April 16, 2002
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War on drugs caught in Jeffeson Sheriff's web
	The web site also will include color photographs of some of the drugs more commonly used by teen-agers and young adults. "Most parents have no idea what a particular drug looks like," Thevenot said. "They could be cleaning a kid's room and see something. That little small pill could be OxyContin, or it might be a stimulant or a depressant. We're trying to make everyone more informed so they'll see problems and can address them early on when there is more of an opportunity to do something about it."
	The narcotics Web page is among several new and updated features on the Sheriff's Office Web site.
Using a map of the human body, photographs, hard facts and the click of a mouse, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office is giving residents a Web-based peek at its war on drugs.	Col. Ken Hughes, technology services director for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, is creating a Web page about the Young Marines, a program designed to foster self-esteem, discipline and civic pride in its recruits, and is awaiting final approval to feature deputies in a series called "Profiles in Blue."
The Sheriff's Office plans to add a narcotics section to its Web site in the next three to four weeks in an effort to inform the public about what deputies are doing to crack down on drugs and to teach people-- especially parents -- how to recognize narcotics when they see them.	Hughes said he has made other additions to the Web site in the past few months, including information about Project STAR, a program launched in 1995 to crack down on drug-related crime in 17 neighborhoods.
"We think it's important that citizens of Jefferson Parish are informed about narcotics trafficking in Jefferson Parish,' said Col. John Thevenot, commander of the narcotics division. "They can also get a gauge of how safe it is in Jefferson Parish and (see) that the police department recognizes that drugs are out there, and that we're trying to do the best we can."	He also reconfigured the Web page that includes monthly crime statistics from 1998 to this year, and added a bar graph that shows at a glance how crime stacks up, month-to-month, in the parish during the past four years.
A skeletal map of the body will show how different areas absorb particular drugs. Statistics will list what types and quantities of drugs were seized last year, the total street value of the drugs seizes and how many drug-related arrests were made.	"A picture is worth a thousand words," Hughes said, referring to the graph. "You can see really quickly what crime is doing in the parish."