Monday, Oct. 14

 

New program helps police
make more drug arrests

[OCT. 14, 2002]  The Lincoln Police Department has a new weapon to use in the fight against drugs, according to Police Chief Richard Montcalm. The new program, called Directive Prevention Patrol, is designed to help the police arrest more drug users and especially more drug dealers.

"It’s a power shift directed toward drug enforcement," Montcalm told the Lincoln Daily News. "It gives officers working that detail a chance to focus just on drug activity."

It works like this. The department schedules men on four shifts. When scheduling allows, Montcalm pulls an officer from each shift and gives the group flextime to work solely on drug enforcement. That means they do not have to answer other calls or do routine patrol but can concentrate completely on apprehending drug users and dealers.

For example, they might be stopping vehicles that have been identified by community members as belonging to drug dealers — searching the vehicles for marijuana, cocaine, and the currently popular and very dangerous methamphetamine. The team usually includes Cpl. Tim Kerns and Jack, a dog trained to sniff out drugs.

 

"We’ve made at least 70 traffic stops, and we’ve become aware of where these vehicles are hanging out. We are able to focus on areas where drug trafficking is going on. During the three times we’ve done this, we’ve made 15 arrests."

They may also be looking for parties, which, if they involve alcohol, usually involve drugs as well.

The new drug enforcement program started in May, Montcalm said. In July and again in September the drug patrol was also out on the streets. The team may work on the drug enforcement detail for a week or two at a time.

Drug activity slows down after the Directive Prevention Patrol has been on the streets, Montcalm said, but later it will pick up again, so the prevention efforts must be ongoing. The drug patrol has no set time or pattern to be operating, so users and dealers can’t second-guess the police activity.

"We’re going to continue this proactive enforcement program as long as staffing allows," Montcalm said. Vacation time and sick leave make it impossible to keep the drug enforcement teams on the street continuously, because keeping enough officers on each shift to provide regular police protection must be the first consideration.

 

[to top of second column in this article]

"We couldn’t do this without community support," the police chief emphasized. "In law enforcement we cannot just measure our success by arrests. We have to measure our success by how well we meet the needs of the community. Our community surveys entail a number of questions that help us focus on what these needs are.

"Past surveys show that drug enforcement is high on the community’s priority list.

"Our drug problem is about the same as it has been in the past few years. But through community support we are making more arrests than we have in the past. We hope to see a decrease in drug activity in the future."

Drug use isn’t limited to any one group, Montcalm said. It hits all incomes, all ethnicities, all ages from juveniles to adults.

He is especially concerned about the community’s young people. Peer pressure to use drugs starts at a very young age. He’s been involved with programs to fight drugs for the past seven years — half of the time he’s spent on the police force.

He’s been teaching DARE — Drug Abuse Resistance Education — in the Lincoln area schools, along with helping to organize DARE activities, such as fishing derbies and bowling tournaments. He has also worked with the Logan County Sheriff’s Department on the tae kwon do competition. In addition, while working with young people, he created an anti-violence program that has gained national attention.

 

"I personally don’t want to see any of our kids get involved with drugs," he said. "That’s a high priority on my list. Some of the kids in this community who’ve died from involvement with drugs are kids I’ve known personally, either when I was coaching wrestling for School District 27 or when I was teaching DARE, so this hits home with me.

"I hope this new program deters people from using drugs and dealing drugs in Lincoln. I hope we can put the dealers in jail or at least convince them to stay away from our community."

[Joan Crabb]

Want your ad to be seen all over Logan County?

Advertise with

Lincoln Daily News!

Call (217) 732-7443
or e-mail
ads@lincolndailynews.com 

Our staff offers more than 25 years of experience in the automotive industry.

Greyhound Lube

At the corner of Woodlawn and Business 55

No Appointments Necessary

Lincolndailynews.com

is the place to advertise


Call (217) 732-7443
or e-mail
ads@lincolndailynews.com 


Articles from the past week

Saturday:

  • Governor favors hometown with funds

  • $12.5 million slated for Kankakee recreation and fitness facilities

  • Kankakee infrastructure to receive $3.5 million boost

Friday:

  • County considers zoning issues, sets date to approve budget

  • Abstinence is the right choice, speaker tells LJHS students (Teaching & Learning)

  • Fall landfill hours notice

Thursday:

  • An over-the-counter tiger is devouring our children
    Ephedrine use claimed teen’s life

  • Ephedra on trial:  Metabolife, Yellow Jackets cause health problems, death

  • Chamber prepares for Christmas parade

  • Illinois commemorative quarter design chosen

Wednesday:

  • Local authorities still searching for clues in 16-year-old's death

  • Lincoln one of 31 water treatment plants receiving low-interest state loans

  • ‘Back Talk’ airs this Friday on WMNW
    (Business)

Tuesday:

  • Council mourns loss of Alderman Stone

  • Miller receives first firefighter award

  • City, firefighters reach contract agreement

  • Body found in Salt Creek

Monday:

Back to top


 

News | Sports | Business | Rural Review | Teaching & Learning | Home and Family | Tourism | Obituaries

Community | Perspectives | Law & Courts | Leisure Time | Spiritual Life | Health & Fitness | Calendar

Letters to the Editor