White House nominates Kerlikowske as drug czar

The White House today announced the nomination of Seattle police Chief Gil Kerlikowske as head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, putting him in position to become the nation's so-called drug czar.

With Kerlikowske at his side, Vice President Joseph Biden made the announcement during a ceremony in the Executive Office Building next door to the White House.

"There is no one more qualified to take on this job than the chief," Biden said.

Biden said Kerlikowske would oversee a comprehensive effort to tackle the nation's drug problems, weaving together law enforcement, prevention and treatment programs.

One focus will be the increasingly violent Mexican drug wars, the vice president said.

Kerlikowske, whose nomination is subject to U.S. Senate confirmation, said he would seek to bring a "seamless" approach to drug issues, telling the gathering, "There is much work to be done."

The administration will remove the job's Cabinet designation — reversing an elevation of the office under President George W. Bush — although one administration official said Kerlikowske would have "full access and a direct line to the president and the vice president."

Kerlikowske is widely expected among drug-reform advocates to bring moderate positions to the job, balancing traditional law enforcement efforts against drug trafficking with support for court programs that steer drug users into treatment and tolerance for needle-exchange programs and medical marijuana laws.

Kerlikowske, 59, who has led the Seattle Police Department for more than eight years, told the department's top commanders recently that he expected to leave to take a top federal position.

Mayor Greg Nickels said he will announce the interim chief on Monday. Seattle Deputy Chief John Diaz has emerged as front-runner, according to a City Hall source.

As for finding a permanent replacement, the mayor said he will look for "the best talent out there."

"At the end of the day, it wouldn't surprise me if the best talent out there is from inside the department," Nickels said.

Nickels said Kerlikowske let him know early about the drug czar position, and that he tried to convince Kerlikowske to stay. In the end, Nickels said, he believed Kerlikowske wanted to serve in a more policymaking position.

King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg praised the nomination, saying, "Chief Kerlikowske will bring an important perspective to the job as drug czar. As a police chief, he is in a credible position to say that America's struggle to attack both the supply and demand side of drugs cannot be won by law enforcement alone."

Satterberg said the job will "take a balanced approach that includes more emphasis on drug treatment both in the criminal justice system and upon demand in the community. Then the resources of the federal government need to be aimed at securing the borders from major drug importers, and keeping the violence of the Mexican drug trade out of our country."

Seattle City Councilman Tim Burgess, chair of the council's public-safety committee, also lauded the nomination.

"Traditional drug enforcement methods aimed at first-time and casual users do not work. New approaches are needed. Chief Kerlikowske will lead this policy debate at the national level quite effectively," Burgess said.

Seattle City Attorney Tom Carr called Kerlikowske's appointment "a loss for Seattle but a great gain for the country."

"Having had the privilege of serving with him the last seven years, I believe that he will bring his experience, education, judgment and common sense to the seemingly intractable drug problem in our country," Carr said.

Before today's announcement of Kerlikowske's nomination, The Washington Post reported that concerns surfaced recently when Kerlikowske's stepson from a previous marriage, Jeffrey Kerlikowske, was arrested last week for a parole violation in Broward County, Fla.

The younger Kerlikowske has a criminal record that includes arrests for marijuana possession and distribution and was released from prison for battery in March 2008, according to the Florida Department of Corrections.

In his remarks today, Kerlikowske referred to struggles in his own family with drug abuse.

Kerlikowske, who was appointed Seattle chief in 2000 by then-Mayor Paul Schell, had worked the previous two years as deputy director of the Justice Department's community-oriented policing division during the Clinton administration.

Sources said Kerlikowske established ties in Washington, D.C., and has strong relationships with Biden and U.S. attorney general Eric Holder, who served as deputy attorney general during the Clinton years.

Kerlikowske began his career as a street cop in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 1972 and went on to serve as chief in two Florida cities, Fort Pierce and Port St. Lucie.

He led the Buffalo, N.Y., department in the 1990s, and left there for the deputy-director position in the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

In Seattle, Kerlikowske won credit for stabilizing the Police Department after the stormy departure of Norm Stamper as chief in the wake of the 1999 World Trade Organization riots, as well as the department's initial failure to unearth a detective's alleged theft of money at a crime scene.

Crime rates dipped during his time as chief, reaching historic lows in recent years.

But his tenure has at times been rocky, marked by controversy over allegations that he was too soft when it came to disciplining officers in misconduct cases.

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, when asked last month about Kerlikowske's possible departure, said "it would be important that we have a strong interim chief quickly and then we take our time and look at a permanent selection so we make sure we make the right choice."

Councilmember Nick Licata, who serves on the public-safety committee, said last month he would like to see someone from inside the department given serious consideration for both the interim and permanent jobs if Kerlikowske were to leave.

Kerlikowske's possible role in shaping drug policy for the Obama administration was applauded last month by local medical-marijuana advocates.

In 2003, Kerlikowske opposed a city ballot measure, approved by voters, to make marijuana possession the lowest law-enforcement priority, saying it would create confusion.

But in doing so, he noted that arresting people for possessing marijuana for personal use was already not a priority.

Joanna McKee, co-founder and director of Green Cross Patient Co-Op, a medical-marijuana patient-advocacy group, said Kerlikowske knows the difference between cracking down on the illegal abuse of drugs and allowing the responsible use of marijuana.

Douglas Hiatt, a Seattle attorney and advocate for medical-marijuana patients, said Kerlikowske would be a vast improvement over past drug czars, who he said used the office to carry out the so-called "war on drugs."

President Obama has looked to the Seattle area for three appointments.

Along with nominating Kerlikowske, the Obama administration has tapped King County Executive Ron Sims for deputy secretary of Housing and Urban Development and former Gov. Gary Locke for Commerce secretary.

Seattle Times staff reporter Emily Heffter contributed to this report.

Jennifer Sullivan: jensullivan@seattletimes.com or 360-236-8267.

Steve Miletich: smiletich@seattletimes.com or 206-464-3302