SHERIFF REAPS DRUG BUST PROFITS

Legislature approves the release of $107,165 in cash seized in 27 drug raids.

Drug busts are proving to be jackpots for the Onondaga County Sheriff's
Department. Monday, the county legislature voted to send $107,165 in seized
cash to the department, a move one legislator said could be a conflict of
interest.

The money was seized in 27 drug busts over several years, said William
Peverly, chief of the sheriff's department's civil division. If a defendant
is found guilty, courts can rule that the seized money or property can be
taken legally.

The federal government takes 20 percent, the Onondaga County District
Attorney's Office gets 15 percent to underwrite prosecution costs, and the
remaining 65 percent is divided among police agencies that worked on the
busts. Police can also keep cars and other property that serves their
needs, Peverly said.

The $107,165 is the department's share of a larger sum, Peverly said. Seven
of the 27 busts were joint investigations with other departments.

Legislator Terry Pickard, R-Manlius, was the lone dissenter when he
objected to handing the money to the sheriff's department.

"I don't like the idea of police officers making direct seizures which go
right into their budget," said Pickard, who said he would rather have the
money go into the county's general fund. The money could be reappropriated
to the sheriff's department.

Peverly said the drug money is put back into the department's anti-drug
efforts, from overtime to equipment to implementing new programs. The
legislature usually approves the acceptance of drug money twice a year.

"First of all, those proceeds are usually ill-gotten gains from illegal
activity," Peverly said. "And, otherwise (fighting drugs) would be a
taxpayer-supported effort."

Peverly said he doesn't see a conflict of interest, because the courts
decide if cash and property are properly seized.

A recent drug seizure involved the Ziggy Wagon, a popular Syracuse
University-area food stand that police said dished out marijuana and
cocaine along with burgers and hot dogs. Syracuse police plan to use the
wagon to promote their anti-drug message.