Pubdate: Sun, 10 Jul 2005
Source: Hendersonville Times-News (NC)
Copyright: 2005 Hendersonville Newspaper Corporation
Contact:  http://www.hendersonvillenews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/793
Author: Harmony Johnson
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

METH CASES ON THE RISE IN COUNTY

Even before she took the helm of Appalachian Counseling, where 80 to 
90 percent of the people in the agency's substance abuse program are 
seeking treatment for methamphetamine addictions, Jane Ferguson knew 
how devastating the drug could be.

An aunt, who had lived with her family for many years, killed herself 
in the early 1970s after struggling for nearly 30 years with a meth 
addiction. Later, the drug "decimated" the southern Illinois town 
where she grew up.

"When I moved here in 2000, nobody knew what it was," Ferguson said.

The year before, in 1999, Henderson County Sheriff's deputies 
investigated six meth cases, seizing $3,855 worth of the drug.

These days, the problem is too epidemic to ignore.

Last year, the county saw 122 meth cases and seized $201,722. From 
January through June of this year, deputies have already worked 67 
meth cases and seized $220,425. The drug accounts for 80 to 85 
percent of the county's drug complaints, said Lt. Steve Carter, head 
of the Sheriff's Department's narcotics division.

"More significant seizures, more weight -- that's the trend thus far," he said.

The area has seen at least two meth-related deaths this year.

The body of 38-year-old Lori Lynn Moore was found March 21 beneath a 
railroad trestle near First Avenue. Polk County jail inmate Franklin 
Donald McMahan Jr., 43, died Feb. 22 at St. Luke's Hospital. 
Autopsies determined that both deaths were caused by meth overdoses.

The highly addictive stimulant has effects similar to cocaine but is 
cheaper and lasts longer. Made from a combination of cold medicine 
and toxic household chemicals, meth can be "cooked" anywhere but 
usually in rural areas, its ingredients highly flammable and costly 
to clean up.

In the past year, state legislators have toughened penalties for 
meth-related offenses. Currently, the House is considering 
legislation passed in the Senate that would regulate cold medicines 
containing ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, key ingredients in meth.

But many community leaders say its not enough, and not happening fast enough.

They've begun taking matters into their own hands.

Task Force Forms

In May, 20 educators, social workers, counselors, nurses, law 
enforcement officers and business professionals formed Henderson 
County's Methamphetamine Task Force.

Organized by Ferguson, the group will develop protocols for agencies 
that deal with meth users, as well as methods to increase public 
awareness, education, training, prevention and treatment.

The task force, split into two subcommittees, has planned two 
meetings this month. The protocol committee will hold its first 
meeting at noon, July 19, in the Mountain Laurel training room off 
Fleming Street. The public awareness committee will meet at noon 
Monday at Appalachian Counseling.

Organizers are seeking legislators, firefighters, paramedics, 
doctors, business people, school officials and others affected by 
meth use to join the task force.

Course Of Treatment

Ferguson said she's hoping the task force's work will yield more 
educational programs and treatment options for those affected by meth.

"We need all we can get," she said.

Currently, meth addicts have few places to turn for help. For those 
who wind up in jail, Henderson County has no drug treatment program, 
while the state prison system's program isn't aimed specifically at 
meth. For other users, treatment at a private facility can be costly 
and out of reach, especially when meth has cost them their job, 
education or family.

Starting Aug. 1, Appalachian Counseling plans to launch a 
meth-specific treatment program. The intensive program includes 
individual, family and group counseling sessions six days a week, 
plus psychological and behavioral treatment, frequent drug screenings 
and classes on meditation, nutrition, exercise and recreation.

"With meth users, the more they have (to do), the easier it is for 
them to stay out of trouble," Ferguson said. "The more days we see 
them the better."

The cost of the program is based on a person's income. The agency has 
room for up to 20 participants, with 10 people signed up as of 
Friday, Ferguson said. Treatment lasts from six to 18 months, 
depending on each participant's needs, she said.

MORE WORK, LIMITED RESOURCES

As long as meth and its ingredients remain readily available, law 
enforcement officials predict increasing costs to society.

In Polk County, where police busted four meth labs in 2004, the 
Sheriff's Department averages one meth-related complaint a day and 
one meth-related arrest a week, said Capt. Chris Beddingfield, chief 
detective for the department.

The agency lacks an investigator whose sole responsibility is drug 
cases. Beddingfield said he thinks meth manufacturers target rural 
areas like Polk County because they know law enforcement agencies 
have fewer resources to combat the problem.

Henderson County will gain two additional resources this year. In its 
2005-06 budget, the Board of Commission approved two drug detectives 
for the Sheriff's Department. It's the first new staff added to the 
narcotics division since 1993, giving the agency a total of six 
investigators, Carter said.

The additions are much-needed, as the explosive growth of meth has 
meant more responsibilities for the drug unit, he said. On request, 
detectives are providing meth awareness training to school officials, 
firefighters, paramedics, doctors, nurses and other law enforcement 
officials, teaching them how to recognize meth users and manufacturers.

In the past year, Carter said, detectives have given more than one 
such seminar a month.
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