BELOIT USES ROADBLOCK TO FIGHT DRUGS

Police Cordon Off Two-Block Area, Force Drivers To Check In With Them

Beloit - In what officials describe as a drastic measure to stop drug
dealing in a troubled neighborhood, police Monday night barricaded two city
blocks and prevented drivers from entering the area unless they could prove
they had a legitimate reason to be there.

The blockade, believed to be the first such one in the state, was set up in
response to a growing number of complaints by residents about cars, mostly
from out of state, driving down the streets looking for drugs, police said.

"They said they observed hand-to-hand drug transactions," Beloit police
Capt. Sam Lathrop said. "We have made no drug arrests in this area recently,
but some of this information has been corroborated by our gang and drug unit."

Police also have responded to two shootings in the neighborhood within the
last month, police Capt. Norm Jacobs said. And residents have complained
about cars playing loud stereos and driving recklessly through the area.

Under the new plan, the 1300 and 1400 blocks of Nelson Ave. on the city's
east side will be off limits to any vehicles unless drivers can prove they
live in the area or are on a visitors list provided by residents, Lathrop said.

The barricades were put up at 7 p.m. and were expected to remain in place
until 7 a.m. today, police said. The effort will continue indefinitely,
police said.

"The residents knew we were doing this, and they are for it," Lathrop said.
"Yes, it is drastic, and it is very labor-intensive, but people in that
neighborhood are looking for some kind of relief."

But the leader of the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin says
there's little doubt the blockade violates the constitutional rights of
neighborhood residents as well as motorists who drive through the area. ACLU
Executive Director Chris Ahmuty added that the beefed-up enforcement
probably won't work, either.

"The residents of this neighborhood should not have to give up
constitutional rights for good police protection," he said. "This will do
nothing to deter serious crime. They will be stopping people for little
things, but it is not going to clean up the neighborhood. People have plenty
of legitimate reasons for traveling through there."

Ahmuty said there are local ordinances, such as noise ordinances, as well as
traffic laws that could take care of the problems without blocking off the
neighborhood.

"If one person doesn't like it and thinks it intrudes on his or her
constitutional rights, well, that one person is just as important as the
person who complained and wanted it," he said.

When asked about the constitutionality of the blockade, Lathrop said the
matter had been reviewed by attorneys for the department.

"This is a short-term solution while we try and work something long-term out
with the neighborhood," Lathrop said. "We are not prohibiting foot traffic,
so there is freedom of movement. So, we are not totally restricting freedom
of movement, so we think it's legal."

Jim Haney, a spokesman for the state attorney general's office, said Beloit
may be the first city in Wisconsin to set up a roadblock to keep vehicles
out of a particular neighborhood. Other law enforcement agencies that have
used roadblocks typically set them up to check for drunken drivers, he said.

When asked about the legality of Beloit's roadblocks, Haney said the state
leaves that issue up to local police departments.

"If they put them up, they usually have a good reason, but they know they
are going to have to take the consequences of putting them up, too," Haney said.

Beloit may be the first city in Wisconsin to set up such roadblocks, but
similar actions have been taken elsewhere in the nation.

The U.S. Court of Appeals in Chicago last month ruled that Indianapolis
police violated the Constitution by setting up 10 roadblocks in 1988 in an
effort to combat drug trafficking. The city was sued in a class-action
lawsuit brought by the Indiana Civil Liberties Union.

In that city, police instructed motorists to pull off to the side of the
road, then checked their driver's licenses and vehicle registration and had
a dog sniff the outside of vehicles for drugs.

In a split decision, court, which also has jurisdiction over Wisconsin,
ruled the Indianapolis roadblocks violated the Fourth Amendment, which
protects citizens against unreasonable searches or seizures.

After the roadblocks were set up Monday night, residents in the two-block
area of small, single-family, wood-frame homes had mixed reactions to the
enforcement.

"I think it is really a good idea," Shelly Arshad said as she and her
husband sat on their front porch smoking cigarettes.

"I don't think this is infringing on my rights," her husband, Tobius, said.
"I've seen a lot worse. I've lived in Denver and Chicago. What about my
rights to have a home and peace in my neighborhood?"

"I think its about time," echoed Catherine Shelton, who sat in front of her
house while her children watched officers walk up and down the street. "You
can't go to the grocery store without someone blowing pot smoke in your face
at night."

Others thought what the police were going to far.

"I think it is stupid," said Antoinette Broomfield, who has lived in the
neighborhood for 29 years. "I don't like the fact our company can't come
over when they want to. I think they (police) are overdoing it. . . .
Blocking off the street infringes on my rights. What if a couple of guys
want to come over here after work?"

Those allowed to drive through the neighborhood had to either live there or
be on a list of "authorized visitors" supplied by the residents. Those who
didn't meet either requirement were not allowed within the two-block area.

"If an officer has time, they may escort the driver to where they say they
are going, but they could just be turned away," Lathrop said.

Said Jacobs: "People can get out of their cars and walk in the area. If the
officers aren't busy at the barricade, they will welcome you to the
neighborhood, ask you your business, ask you were you are going and maybe
even escort you to the house where you are going."

Jacobs said officers didn't plan to search cars, but they might do so if
they had just cause.

"We have no plans for that now, but if a car stops at the barricade and
police think they smell a whiff of marijuana coming from the car, they will
probably call for backup and ask to search it," he said. "We have no plans
to run people for outstanding warrants, but if that comes up, that is
something we would do, too."

Jacobs said not all residents were told of the barricade plans, and he is
sure some won't be happy about the idea.

Beloit Police Chief Richard Thomas talked to some of the residents at a
neighborhood meeting Friday. Thomas was out of town and could not be reached
for comment Monday.