Mark Wilde Writes:
In my continuing effort to bust this outsider myth I turned to Allan Knox, an analyst for the Minneapolis Police Department. He ran a report for all people arrested on narcotics charges from May 1, 2004 through April 30, 2005
In that time there were 2,969 individuals arrested in Minneapolis listing NARC as the charged violation. 389 did not list a residence city.
1,836, or 71%, listed Minneapolis as their home town. 745 or 28% listed a city other than Minneapolis.
Now, Allan reminded me that one statistic does not a case make, but my point still stands: The majority of drugs bought and sold in Minneapolis are by people who live in Minneapolis.
A Star Tribune article this morning backs up my point as well. 31% of boys and 17% of girls in 12th grade in Minneapolis public school report being sold, given or offered illegal drugs at school.
Stopping a few idiots driving around Chicago Ave looking for drugs will not even begin to address the real problem.
Dennis Plante Responds:
There is absolutely no way you can draw the conclusion you have from the statistics you've cited. Even if you were able to get a break-down (of the offenses) from the arrest records, they would be inaccurate. ALL of the street-level dealers are smart enough to stash the bulk of their drugs somewhere other than on their person, so that if they do get caught, it is typically for simple possession of a useable amount.
Also, it is important to note that MANY of the problematic individuals that are picked-up for possession do NOT give-out their correct address when arrested. In many cases, to do so, would violate a lease agreement for the property, or jeapordize their relationship with the individual they were living with.
dennis plante lind-bohanon
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