DRUG CASES: ADDED EXPENSE WEIGHS HEAVILY ON DALLAS

A costly expense added to an already tight municipal budget and an FBI
investigation with no completion date are part of the unfortunate fallout
from the narcotics scandal in the Dallas Police Department.

With dozens of questionable drug cases tossed out by District Attorney Bill
Hill, the Police Department now is required to have all seized narcotics
tested before cases are turned over to the grand jury.

City Council members received the discouraging word this week that the
price tag for testing all drug seizures will be at least $1 million annually.

The FBI has delivered more bad news, saying it could be months before the
bureau completes its investigation of police drug busts that turned out to
involve Sheetrock rather than cocaine.

The council rightly feels hamstrung by the high cost of conducting detailed
lab analysis for every drug case prepared by the Dallas police, including
even those cases with a small quantity of narcotics.

Elected city officials also were disappointed that Police Chief Terrell
Bolton could not answer many of their questions about the controversy
because the FBI probe is ongoing.

Police administrators should negotiate with the testing labs to determine
if the rates could be adjusted due to the vast number of tests being
requested. Currently, it costs about $280 for each test performed at the
Southwestern Institute of Forensic Science.

Chief Bolton may want to consider an alternative source for the testing if
the costs cannot be lowered. Since District Attorney Hill has asked for a
lab analysis of every drug case, it might be appropriate for the county
government to provide some financial support for the testing.

The police chief and his administrative staff also should do everything
possible to help speed along the FBI investigation of the drug busts that
triggered this scandal.

This is a complex case that will require interviews with scores of people
and a review of much evidence. More than 60 felony cases linked to the two
narcotics officers involved in the fake drug cases have been dismissed. The
officers maintained they had conducted field tests on alleged illegal
substances that later turned out not to be drugs.

Federal investigators must do their jobs thoroughly. But the Dallas police
cannot function effectively if a cloud hangs over the department for months.

There cannot be a repeat of the Dallas school district investigation, which
lasted four years and nearly destroyed the credibility of the Dallas public
education system.