Pubdate: Sun, 12 Jun 2005
Source: Lexington Herald-Leader (KY)
Copyright: 2005 Lexington Herald-Leader
Contact:  http://www.kentucky.com/mld/heraldleader/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/240
Author: Ryan Lenz, Associated Press

WHEN POLICE CHIEF IS INDICTED FOR METH, IT'S 'THE TALK OF THE TOWN'

SEBREE - Police Chief Bobby Sauls promised to protect the community when
methamphetamine began moving into rural Western Kentucky.

The 65-year-old, gray-haired policeman and one other officer in the
department worked to seize clandestine meth labs and comfort citizens. The
mayor lauded them for their efforts guarding the town's 1,700 residents from
meth's reach.

So when he was indicted on two meth-related charges this spring, the news
shocked the quiet town 30 miles south of Evansville, Ind.

"It'll all come out one of these days, and it'll be a little different than
you all think," said Sauls, a former Webster County sheriff who grew up in
this town.

In Sebree, where dozens gather at The Purple Opry every Saturday to listen
to live bands play bluegrass standards, some question whether the
accusations are true.

"It's the talk of the town, everywhere you go," said Betty Catlett, 77, who
works at The Sebree Banner, the weekly newspaper her family owns. "Some
folks just think it can't be true, and others do."

It has been a decade since single-lab meth operations first appeared in
rural Western Kentucky. Agents now say the problem has become difficult to
control, especially since the drug is "cooked" from such common ingredients
as pseudoephedrine, found in over-the-counter cold medicines, and anhydrous
ammonia, a fertilizer stored in tanks in rural farm country.

Kentucky State Police seized 604 labs last year and about 250 so far this
year.

"Meth's got a tremendously detrimental effect across the board ... but you
don't hear as much with police getting involved," said Tony King with the
federal Drug Enforcement Agency in Louisville. "That's because meth scares
these cops to death."

Sauls pleaded not guilty to charges of criminal conspiracy to tamper with
anhydrous ammonia equipment to manufacture methamphetamine, and criminal
conspiracy to possess anhydrous ammonia in unapproved containers to make
meth.

State police have not discussed specifics of their investigation into Sauls.
A brief indictment said the crimes were committed in late 2003 and left open
the possibility that Sauls may have acted with another person. Sauls remains
the only suspect indicted in the crimes.

He remains free on his own recognizance while awaiting trial, though he's
been suspended without pay. One officer covers all of the town's shifts in
the interim, with the county sheriff's department assisting when needed.

Jim Bell, who owns Bell's Drug Store, said he's known Sauls most of his life
and finds the charges against him unbelievable.

"They're going to have to come up with some better-than-average proof," Bell
said. "If somebody is 65 years old and has a 32-year-old blond wife and she
owns a boat, then it's understandable. But this guy has a modest lifestyle."

"It's just really, really sad," said Catlett, of the Sebree Banner. "But I
don't think the Kentucky State Police would investigate anything for nearly
two years if they don't have some evidence."
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