OFFICERS: IT'S OK TO SNITCH ABOUT DRUGS

Children have often been told not to be a tattletale, but the director of
the Central Delta Drug Task Force told a group of kids that it is just fine
to snitch.

Stan Bagley was the guest speaker on Thursday during a drug awareness
program at the William Alexander Percy Memorial Library in Greenville.

Among other speakers were K-9 officer Rick McDaniel with his partner, Miss
Lucy, as well as K-9 officer Tim Allen with his companion, Mattie.

The program was held to alert Delta children of the dangers of drugs and
how to avoid them. It was a joint effort between the Greenville Police
Department, the Washington County Sheriff's Department and the task force.

The program began with a short video of a traffic stop and a warrant being
issued for a drug bust.

"The main drugs we have in this area are marijuana, cocaine and crystal
methamphetamine," Bagley said.

Bagley told the children that the main problem is that older children are
giving drugs to the younger children to hold for them.

"They are not your friends if they ask you to hold this stuff," Bagley
said. "There is a time to tattle tale and a time not to. This is a time to
tattle tale."

He said no matter where they are, if children see someone with drugs, they
should report what they see. Bagley explained to the kids that if they get
caught with drugs, they would get put in a "kids jail."

The children started raising their hands immediately. The questions ranged
from, "Do we have to do homework in jail?" to "Is it a prison for kids?"

Bagley also told the children that officers are not bad people. But before
he could get those words out of his mouth, one little girl left the room
crying because she was scared.

"We will probably never hear her name on the street," Bagley said with a
laugh. "We are not the boogie man. We are not going to come get you in the
middle of the night. But you need to tell somebody if you see this stuff."

Bagley said the youngest child he has ever confiscated drugs from was a
second-grader.

Allen and McDaniel told the children about the dogs and how they work.
McDaniel asked the children to keep calling Miss Lucy while he made her work.

Even with the children trying to distract her, Miss Lucy turned away and
found two different places where marijuana was hidden.

Allen said he felt like the program went very well.

"We had a good turnout," Allen said. "Every kid we can turn away from drugs
is one less we will have to worry about in the future."

He said he thinks the children understand that if they see anyone with
drugs, they can tell on them and it will be OK.