AP 5 Oct 94 WASHINGTON (AP) -- A House panel took a look Wednesday at using the National Guard in the war against neighborhood crime, but civil libertarians said that could turn the country into a police state. The National Guard, which is part of the U.S. military, already has assisted local police fighting drug-related crime in cities in Puerto Rico, South Carolina and Arizona. Those operations "have been remarkably successful," said Rep. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Judiciary subcommittee on crime. The programs also drew praise from the governor of Puerto Rico and police from Sumter, S.C., and Phoenix. "The gravity of the crisis on our streets ... makes it appropriate for us to explore today situations in which the National Guard may be able to fight crime without endangering democracy or its primary purpose of military preparedness," said Schumer. But he acknowledged that "the very power of the military dictates caution in its use" in law enforcement. Civil libertarians evoked memories of protesting students shot and killed by National Guardsmen at Kent State and Jackson State universities and of National Guard helicopters buzzing over Grateful Dead concerts. The United States has a constitutional tradition of keeping the military and civilian authorities separate, and the use of federal troops to enforce civil laws is limited under the law. National Guard troops who took part in the local crimefighting operations did not make arrests and carried no automatic weapons, the officials testified. "The National Guard was a savior to our city. With their help we controlled crime and saw a significant drop in crime," said Harold Johnson, the police chief in Sumter, discussing "Operation Crackdown," a five-day anti-drug operation in December 1992. Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Rossello said the National Guard has been a tremendous asset in police operations fighting drug crime and has received "overwhelming public support." But Nkechi Taifa, legislative counsel of the American Civil Liberties Union, charged that "scandalous abuses of military power" are occurring daily in Puerto Rico, with housing projects being occupied by the National Guard and police. Abuses have included searching apartments and people without warrants, excessive use of force and a murder without cause of one youth by a National Guardsman, Taifa alleged. Mark Richard, deputy assistant attorney general at the Justice Department, said, "We should approach this with great caution and look for (crimefighting) alternatives before we ultimately settle on it." Maj. Gen. John R. D'Araujo, director of the Army National Guard, said the Guard's use by local authorities should be limited to support functions which do not involve coercive activities such as arrests, searches, seizures and jailings.