Did You Know...

01-17-05 The recent wintry weather mix made for very hazardous driving conditions and sent a few people from the area into the ditches and ravines. Please allow extra time to get to your destination and be patient with other drivers. I want to thank everyone who attended the Drug Free Community Coalition (DFCC) meeting at the Scout Cabin on the 10th. The turn-out was awesome and everyone was treated to a great demonstration by Officer Mike Kay and his K-9 Krueger. We hope to do another demo soon. For more information on the DFCC call 503-704-3588 or visit the link on the Vernonia Police web site at http://vpd.vernonia-or.gov I want to touch on a few statistics I recently provided to Columbia County Mental Health and the DFCC. During 2004 the Vernonia Police Department made 88 arrests or an arrest every 4.14 days. This does not include the numerous juvenile violations where no arrest or citation was issued as they were just referred to the juvenile department. This also does not include the numerous times officers could have arrested someone but chose an alternative method to handle the situation. Of those 88 arrests 47% (40) were under the influence of alcohol or the arrest involved alcohol, 28% (24) involved marijuana, 15% (13) involved methamphetamine, 6% (5) involved other substances, and only 20% (18) involved no substances. As you can see, substances can have a dramatic effect on the number of subjects committing crimes and going to jail. Please be responsible with legal substances and seek assistance if you have an addiction to illegal substances. Visit the VPD web site listed above and go to the help links page for a list of service agencies that can provide assistance.