LEADERS RALLY AGAINST GROWING DRUG TRADE

Warren County - Warrensburg Program Seen as Model To Copy

QUEENSBURY -- Warren County supervisors expressed alarm Friday at the
rising tide of illegal drugs in the county and urged a renewed commitment
to community-based efforts to fight the scourge like one recently started
in Warrensburg.

"The problem is, this is a nice place to live," said Queensbury At-Large
Supervisor Nick Caimano. "... We can hide our heads in the sand and say it
can't happen here. Well, it's happening here."

Caimano said that as leaders, it was the job of the Board of Supervisors to
rally the people to show support for those charged with fighting crime like
Sheriff Larry Cleveland, Glens Falls Police Chief Richard Carey and
District Attorney Kate Hogan.

"Are we going to wait until some 90-year-old woman, or, worse, though I
don't know that it could be worse, some little kid gets caught in the
crossfire of these goons fighting over turf?" Caimano asked.

Hogan told the board that the problem stems from simple economics. In New
York City, Hogan said, drugs are cheap. Dealers can bring them up to Warren
County and sell them for 10 times what they paid in the city.

But Hogan said she sees hope in the way communities like Warrensburg are
dealing with the problem.

"There's a fantastic group in Warrensburg showing the way to do it," Hogan
said. "What they're doing is involving a cross-section of the community."

The fruits of Warrensburg's effort can be seen in the results of a "tip
line" instituted by the Warrensburg/Thurman Communities Against Youth
Substance Abuse, a group of parents, public and school officials, clergy
and law enforcement personnel that meets regularly to help raise awareness
about the problem.

Sheriff Larry Cleveland reported that the arrest this week of a Warrensburg
man on charges of growing and selling marijuana was a direct result of four
separate tips phoned into the Warrensburg tip line. "At least one more
arrest is pending as a result of information gleaned from the tip line, he
said.

Warrensburg Supervisor Jerold Quintal reported that the tip line costs only
$38 a month, an amount shared by the towns of Warrensburg and Thurman. The
line, (623-HOPE, 623-4673,) allows those with information regarding illicit
drug activity to call anonymously and only sheriff personnel have access to
the line.

Queensbury At-Large Supervisor Ron Montesi urged towns to avail themselves
of information from surveys conducted in area schools by the Council for
Prevention of Alcohol and Substance Abuse.

Part of the challenge, Montesi said, is to make residents aware of the
problem. He urged school districts to follow the lead of Warrensburg and
Queensbury in making public the results of student surveys that show the
percentages of local students who have used alcohol and drugs compared to
national trends.

[QUOTE]

"The problem is, this is a nice place to live... We can hide our heads in
the sand and say it can't happen here. Well, it's happening here. - NICK
CAIMANO, Queensbury at-large supervisor.