CAD NEEDS MORE INVOLVEMENT

It's easy to understand Jimmy Fraley's frustration.

Fraley is the founder and president of CAD - Citizens Against Drugs - which
has been fighting drug-related crime in Lee County on a grassroots level for
several months now. Early meetings, sparked by an increase in local crime
and Fraley's unbridled enthusiasm and tireless commitment, drew crowds of
several hundred interested community members and elected officials.

Reaction to the group's tactics and methodology was mixed, but it was hard
to argue with the message: Lee County's crime rate is too high, the problem
needs to be addressed, and together, maybe we can do something about it.

Now attendance at meetings seems to be waning, and CAD's bellwether issue -
asking for six more sheriff's deputies to patrol the county's roads - has
been seen by some county officials as equal parts unrealistic and
irrelevant.

And crime? Well, the hits just keep on coming.

Hence Fraley's disappointment.

One question that all begs is this: why aren't county government and law
enforcement jumping up and down in enthusiastic support of CAD and figuring
out ways to take advantage of the group's resources and human capital?

It's a question CAD should take to the county commissioners, to the Sanford
city council, and to the Lee County Sheriff's Department and the Sanford and
Broadway police departments. Fraley should ask for five minutes of time at
each of the next commission and council meetings, ask for the sheriff and
police chief to attend, and then ask the simple questions: What are we doing
that's working? What are we doing that's not working? And what are we not
doing that, if we started to do, would get you excited about our mission?

It likely won't happen. The city of Sanford (council members and otherwise)
doesn't think there's a crime problem, and the county shrugs its shoulders
and says, "What can we do?"

Well, that's the same question Fraley asked himself several months ago -
only he was serious about it.

Maybe Fraley and his group can develop real dialogue with the city and the
county. Maybe not. Regardless, perhaps it's time for CAD to consider finding
proactive ways to partner with other organizations - start with churches and
civic groups - and ask the same questions about crime. What are we doing
that's working? What are we doing that's not working? How can we really make
a difference?

There are many more questions to be asked and answered. Fighting crime at a
grassroots level is hard, and made harder by tough soil. More seeds - more
people, more ideas, more creative approaches - might not do the trick, but
it's worth a try.