Pubdate: Thu, 06 Jun 2002
Source: Gleaner, The (KY)
Copyright: 2002 The E.W. Scripps Co
Contact:  http://www.thegleaner.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1634
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Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

OFFICIALS: METH PROBLEM MUST BE DEALT WITH AT LOCAL LEVEL

LEXINGTON (AP) -- Kentucky's methamphetamine problem will continue to grow 
unless the battle is intensified at the local level, state and federal 
officials said Wednesday.

"All of the federal resources we receive are a huge help in our continuing 
fight against methamphetamine," said Steve Pence, U.S. Attorney for the 
Western District of Kentucky.

"But we also have to have state law enforcement and local sheriff's offices 
and police departments and even the residents in high-intensity communities 
participate at increasing levels if we really want to get a handle on this."

According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, methamphetamine has 
become the No. 1 drug problem facing rural America, rivaling club drugs 
like ecstasy and cocaine in the nation's urban centers and crack cocaine in 
the northeast.

Some call meth the poor man's cocaine because it is a highly addictive 
stimulant that produces a euphoria similar to cocaine, but lasts longer -- 
six to eight hours compared with 20 minutes to an hour for cocaine.

Since it can be produced simply using a number of easily obtained 
ingredients, including cold medicine and lithium batteries, illegal 
production laboratories frequently pop up in homes as well as motels, vans 
and backyard sheds.

Production and use of methamphetamine has skyrocketed during the past 
several years throughout the Midwest, including Kentucky. Last year, 160 
clandestine meth labs were raided by law enforcement agencies in Kentucky, 
more than double the number in 2000.

"Methamphetamine certainly is a significant problem in Kentucky and is 
continuing to expand as a significant problem in the United States," DEA 
Administrator Asa Hutchinson said.

"There was a 100 percent increase in the number of meth labs seized in 
Kentucky during the past two years. That reflects a serious problem but 
also reflects effective law enforcement work and community support in 
addressing the problem."

Hutchinson, in Lexington to speak at a two-day summit on fighting 
methamphetamine and OxyContin abuse, said he plans to visit cities in 32 
states in an effort to inform communities of the dangers inherent in meth 
production and use.

"We have had significant amounts of success when it comes to fighting 
overall drug use in this country," he said. "We've reduced overall drug use 
by 50 percent in the last 20 years.

"But there is still danger lurking in the heartland of America, and that is 
the danger posed by methamphetamine. We're asking businesses, educators, 
community leaders and policymakers to ask themselves what more they can do 
to help fight this problem."
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