Mount Hood Coalition Against Drug Crime

A Volunteer Community Outreach Program

Purpose

The purpose of the Mt. Hood Coalition Against Drug Crime is to create a safe environment for the residents and children of our community.

Goals

The goals of the Mt. Hood Coalition Against Drug Crime are to:

  • Form partnerships with law enforcement, schools, drug-treatment programs, local government, businesses, and community organizations;
  • Propose updated county ordinances to help support residents & law enforcement against drug crime;
  • Develop a community surveillance program to monitor drug activities, the data resulting from which will be turned in to local law enforcement monthly;
  • Report suspicious activity to the police, and maintain a log, including date, time of activity, and a description of the vehicle & driver;
  • Hold neighborhood rallies or marches, and invite the press;
  • Ask police to conduct sweeps of the targeted drug arenas, to arrest drug dealers, and to have suspicious vehicles towed;
  • Provide citizen training programs on how to recognize and monitor drug homes;
  • Provide mentoring programs to help those dealing with an active drug house on their street;
  • Create a larger coalition by joining The Crime Prevention Association of Oregon.

The Importance of Communities

According to Molly Wetzel (of the Drug Abatement Institute in Oakland, California),

…the drug business is a business that operates like any other business, except that it operates outside the law. It has its brokers, wholesalers and retail distributors. The drug house the the retail outlet of that business. And like most retail business enterprises it has a core staff that manages the retail outlet and numerous temporary part-time employees.
The success of a drug house is dependent on two factors; one staff that provides quality service and goods; and two, neighbors who are not organized, who are living in denial of the surrounding problems, who are willing to accept a lower quality of life, and who are unwilling to help themselves.

Questions

Here’s a list of questions for every member of the community to think about:

  • do you know who lives on your street?
  • do you have a problem house on your street?
  • do you know of a home where traffic goes in and out at all hours of the day and night?
  • do you know how to recognize a meth lab?

Results

“The Clackamas County Sheriff’s Department is thankful for the hard work that the many concerned members of the Mt. Hood Coalition have volunteered to combat crime in our community. In order to effectively combat drug and criminal activity, the police and the community must work together. With organized efforts, such as the Mt. Hood Coalition, we can make positive changes within our community.”

—Deputy Angie Brandenburg
Clackamas County Oregon Sheriff’s Department
July 2000