Houston told
city council. "It's difficult to arrest. If this passes, we'll warn them
twice and then we can arrest."

The ordinance is similar to a 1999 ordinance that has been a big help in
curbing prostitution. It targets specific behaviors so the city would run
little risk of taking people into custody for innocent conduct.

Cracking down on street-level drug dealers is a worthy goal that this
ordinance would assist. Council members should approve it.