DRUGS, TASK FORCE DEBATED

Occasionally, government meetings produce no tangible results such as
budget cuts, hirings or firings - yet they may produce clearer policy
directions for the future.

On Thursday, the Boulder County Commissioners held a public hearing in part
to give citizens a chance to discuss the Boulder County Drug Task Force
(BCDTF) in front of law enforcement officials and the commissioners.

The BCDTF includes a small group of plain-clothes officers that specialize
in "sniffing out" drug dealers and drug manufacturers in Boulder County.

The hearing attracted some 40 citizens interested in showing philosophical
support or opposition to anti-drug operations in the county and the nation.

Bo Shaffer, chairman of the Libertarian Party of Boulder County, questioned
whether some illegal drugs are actually less dangerous than legal drugs.

"Do American adults handle other legalized drugs well? That is certainly up
for debate, but the bottom line is, you are not violating the law to
possess tobacco, alcohol or Prozac. You only violate the law when your
behavior becomes irresponsible. In the history of mankind, it has never
been documented that marijuana has ever caused accidental, negligent or
deliberate death," Shaffer read from a prepared statement.

Kenneth Wilson of the University Hill Neighborhood Association said the
BCDTF and increased law enforcement on the Hill has made the area a better
place to live in recent years.

"You could see drug deals on the Hill at all hours," said Wilson. "There
were gang members selling drugs in the alleys and on the street corners.
Now it's much better. There is still activity, but it's retreated into the
darker alleys."

The BCDTF is currently partially funded from a grant from the federal
government, and also by matching contributions from local governments. The
grant allows officers from Louisville, Lafayette, CU-Boulder, Erie and
Nederland to participate in the task force.

Boulder County and the City of Boulder put up the lion's share of the local
match funding, and Commissioner Ron Stewart wanted to use the hearing to
discuss a more equitable distribution of funding.

"I'm hearing a lot of talk about 'teamwork' and a 'team setting,' and now
there needs to be team distribution," said Stewart.

Joe Pelle, Boulder County Sheriff, said at least the cities of Louisville
and Lafayette will be examining picking up a larger share of the task force
expense.

"Federal grant funding is not meant to sustain task force operations
forever," said Pelle. "It's now up to the city councils of the smaller
jurisdictions to decide what to do."

The commissioners have already approved a request for a federal task force
grant of $408,495, but Pelle said the actual amount of money granted won't
be known until June.

About ten uniformed officers attended the hearing, and Boulder Police Chief
Mark Beckner emphasized that drug involvement can also lead to related
crime like burglary, violence and child abuse.

Evan Ravitz of Boulder said later in the hearing that drug prohibition
could be part of the cause of related crime.

"The violence is because drugs are illegal," said Ravitz. "People are
crazed for money, and the only reason there's money in the drug business is
because they're illegal."

The police officers presented an eight-minute video detailing the dangers
of meth lab operation, including inhalation of toxic chemicals and possible
explosions.

Commissioner Paul Danish brought up statistics showing the BCDTF had seized
about $3 million worth of pot and pot-related product since Jan. 2003, but
only about $12,000 worth of meth.

Beckner said the BCDTF had shut down 14 meth labs in 15 months, and said
the dangers of the labs made him wonder if the county should expand the
task force.

Danish often questioned the social and fiscal cost of a county/federal
anti-drug operation that targets hard drugs but often seizes marijuana in
greater quantity.

"My objections are philosophical," said Danish. "To me, the drug war is
like a plane on auto-pilot with a dead man at the controls. People are
disinclined to change course because of fear of the unknown. The nature of
drug illegalization has poisoned the wellsprings of public debate on this
issue."

Still, the hearing was not designed to end the War on Drugs. Boulder County
will likely get a federal task force grant, the task force will not be
eliminated, and both Pelle and Stewart said the local matching fund issue
would be discussed in coming months.