Community action needed in drug fight, says sheriff
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GRANTSVILLE -- Drug intervention is a high priority for the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department as it has participated in 19 busts this year.
According to Sheriff Jeff Starcher, "the drug epidemic is alive and well in West Virginia and nationwide. All states are fighting the same battle as we are."
So far this year, the agency has responded to about 600 calls.
"That is a huge call volume for a department of this size. I would say that the drug epidemic has possibly had some involvement in our agency having such a high number of calls," Starcher said.
The department started tracking data this year to pinpoint areas of drug activity.
"It gives us an indication of possibly the route the drugs are being brought in on," Starcher said.
Recently, the department was awarded $3,214 from the Calhoun County Circuit Court as a result of a drug investigation in partnership with the state police.
A comprehensive three-phase plan has been in place for the past couple years. The plan has been successful, Starcher said.
"The reason for doing that was to build on our already existing drug enforcement three-phase plan and basically that goes a step further and lets us know, rather than being out in areas that (aren't) necessarily having issues in this county, maybe we should target this area because it has a lot of activity," Starcher said.
Starcher feels that combating the drug crisis should be a community effort.
"We are going to be out here and doing what we're doing to combat the problem but if you incorporate community-oriented policing and rely on the community to actively be involved, it will greatly improve our efforts," he said.
Starcher offered the following tips for community members to be aware of for drug activity:
∫ Report all suspicious activity
∫ Look out for people walking with backpacks in unusual areas
∫ Be on the lookout for suspicious out-of-state vehicles
∫ Be cautious of strong chemical odors
∫ Look for heavily traveled rural roads on certain times and days of the week
∫ Short visit, 5-15 minutes at one destination can be a sign of drug activity
He said if community members take note of those activities, it can help law enforcement combat the issue.
"We made training in drug investigations a priority here. Some of my guys have already completed that training that I have given them," Starcher said. "Our goal is for everyone to take drug investigation training here."