WAGING A WAR AGAINST DRUGS

PARRY SOUND - It's no secret that the clutches of drugs are expanding. From
sprawling city streets, to the concealing cloak of heavily wooded areas.
Even this small town of under 7,000 is plagued with its damaging and often
deadly repercussions. Today, West Parry Sound OPP aren't just fighting
against nearly harmless drugs like marijuana, they're on a desperate race
to keep the more deadly drugs of choice off the streets. Drugs like
cocaine, heroin and ecstacy. Along with prescription drugs such as
OxyContin and Perocet.

"We rely heavily on information from the public, whether it be through a
Crime Stoppers tip or from somebody coming into the office and telling us.
The public is our eyes and ears," said West Parry Sound OPP Constable Bruce
Fox.

Recently there has been a rash of drug busts around the Parry Sound area,
everything from trafficking to simple possession. Mr. Fox said it's a fact
that a wide variety of drugs are available at Parry Sound High School and
police are seeing younger and younger users.

"Marijuana, of course, is always popular," said Mr. Fox. "We've seen a
recent increase of cocaine, ecstacy, OxyContin, Perocet. The prescription
medications are really taking off."

Mr. Fox isn't sure how people are getting a hold of drugs like OxyContin,
but figures it starts with the person who has a legitimate prescription who
is then "selling it to make a profit." Drugs such as these, run between $20
and $40 per pill.

OxyContin is used to treat mild to severe pain and is usually taken every
12 hours, because of its time-release capsules. OxyContin abusers, remove
the time-release coating to get an rush or euphoric high similar to heroin.

"We've seen an increase in younger kids using, like I said, marijuana has
always been popular, but it seems like the age is decreasing now," he said.
"We've had drugs in junior high, kids 12- and 13 years-old. You see people
in town and talking to them you see them falling apart before your eyes."

The wave of prescription medication and harder drugs such as heroin and
cocaine "concerns" Mr. Fox about the possibility spin-off crimes such as
assaults and thefts.

"With the heavy drugs like cocaine, and addictive prescription medication,
people need them, they're going to find the ways and means of affording
them," he said. "Crime is definitely a deadly habit."

The drug situation at Parry Sound High School is "sporadic," said Mr. Fox.

"Drugs are obviously there," he said. "We get a fair bit of enforcement
there in the fall, just on our own. In the area around the school at
lunchtime and there's certain areas behind the mall. The wooded area across
from John Street, we arrested a few youths over there. Not large amounts,
but we do see some marijuana."

Parry Sound High School principal Shahina Butt said penalties for students
caught using, dealing or in possession of drugs is progressive.

"If we find that a student is under the influence, it's a five-day
suspension," she said. "Then it becomes higher if there's a subsequent event."

To combat the drug problem, Ms. Butt said the school is working with the
OPP on programs such as Drug Abuse Resistance Education for students and
teachers

"We have provided presentations from the OPP to staff about what are the
effects of this drug and that drug and what is commonly used and what to
look for," she said.

As another pro-active step is the school offers a peer support system and a
virtues project, Ms. Butt said.

"It emphasizes virtues and good character that all ties in together," she
said. "We have a child development councillor, who provides counciling for
students who have been apprehended who return from a suspension. There are
proactive and there reactive steps and then there are consequences.

"We of course have the local police who patrol the area, not only the
school inside, but outside. The Near North District School Board has an
agreement with the Canine Unit of the police force."

Parry Sound High School students Lisa Loosemore, Kathleen Robinson and
Heather Lloyd all agree that the drug problem in the school is more serious
than many teachers and parents are aware of and feel that bringing in the
Canine Unit wouldn't really help.

"People are going to know when [the dogs] are coming in, so the people
aren't going to bringing the drugs to school," said Kathleen a Grade 11
student. "The [police] never know when to come in. If they came in at a
random time, I'm sure a lot of people would get caught, kids are pretty
smart like that, they're not going to do anything to get busted.

"If [teachers] wanted to, they could find where everyone goes and what
[drugs] everyone's doing, but they don't, until it's too late."

The girls say the most readily available drug is pot, but they said more
serious ones are starting to catch on.

"But then there's different drugs like coke and ecstacy and over the
counter drugs like Oxycontin," said Heather Lloyd a Grade 11 student. "I
think people get them prescribed to them or they know people who get
prescriptions and they just take it and sell them. The other ones, they
just get them from someone, who gets them from someone else."

What makes catching drug users and dealers difficult, Mr. Fox said, is the
inability of the police to be everywhere at one time.

"Our job here is so broad," he said. "We're in the office here sometimes,
answering phones and we're uniformed police officers. We try to enforce
these things as much as we can, at the same time, we're busy. When we're
not doing paper work or doing car accidents or other calls we have to go
to, then we try to enforce it as much as we can."

Drug charges largely depend on the quantity and the type of drug.
Possession of heroin will get a stiffer sentence than marijuana for the
accused. Though, the maximum sentence for possession of marijuana is life
in prison.

Often times people aren't caught with a lot of drugs on them, but they'll
have all the paraphernalia that adds up to evidence that they're dealing.

"I pulled over a guy last week and he had a large quantity of drugs with
him," he said. "In one pocket he had two pocket knives, a can of mace and
in the door of his car he had bear spray. Put all that stuff together and,
under those circumstances, that's a concealed weapon, because it's for the
purpose of personal protection."

Evidence of drug trafficking are scales, a cell phone, papers, debt list
and large quantities.

"They're all building blocks to tip us off that this person's dealing," he
said, "We know a lot of repeat offenders. Where they'll hear things that
people won't tell police officers, that's where we need information from
the public, especially recent information."

Parents can keep an eye out for certain behavioural changes that may
indicate their children are into drugs.

"Change in attitude, personality changes, change in friends, habits, a
desire for money, physical appearance, those may mean a kid is into drugs"
he said.