DRUG TASK FORCE FACES UNCERTAIN FUTURE

The future of a task force that fights drug trafficking is in question
after the Brazoria County Sheriff's Office opted to end its participation.

Outside funding for the Galveston County Narcotics Task Force will end on
May 31. Without Brazoria County's participation, the task force will not
meet the state's requirement of multi-county cooperation.

"Come June 1, unless something changes there won't be a task force
anymore," Galveston County Sheriff Gean Leonard told the commissioners
court on Monday.

The task force was formed in 1990, with 75 percent of its funding through
the years coming from federal grants administered by the criminal justice
division of the governor's office. This year, the county received $673,000
and put up an additional $254,000 - only about $100,000 in cash - to run
the task force, said county grant coordinator John Simsen.

Its 17 deputies and officers from various city police departments share
information, run stings and focus their efforts on hot spots for drugs,
gang activity and prostitution.

Brazoria County Sheriff E.J. "Joe" King in January 2002 notified the task
force that he was signing the cooperative agreement for the last time,
giving Galveston County officials a year to make other arrangements such as
partnering with Chambers or Harris County.

King wrote that he didn't believe it appropriate to continue signing the
agreements. He could not be reached for comment on Monday.

The cities of Manvel and Danbury participated in the task force, each
hiring an officer who was paid for by the grant while the cost of benefits
and auto maintenance were picked up locally. There was no cost to Brazoria
County, officials here say.

"I don't see the downside of not signing," County Judge Jim Yarbrough said.
"It seems strange."

Larger cities in Galveston County have police officers assigned to
narcotics. The loss of the task force would be felt most acutely in smaller
cities, law enforcement officials say.

"They're an asset to the whole county and especially to the smaller
communities," Santa Fe police Chief Barry Cook said. The task force not
only has participated in drug investigations but have served high-risk
warrants that would have taxed the staffing and training of the local force.

"If something was to break in Santa Fe where we needed additional manpower
or investigators, we could count on those folks to assist us," he said.

The task force and its members are looking at options for continuing the
cooperation.

The county later this month will submit an application for continued
funding and make the governor's office reject it. That will be accompanied
by lobbying and the task force already has sent letters and met with state
lawmakers, Leonard said.

The multiple county rule was imposed by the governor's office and not the
federal government that was the source of the funds, local officials said.

The option of enlisting another county wasn't greeted with enthusiasm.
Local officials feared that coordinating with Harris County would mean
Galveston County officers would spend all of their time fighting drugs in
Houston.

Liberty and Chambers Counties have an existing alliance, meaning Galveston
County would have to turn over most of its equipment and control, Cook said.

Local law enforcement officials also plan to continue the task force
without the grant funds. The task force would likely operate more modestly,
and Santa Fe leaders, for instance, would have to decide whether to fund
the officer formerly paid by the grant or cut the position, Cook said.

Dropping the task force was not an option, officials said.

"I've been at it for 30 years and I don't see an end to drug trafficking or
the drug trade in foreseeable future," Leonard said. "We can only imagine
if didn't have a coordinated effort what would happen."

Leonard advised against yet another option that would involve seeking
antiterrorism funds also funneled through the governor's office.

"I don't see it as a replacement to the narcotics task force," he said,
adding he did not feel it proper to seek those funds simply because they
might be available.