
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 10, 1991                   TAG: 9103100188
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: E-9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                LENGTH: Short

POLICE HOLD HOPE FOR DRUG HOT LINE

A drug hot line that became operational Jan. 2 has not yet resulted in any convictions, but the Virginia State Police have not given up hope.

Officers manning the toll-free line have answered 233 calls, said Carl Deavers Jr., who oversees the program for the state police. Rewards of up to $1,000 await callers whose tips lead to an arrest and conviction.

"The program is so new that no call has yet led to an arrest and conviction," Deavers said. "But we feel it's going to be very successful. The calls have run the whole gamut - some very sketchy, others very detailed."

Police hope to make the hot-line number - 1-800-553-DOPE - as familiar as the 911 emergency number. Callers anywhere in the state can dial the hot line to report suspected drug dealers and users to state police, who pass the tips to local law enforcement officers for investigation.

"The challenge we face just now is to get the word out about the hot line," Deavers said.

The hot line is available to callers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. A caller does not have to identify himself. Instead, a caller is given a six-digit code number by a hot-line operator. The code number is known only to the caller and police.

"The idea is to get information into the hands of local police while protecting the identity of the caller and not putting the caller in jeopardy," Deavers said.

In any subsequent call, the caller identifies himself by his code number. Then the operator can use the number to pull the record of the caller's earlier information.

The calls are not taped, Deavers said.

by CNB