ROCKS FOR BRAINS

CRACK AND crime go hand-in-hand in Savannah. But in addition to murders and
shootings, it appears some car thefts are drug-related - but not in the way
most people think.

This week, Savannah police reported a new trend on the city's mean streets
- - drug users who "loan" their personal cars to drug dealers for a few hours
in return for crack. Then, if the dealers wreck these loaners or fail to
return them, the druggie owners report them to police as stolen.

It's unclear whether these so-called "rock rentals" have contributed to the
spike in the number of auto thefts in the city. But police have plenty of
legitimate thefts to investigate. Any false reports take time and energy
away from chasing down the real ones.

Then there's the insurance factor. When owners collect on false theft
claims, they contribute to rising auto insurance premiums for everyone else.

So far, police have arrested four people in connection with these rock
rentals. Let's hope the crackdown helps put the brakes on this trend,
although that's a stretch. Users who are so desperate that they will hand
over their car keys to drug dealers, then trust them to keep their word,
have rocks for brains.

It's sad, and almost laughable, that one criminal would trust another. The
fact that some loaned cars aren't returned and are reported as stolen prove
one old dictum - there's no honor among thieves.