Antonovich Urges New Approaches to Fighting Crack : Cocaine: Supervisor asks county justice committee to develop enforcement programs to stem use of the drug.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich is calling on county law enforcement officials to find new ways to attack the problem of crack cocaine addiction, which he calls “an epidemic which is threatening our communities.”

In response to a series in The Times this week detailing how crack undermines neighborhoods, damages the local economy and saps hundreds of millions of dollars a year from a wide variety of government programs, Antonovich asked the county’s Criminal Justice Coordination Committee to develop enforcement programs to try to stem the use and effects of crack.

“As we have learned from the excellent series of articles . . . the use of crack cocaine is responsible for much of the declining quality of life in Los Angeles County since 1984, from increased crime and homelessness to a skyrocketing demand for county services,” Antonovich said.

He noted one revelation in the series: that a single crack addict cost the county between $250,000 and $300,000, with additional unknown expenses in law enforcement, prosecution, public defense attorneys and courts not included.

The criminal justice committee is made up of representatives from local justice agencies, including the courts and Southland officials of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, U.S. attorney’s office and the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Executive Director Robert Mimura said his group will take a look at Antonovich’s suggestion to see what initiatives might be developed on the law enforcement end. Citing a rebirth in the popularity of heroin among addicts, he also said any new programs must be aimed at more than just crack.

“We need to take a look at the broader issue of drug abuse and how the criminal justice system can have a better response than just busting people and putting them away,” he said.

But he noted that the county lacks a drug policy that includes the kind of broad-based authority needed to tackle the problem.

“What is needed is an institution within the county, like a drug czar, that has policy-level authority to do something,” Mimura said. “It’s going to take a comprehensive approach that encompasses all of the elements that are involved--health, education and jobs, as well as criminal justice.”