Sweeping injunction targets 'commuter drug dealers' in downtown L.A.

In an aggressive new tack in the city's crackdown on drug-dealing on skid row, L.A. prosecutors on Wednesday announced a criminal injunction targeting "commuter dealers" who come into downtown from other parts of town to sell their goods. The L.A. City Attorney's Office said this is the first time they have aimed an injunction at drug dealers rather than gangs. The injunction would ban 80 drug dealers from entering skid row, and would allow prosecutors to ban up to 300 additional dealers who police identify in the future.

The 80 men and women already identified are affiliated with 31 gangs and have come to a "mutual understanding" to forgo rivalries, keep the peace and share business, according to Peter Shutan, the deputy city attorney. The ban still requires a judge's OK, but it has already reignited the debate over the role of police on skid row, where distinguishing between addicts and dealers can be difficult. Critics say that some of the people included in the injunction may be addicts themselves who sell drugs to support their own habits. Skid row is the last stop for many, they say, and the bans could end up separating addicts who sometimes carry or sell drugs from the rehabilitation services they need.