Pubdate: Fri, 26 Dec 2003
Source: Daily Press (VA)
Copyright: 2003 The Daily Press
Contact:  http://www.dailypress.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/585
Author: Associated Press

LAWMAKER SEEKS TOUGHER PUNISHMENT FOR 'METH' TRAFFICKING

HARRISONBURG, Va. -- Alarmed by a rise in methamphetamine traffic in the 
Shenandoah Valley, police and a newly elected state senator are seeking 
tougher penalties for dealers of the stimulant.

Trafficking in the drug is concentrated in and around Harrisonburg and 
along the Interstate 81 corridor. Law enforcement officials trace its local 
introduction to about six years ago.

Local authorities have had to prosecute with penalties they consider to be 
too light for big-time pushers, said Tom Murphy, coordinator of the drug 
task force for Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.

"The community leaders we have are well aware of the situation," Murphy 
said. "In other parts of the state, they're not as familiar with the 
problems of meth because they don't have it in their back yard."

Sen.-elect Mark D. Obenshain, R-Harrisonburg, plans to introduce 
legislation at the upcoming assembly session that would provide 
methamphetamine the same sentencing guidelines as cocaine.

Murphy, a special agent with the Virginia State Police Drug Enforcement 
Division, heads the RUSH Drug Task Force, an eight-person team that draws 
members from the Harrisonburg Police Department and the Rockingham County 
Sheriff's Office. Over the last three years, RUSH has seized about 15 
pounds of methamphetamine per year, he said.

Also called speed, ice and crank, methamphetamine is a stimulant that 
causes hyperactivity and euphoria. Users can remain awake for days at a 
time. They ingest the drug by smoking, snorting or taking it orally like a 
pill.

Obenshain plans to introduce a bill that would impose stiffer sentences on 
dealers caught with especially large amounts. Under state law, 
methamphetamine is handled the same as heroin, cocaine and other drugs 
considered among the most dangerous, but without the penalty enhancements 
for higher amounts of cocaine.

A conviction for making, possessing or distributing the stimulant is 
punishable by five to 40 years on the first offense and five years to life 
on the second offense. A third conviction is punishable by five years to 
life, but comes with a mandatory three-year imprisonment.

The idea that toughening those penalties will reduce the flow of drugs or 
the number of users has its doubters.

"All these penalties are already very stiff," said Lennice Werth, a member 
of Virginians Against Drug Violence, a group that advocates an end to the 
drug war. "If the sentences are already long, making them longer is just 
going to cost more in incarceration. And you have to ask, is it going to be 
effective? There's no evidence that it's going to be effective."

Murphy said, "I think it's a deterrence, and it does make a difference." 
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