CITY'S CRACKDOWN ON DRUGS PAYING OFF

A White House Official Is Expected To Attend A Drug Summit Here In January

NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- Louise Masters knew there was a problem when her
new neighbors were getting visitors at all hours of the day and night.

"The traffic was unbelievable. Cars were stopping in the middle of
the street. There had to be five or six cars there all the time,"
said Masters, who lives on West Madison Avenue in the Mahoningtown
section of the city.

So when she saw Mayor Wayne Alexander advertising a hot line for city
residents to call about drug activity, she started dialing.

"I called every time I saw something happening. Some days I'd call
just so they wouldn't forget about me," Masters said.

Eventually it paid off and the landlord removed the tenants after
city officials alerted him to the increased traffic and concerns of
the neighbors.

That's just one tact the city has taken in its fight against drugs,
said Mayor Alexander.

In addition to getting landlords to evict suspected drug dealers,
city code enforcement and police officers have been shutting down
flop houses where drug users, prostitutes and dealers congregate in
the city, he said.

According to Alexander, about 10 have been closed in the past year.
They will eventually be torn down.

Presence Known

The houses dot all neighborhoods in the city with boarded up windows
and doors bearing fluorescent spray paint with the initials N.C.P.D.
and a smiley face.

"After our narcotics guys boarded up the first house, we decided we
wanted people to know that the police mean business. They got the
spray paint and had to ad lib a little bit and they put a smiley face
on one of them. People come out and applaud us when we do it," Police
Chief Tom Sansone said.

Alexander said he believes the increased vigilance of the city has
helped decrease drug activity and other crime.

"We feel that 80 percent of the criminal activity in this town is
related to drugs. Everything from robbery to house break-ins and
prostitution. We are seeing our numbers go down with these
incidents," Alexander said.

Alexander vowed to eradicate drugs when he took office two years ago,
and with the help of city police, state police, the Pennsylvania
attorney general's office, U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Drug
Enforcement Agency, city drug arrests have doubled over past years.
Alexander said he expects this year's drug arrests to triple.

The police department has averaged slightly more than 100 drug
arrests each year since 2001, according to police department records.
But in 2004, the number of arrests jumped to 201 and this year there
have already been more than 200 drug arrests, according to police records.

Unannounced saturation patrols in high drug and crime areas have put
a big dent in the drug activity, the mayor said.

New Equipment

And the city has been going after grants to pay for new tools to help police.

With a $247,000 federal grant secured by U.S. Rep. Melissa Hart of
Bradford Woods, R-4th, the city bought an $82,000 firearms training
simulator, which is one of only 10 in the country. The simulator
allows police to train with a wireless Glock pistol through different
video scenarios, as well as use it for regular target practice.

The grant also paid for new radios for all 35 officers that will
allow them to use them to and from work, keeping more eyes and ears
in the city, Sansone said. Previously officers had to share 10 radios.

The city has also ordered its own crime scene van and an automated
finger-print unit that will automatically identify people through a
national databank.

Alexander said the city is waiting on word from U.S. Sen. Rick
Santorum about a second $300,000-plus technology grant through the
Senate appropriations committee.

According to Alexander, the city plans to share some of its equipment
with outlying communities, particularly the firearms simulator.

The mayor said they realize when drug dealers and users leave the
city, they usually end up in a nearby township.

"They are feeling the residual effects of what we are doing. They are
seeing more drug activity and crime," he said.

Drug Summit

Alexander said the city is planning a drug summit in January to talk
about its accomplishments and see what else can be done. Mary Ann
Solberg, deputy director of National Drug Control Policy for
President Bush is expected to attend.

Alexander said the public is invited to attend the summit Jan. 12 at
the New Castle Senior High School. In addition to Solberg, there will
be DEA agents, U.S. Marshals and others on hand to talk about
combating drugs and how New Castle has been successful.

"I don't know of any city our size that has made more arrests and
made a dent in drugs," Alexander said. "We are not tolerant of drugs
at all. We want a drug-free community."