CLARKE PARENTS TOLD ABOUT VARIETY OF DRUGS AVAILABLE TO TEENAGERS

BERRYVILLE -- Illegal drugs are not rampant in Clarke County, but Sheriff's
Office Investigator Anthony Roper told 30 parents and school officials
Thursday night that just about any illegal substance can be found in the
rural community.

"Even one kid on drugs is too many," Roper said.

Roper was at Johnson-Williams Middle School at the request of the year-old
School/Community Drug Task Force. His job was to give parents an overview
of the types of drugs children can find and their effects.

Roper's information comes from experience. He joined the "War on Drugs"
when it was declared by President Reagan in 1986. Over the years, he has
served on the Northwest Regional Drug Task Force and the FBI's drug task
force in Winchester.

His experience building drug conspiracy cases includes undercover work.

While the two most serious types of illegal substance abuse among school
children are alcohol and "huffing," Roper said marijuana, cocaine, and
heroin can be found in Clarke.

Hallucinogenics such as PCP and LSD are also available, Roper said, as well
as "club drugs" such as Ecstasy and the "date rape" drug Rohypenol.

The prescription pain reliever OxyContin is widely sought on the streets,
Roper said, for two reasons: It's as strong as heroin, and it is made by a
licensed pharmaceutical firm and isn't diluted or laced with some other
substance.

And, Roper said, street sales of OxyContin carry a huge profit margin.

"It sells for a dollar a milligram," Roper said. "It's all about money."

Roper said law enforcement agencies have limited powers to stop drug
trafficking.

They need probable cause to conduct searches and seize drugs, and they have
to work long periods of time to develop cases to prove conspiracy to sell
drugs.

Parents, he said, can probably do more.

The most important thing, Roper told the audience, is to be constantly
vigilant.

Ask questions, Roper said. Make sure you know where your children are and
what they are doing.

The second most important thing, he said, is to report suspicious behavior
to law enforcement.

"If we can count on your watching and listening, it can multiply what we
can do," he said.

"Remember, it's all about the money. Somebody, somewhere is getting rich
off this pain and misery."

Some of the participants had questions about school drug searches.

School Resource Officer Zeb Brevard of the Clarke County Sheriff's Office
said he coordinates the canine-assisted drug searches at the middle school
and Clarke County High School with either the Virginia State Police or
Frederick County Sheriff's Office.

"I think we're making an impact with these unannounced searches," Brevard
said, adding that no drugs were found in the schools or the vehicles in the
parking lot during the last search.

Schools Superintendent Eleanor F. Smalley said the schools stand as
guardians of children and have the legal right to conduct the searches.

"We don't have the same restrictions in searching lockers" as police would,
Smalley said.