Mayor, Council plan drug abuse fight

LIHU‘E — Members of the Kaua‘i County Council are contemplating action intended to take a bigger bite out of drug use, particularly the use of crystal methamphetamine, on Kaua‘i.

Council members, who held a meeting at the historic County Building yesterday, reviewed a request from Mayor Bryan J. Baptiste and Roy Nishida, the county’s anti-drug coordinator, to secure $441,000 in funding from the U.S. Department of Justice to reach that goal.

The funds would be used to form a task force to target methamphetamine users, hire an attorney to specifically prosecute drug users, create fun, drug-free activities for youths, and have committees coordinate a county drug-response plan that has been heavily supported by Baptiste.

Council members decided to take no action on the request because Nishida was off-island yesterday. Council members said they wanted Nishida to provide a fuller explanation of the funding request.

If approved, the funding will strengthen ongoing efforts by Baptiste’s administration and the Kaua‘i Police Department to curb drug use on Kaua‘i, through enforcement, treatment, and public education.

In a letter to council Chairman Kaipo Asing, Baptiste and Nishida noted:

• Police officials plan to use $200,000 to form an “ice task force that will target methamphetamine users and distributors at all levels.” Baptiste and Nishida noted the task force’s prime goal will be to “dismantle, disrupt, arrest and prosecute all meth-trafficking organizations on the island of Kaua‘i, thus decreasing access to drugs;”

• Officials in the Kaua‘i Office of the Prosecuting Attorney plan to use $75,000 to hire a prosecuting attorney to focus on the prosecution of drug users. Baptiste and Nishida said the prosecutor’s office is a “key element of the law-enforcement component.” But Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, a former county prosecutor and brand-new council member, wondered whether there was a need to hire the new attorney. She said an attorney in the office already is involved in “vertical prosecution” of drug users. She said she wanted to see more documentation justifying the request;

• County leaders want to strengthen the network of prevention services to help Kaua‘i youths avoid drug use. Baptiste and Nishida noted island youths who have avoided drug abuse have done so because the adults in their lives “cared enough to assist them in developing positive personal qualities.” The adults have helped the youths “understand the dangers of drug use and supported them in their homes, schools and communities,” Baptiste and Nishida wrote;

• The Kaua‘i Offices of Community Assistance, headed by Bernard Carvalho, plans to use $85,000 to leverage state and community funds to offer “alternative and fun drug-free activities” for island youths. One proposal calls for developing a boxing program for youths between the ages of 7 and 19. The boxing program is targeted for those who may not be interested in other sports, Baptiste and Nishida said. “In addition to the drug-free message, it will promote fair play, discipline and a strong work ethic,” the county leaders said. A second program sponsored by county officials will establish after-school recreational sites around the island, they said;

• Staffers with Baptiste’s administration plan to use $81,000 to have four committees with the Kaua‘i Community Drug Response Plan work with a drug-action committee to implement the plan.

The plan is a four-part plan initiated by the Baptiste administration to curb drug use on the island through drug-prevention programs, treatment programs, enforcement efforts and help of community organizations and residents.

Part of the $81,000 also will be used to coordinate community drug-education activities that include yearly drug summits, youths summits, and skill-building workshops for youths.

Council Members Mel Rapozo and Jay Furfaro echoed Iseri-Carvalho’s request for a detailed breakdown on the use of the grant funds.

Lester Chang, staff writer, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net.