"ICE" FLOW INCREASES, BUT CUTS DISARM DRUG WAR

As the flow of "ice" continues into Southwest Arkansas, one of the
agencies formed to fight the war on drugs has been disarmed by federal
budget cuts.

Now the South Central Drug Task Force has only two agents to
investigate drug transactions in seven counties.

Authorities are seeing more of the methamphetamine called ice, which
is a stronger form of meth and is usually manufactured in Mexico and
then transported to the U .S.

Ninth Judicial District Deputy Prosecutor Ralph Keen informed the
Sevier County Quorum Court Monday about the federal budget cuts and
how they could affect the budget that funds his secretary.

The South Central Drug Task Force serves Sevier County along with
Little River, Howard, Sevier, Pike, Hempstead, Nevada and Lafayette
counties.

"He informed us of the budget cuts by the federal government and it
would continue to slash the task forces. He has a part-time secretary
whose salary is paid by the task force," said Sevier County Judge Dick
Tallman.

Enough funds still exist to pay for the position, said the county
judge, but it could change.

"The budget cuts have come at a bad time. We've had a rash of
burglaries since about March and a lot of daylight burglaries," said
Tallman.

He suspects the increase in burglaries has been created with the
influx of ice and the need for money to purchase the drugs.

The flow of meth has been reduced with new laws restricting the access
of pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient in "cooking" meth. Tallman said
the restriction of pseudoephedrine sales caused a reduction of meth
"cooked" in homemade labs. Therefore, the market has increased for
ice.

Prosecutor Tim Williamson of the 18th West Judicial District, who
lives in Mena, has also seen the influx of ice.

"Ice is beginning to pour into the area across the border from
Mexico," Williamson said, in a previous Gazette article.

As drug task forces close, knowledgeable undercover investigators will
be unemployed.

"We will be losing people with working knowledge of drug trafficking
in the region and who know the people in the drug business," said Williamson.

The Ninth Judicial District West Prosecutor Tom Cooper of Ashdown said
the South Central Drug Task Force has survived through a grant to
continue the operation obtained by U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark.

"We were cut 80 percent, but Mike Ross helped us out and got a grant.
Obviously things could be different next year for local task forces.
At one point we had six officers and now we have two," said Cooper.

"I went to the Ashdown City Council a few years ago asking for the
city to join. The state has undercover officers, but they're limited
to 40 to 50 in the state. We need extra help combating drugs other
than just a few officers," he said.

With the reduction in task forces, local agencies will have to
increase training officers in drug investigation, he said.

"The more ice that is brought in, then it takes more investigation to
make those arrest since the drug is coming in from other areas. And
it's not just the drugs. To get the money to buy the drugs, crimes are
committed and it lends itself to burglary and violent crimes," said
Cooper.

Drug-related crime may increase as dealers realize areas have fewer
law enforcement officers to investigate those crimes.

"People do talk in those sectors and they believe they're less likely
to get caught," said Cooper.

In Arkansas two years ago the federal funding was $5.2 million. Last
year, with the federal cuts, the Arkansas share was reduced to $2.8
million which required 60 percent state match and local governments
making up the balance.

As of July 1, Arkansas had only $1.5 million in federal money for drug
task forces to fund 19 drug task forces, said Williamson.

He also said in the last couple of years, more than 70 percent of the
drug cases sent to the crime lab for testing involved meth and was
worked by the drug task forces.

"I'm not saying throwing money at the problem will cure it, but
cutting funding to combat drugs, in my opinion, is not an effective
way to deal with the drug problem," Cooper said.