THERE IS CAUSE FOR OPTIMISM IN LESS DRUG USE, OTHER AREAS

Wrapping up a year's work as a 2003 Commentary Columnist, I'd like to
comment on several topics:

Violence: The murder rate climbed in most jurisdictions in the Richmond
area last year. As many so-called experts offer their analysis of why
this is occurring and the news media sound a frenzied alarm, let's stop
and take a deep breath. Yes, there has been a rise in murders this year,
but put the in-crease in historical perspective. Seven years ago area
murders were almost double what they were in 2003.

Violence, like the ups and downs of the economy and other events of
history, is cyclical. Different factors affect these increases in
violence, but one constant has remained in the violence equation since
the early 1970s - illegal drugs. According to nationwide
law-enforcement statistics, 70 percent to 80 percent of violent crime
is drug-related or has a drug nexus. We are talking about crimes such
as a spouse who is high on drugs assaulting a husband or wife in a
simple dispute, or a triple murder for the purpose of stealing drugs
and money from a rival drug dealer. These crimes happen even with
aggressive policing. Law enforcement is not built to solve every
family's social problems. That is why we need strong parents, family
members, and adult mentors to be educated about illegal drugs.

Intervention Is Crucial Well-informed people who care must intervene
to prevent a loved one from ever reaching the level of being unable to
control his or her behavior. Violence, stock-market ups and downs,
terrorism, totalitarianism, and despotism are going to occur
throughout our lifetimes, but as responsible adults, our goal is to
meet the challenge and fight to protect our families through education
and caring.

The drug war: As I have stated in previous Commentary pieces, the
phrase "drug war" is a misnomer. The fight against illegal drugs is a
"police action." A declared war would involve large numbers of U.S.
troops, pitched battles in drug-producing countries, eliminating
international drug-lords such as international terrorists, and so on.
Instead, local, state, and federal law-enforcement officers fight
every hour of every day within the framework of our criminal law. The
"rules of war" are much different from the "rule of law." From the
street-corner crack dealer to international drug cartels, arrests
happen every day.

Are we making any progress? Simply stated: yes. The latest national
surveys show that the use of hard drugs among teens is down.
Additionally "the war on terrorism" is not only highly effective
against terrorists, but it is also benefitting drug-law enforcement
world-wide. International money launderers and drug-trafficking
organizations that are involved with terrorist groups are being
exposed, investigated, and dismantled.

Some Big Battles Won Law-enforcement agencies around the world are now
winning big battles, and this will reap benefits for us on the streets
of U.S. cities in the not-so-distant future. These developments,
combined with the continued education of parents and children about
illegal drugs, will help the next generation win more battles against
the scourge of illegal drugs.

Local, state, and federal law-enforcement efforts: The citizens of
Central Virginia should rest assured that area law enforcement at all
levels works closely together to combat illegal drug trafficking and
its related violence. In 25 years of law enforcement that literally
spans the globe, I have never worked in an area where law-enforcement
agencies share information and assist each other in all types of
criminal investigations as is done in this region. We see no turf
battles and no inter-agency investigations dominated by egos or the
pursuit of media attention for credit. What exists in the Central
Virginia law-enforcement community is professionalism and teamwork.
The philosophy of team policing is the only effective way to attack
the criminal element.

A recent example that illustrates how well team policing works in our
area is the D.C. area sniper case. Contrary to the assertions and
writings of a former Maryland police chief, the local, state, and
federal law-enforcement officials who worked that investigation in
Central Virginia all know that the big break in identifying the
suspects in that horrible series of crimes happened right in little
old Ashland, Virginia. Yes, through some very long hours of
outstanding team police work by local, state, and federal officers,
the case broke open here, and within 48 hours both suspects were
arrested in a Maryland rest-stop by state troopers.

Once area law enforcement was thrust into the case and Central
Virginia law-enforcement executives pooled their resources as a team,
the case was solved and the killings stopped. Maryland authorities had
been working separately on the case for weeks with few results. The
Central Virginia style of teamwork protects the public, makes good
sense, and happens daily in our area.

Thank you: In this last Commentary piece in the year-long series, I
want to recognize several individuals who supported and assisted in
this endeavor. First, I would like to thank the Editorial Pages
department for the opportunity of a lifetime. Very few law-enforcement
officers get the chance to provide information to the public,
especially directly to parents on a large scale. Next, a big thank-you
goes to my wife Jo Ann and my eldest son Joseph, who spent many hours
of their time editing, helping with rewrites, and inspiring
plain-spoken ideas for these articles. They cared about the message we
wanted to send to area families. Last, I want to thank the readers and
the people who took the time to call and write to share their opinions
- - pro or con - on the drug problem in our region. It is good to have
discussion and disagreement.

I feel as General George Patton stated, "If everybody is thinking
alike, nobody is thinking." Problems can be solved only by people
willing to debate their thoughts and take action. So I thank everyone
who showed an interest in my articles during the past year.

Joe Dombroski, a Richmond-area enforcement supervisor for the U.S.
Drug Enforcement Administration, is a 2003 Commentary Columnist.