Star-Telegram - Keeping the Heat on

Op-Ed

Star-Telegram - Keeping the Heat on

By John Cornyn

When a recent gathering of Arlington teens turned from a high school homecoming party into a violent shooting spree, a young athlete lost his life, and the dangerous reality of gang violence rattled a community.

The death of Sam Houston High School wide receiver Quintarick Wilson, who was looking forward to graduating this year and attending college, was a senseless casualty of a local gang rivalry and a sad reminder that the lure and dangers of gangs remain a real and serious threat in North Texas and across the state.

The problem of gang violence is one that local leaders, task forces and law enforcement throughout the Metroplex have been tackling for years. They have been vigilant and collaborative so that together, communities, schools and law enforcement are keeping each other informed and alert. They have had many successes and been effective in improving safety in communities and schools throughout the region.

Unfortunately, this problem will require even more aggressive efforts and attention.

In the U.S. Senate, I have been looking for ways to complement the hard work of local leaders and law enforcement with expanded resources, tougher penalties and innovative prevention measures. Most recently, the Senate unanimously passed legislation, which I helped draft, to fight rising gang violence through increased investments in enforcement, prevention and intervention programs.

The Gang Abatement and Prevention Act of 2007 would help those working on the front lines in the fight against gangs through new laws and tougher penalties. It also would authorize more than $1 billion in funding for investigations, prosecutions and witness protection programs, and in successful community programs to prevent young people from joining gangs in the first place.

I hope that, through a two-pronged approach of prevention and tougher prosecution, this legislation will drive gang membership down throughout the Metroplex and give parents, students and teachers greater peace of mind.

Not only will tougher enforcement and stronger prevention measures make schools and neighborhoods safer -- they also will save money. Gang activity places a major burden on local taxpayers, as the community is forced to pay for clean-up costs associated with graffiti and vandalism, along with increased police activity, emergency-room trauma care and incarceration.

As local residents shoulder the expensive costs of destructive gang activity, many young people in the region also are being confronted with the growing threat of a new and deadly drug: "cheese" heroin.

Highly addictive yet inexpensive, cheese is being marketed to children as young as elementary schoolers. The drug is made by blending "black tar" Mexican heroin and crushed, over-the-counter medications such as Tylenol PM. Since 2005, more than 20 Dallas-area youths have died as a result of overdosing on cheese.

Dallas law enforcement and schools have worked aggressively to stop the spread of this dangerous drug, and their efforts are paying off: The number of Dallas students caught with cheese is down this fall. But unfortunately, overdose cases are popping up in neighboring towns like Arlington and Irving.

I have been working to bring attention to this dangerous drug on the federal level. After several meetings with local law enforcement, community leaders and health officials, I introduced a measure to add cheese heroin to the list of illegal drugs in the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign, which would provide resources to target the drug on a local level. Fortunately, I was able to include this provision in the Gang Abatement and Prevention Act, and it now awaits consideration in the U.S. House.

I hope this important, comprehensive anti-gang and drug bill will be signed into law soon, to provide greater resources and support for the hard work of so many individuals in making the Dallas-Fort Worth area safer for our children and families.

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