CIVIL REMEDIES: Spurred by their success in...

CIVIL REMEDIES: Spurred by their success in forcing criminals to forfeit the fruits of their crimes, police and prosecutors are turning increasingly to civil law to deter criminal activity. The actions range from evicting drug dealers from public housing units to barring gang activities under civil court injunctions. Those who violate such injunctions can be cited for contempt of court, even though the forbidden activity in itself may not be a crime.

Two principal reasons underlie the trend. Civil actions allow police to avoid the constitutional protections that require law enforcers to “jump through too many hoops,” according to one observer. They also represent a dimension of punishment that goes beyond just sending a violator to prison by allowing authorities to confiscate the proceeds of crime and attack the systems that support lawbreaking.

The tool of forfeiture is placing increased reliance on civil law, with the federal government’s recent asset seizures running 20 times the rate of four years ago.

BIGGER GUNS: As the bad guys arm themselves with newer, more lethal weapons, an increasing number of police departments are replacing their officers’ old reliable .38-caliber revolvers with semiautomatic 9-millimeter firearms. While 90% to 95% of police carried revolvers five years ago, a similar percentage is expected to pack semiautomatic pistols five years hence, according to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. Some 17 state police organizations currently issue semiautomatic handguns to their officers.

The advantage, advocates say, is that the faster-firing, heavier-ammunition side arm allows an officer in danger to fell his opponent more quickly, and also carries up to 16 rounds as compared to the revolver’s standard six.

Critics of the trend say it could cost the country more--in terms of dollars, deaths and injuries--than it will return in the form of greater officer safety.

COMMUNITY COPS: Efforts to reintroduce “cop on the beat” patrols in which officers become better known by citizens and help them with a wide range of problems are drawing favorable reviews. Not only does it enable police to obtain more cooperation from residents, it gives them a better line on neighborhood crime. New York City Police Commissioner Lee Brown, who advanced the technique while heading the Houston Police Department, is moving to give community policing its biggest field test ever as New York struggles to deter escalating violence.

No matter how successful police techniques are, however, they represent only the “front end” of the criminal justice system. Meanwhile, the “back end”--the jails and prisons--have been stretched far beyond capacity. As a result, experts predict that intermediate punishment--such as requiring drunk drivers to view traffic victims in morgues or keeping electronic monitors on probationers--increasingly will gain favor with hard-pressed state and local governments.

YOUR PROBLEM: In private meetings with police chiefs around the country, federal drug czar William J. Bennett has been chiding them for emphasizing the role of others, including schools and families, in combating the drug problem. Bennett, a former secretary of education, urges law enforcement officials to stress their own role in battling narcotics.