N.Y. State Police Chief Likely to Be Clinton DEA Nominee

New York State Police Supt. Thomas Constantine is expected to be tapped this week by President Clinton to head the Drug Enforcement Administration, sources said Tuesday.

Constantine, whose appointment requires Senate confirmation, would succeed former U.S. District Judge Robert C. Bonner, a George Bush Administration appointee who resigned in October to return to Los Angeles to practice law. The DEA chief oversees a 3,500-agent organization whose mission is to enforce the nation’s drug laws. The agency operates in 53 countries and all 50 states.

Assuming that Constantine is confirmed, he will inherit a job that will have been altered slightly as a result of Vice President Al Gore’s “reinventing government” effort. Initially, Gore’s task force had proposed merging the DEA into the FBI to enhance its effectiveness and efficiency. But the organization and some law enforcement experts resisted the idea. Instead, Atty. Gen. Janet Reno gave FBI Director Louis J. Freeh authority to ensure that the two agencies work more closely together to fight drugs.

Constantine, who acknowledged in November that he was under consideration for the post, speculated then that the Administration’s interest in him stemmed from his experience with anti-drug campaigns in New York. The 54-year-old Buffalo, N.Y., native has been a member of the state police force for 31 years.

Constantine could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Sources said that the announcement would come within the next day or two.