TV & VIDEO - Sept. 15, 1988

LeVar Burton of “Roots” and “Star Trek: The Next Generation” fame, is seeking an official apology today from California narcotics agents who detained him in Gilroy last week. The agents stopped Burton as part of a “profile” campaign against drug couriers from Southern California. Burton, who was en route to Ventana with his girlfriend and had gotten out of his car in Gilroy to add oil when agents approached, said one reason he was upset at the action was their refusal to tell him what was happening. “(The agent) replied, ‘It’s none of your business’,” Burton told the San Jose Mercury News. State narcotics officials confirmed that certain black and Latino men are being routinely stopped by the state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement because they fit the profile of Los Angeles gang members. American Civil Liberties Union lawyers have objected to the stops, which narcotics agents say began six months ago.