Neglect, Abuse Often Associated With This Dangerous Drug

"Children living in meth labs might as well be taking the drug directly," said presenter Tamara Guy, from Prevent Child Abuse Illinois, during a seminar held on Tuesday at Kaskaskia College.

Denise McCaffrey and Guy, prevention resource developers for Prevent Child Abuse Illinois, presented "Living in Danger: The Impact of Domestic Violence and Methamphetamine on Children" at the college on Tuesday morning. Prevent Child Abuse Illinois is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide public awareness concerning child-related issues and help link the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), law enforcement personnel, and other departments, when necessary, to benefit the welfare of children.

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It's not uncommon for Annette Corrigan's children to inform her of the lessons they learn at school about avoiding drugs, drinking and smoking.

And it's always given her comfort knowing these lessons came straight from local police.

That comforting reality is threatened by a Wheaton budget proposal to eliminate DARE officers from local schools.

And that's prompted a lot of concern and questions among Corrigan and other parents at both public and private schools in Wheaton.

A pending city budget proposal would reassign the two DARE, or Drug Abuse Resistance Education, program officers to other enforcement duties. The police force would gain an additional shift commander, an additional detective and a new, full-time crime prevention and crime analysis officer.

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On the evening of Feb. 24, Ricky Jackson, 26, stood inside the Michel Student Center foyer with almost half a pound of marijuana, a hitter pipe and a scale in his backpack.

There was no one else in the building when University Police approached Jackson and found the paraphernalia on his person, but police said the evidence was clear -- Jackson intended to sell the marijuana.

Few drug deals are documented in University Police reports, and University Police chief Dave Baer doesn't view it as a pervasive problem.

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As Illinois legislators prepare to debate a new, practical plan for legalizing the medical use of marijuana (the Legislature actually passed a medical marijuana bill in 1971 but that flawed measure was never put into practice), they should consider a new study, published in the journal Neurology last month.

That Feb. 13 study, conducted by Dr. Donald Abrams of the University of California at San Francisco, found smoked marijuana to be safe and effective at treating peripheral neuropathy, which causes great suffering among HIV/AIDS patients. This type of pain, caused by damage to the nerves, can make patients feel like their feet and hands are on fire, or being stabbed with a knife. Similar pain occurs in a number of other illnesses, including multiple sclerosis and diabetes, and responds poorly to conventional pain medications -- even addictive, dangerous narcotics.

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BARRINGTON -- Barrington High School officials sent an e-mail warning this week to parents and staff members after two teenagers required hospital treatment for symptoms that police believe were the result of using tainted marijuana.

The alert warned that the teens, one of whom was a student, may have used marijuana laced with "an unknown and very powerful substance," officials said Friday.

"We are hoping this doesn't happen to anyone else," said Tom Leonard, school principal.

Barrington-Inverness Police Chief Jeff Lawler said a community alert was issued after the two teens were hospitalized in three days with what he said were similar symptoms. He did not release their names or ages. He also said he did not know whether the teens had been released from the hospital.

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Mickey Cobras Members Sold Fentanyl-Laced Drug: Indictment

Members of the Mickey Cobras street gang are responsible for at least five fatal overdoses from fentanyl-laced heroin they sold, according to a federal indictment unsealed Thursday.

Reputed gang leader James Austin, his cousin Johnny Shannon and five others were charged with the deaths and pleaded not guilty. They each face 20 years to life in prison if convicted.

Thirteen others are charged with conspiracy to make fentanyl at a laboratory in Toluca, Mexico, and smuggle the synthetic drug to Chicago and Detroit using a front company, according to another indictment unsealed Thursday. The Mickey Cobras were among those who bought the fentanyl, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which led the probe. $12 million in drug proceeds The government is seeking to recover $12 million in drug proceeds from the Mexican ring.

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ROCKFORD -- A 36-year-old Wisconsin woman faces homicide charges here for allegedly injecting her boyfriend with a load of heroin that killed him.

[Name redacted]a of Albany, Wis., was in custody in Green County, Wis., Monday awaiting extradition to Winnebago County on a charge of drug-induced homicide.

Her boyfriend, Max A. Huffman, 52, also of Albany, was pronounced dead, possibly from a drug overdose, at SwedishAmerican Hospital on Dec. 12, after being dropped off that day at the emergency room. A later examination of Huffman's body showed that he had died of a heroin overdose.

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ROCKFORD, ILL-An Albany woman is charged with murder in the December death of her boyfriend, whom Rockford, Ill., police say overdosed on heroin she gave him.

Albany police and Green County deputies on Thursday arrested [Name redacted], 36, of 202 Milwaukee St., on a charge of drug-induced homicide in the death of her boyfriend, Max A. Huffman, 52, Albany.

[Name redacted] waived extradition and was transferred Monday to jail in Winnebago County, Ill., where her bond is $50,000.

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SPRINGFIELD - In the ongoing battle against the methamphetamine epidemic State Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, has introduced a bill that will increase the punishment for buying over-the counter ingredients for methamphetamine production with a fake or borrowed ID.

The bill sailed through the Senate Judiciary Criminal Law Committee last week. The vote was unanimous.

Ephedrine or pseudoephedrine are ingredients found in over-the-counter medicines that are vital ingredients in the production of methamphetamine.

In recent years a number of laws have been put on the books to make it more difficult for would-be methamphetamine makers to purchase large quantities of ephedrine or pseudoephedrine. One law requires the person to show a photo ID and sign a log book when they purchase the items.

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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Legislation approved Friday by the Illinois Senate would increase the punishment for purchasing over-the-counter ingredients for methamphetamine production using a fake or borrowed ID.

The bill, introduced by state Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, unanimously passed out of the Senate and has been sent to the House for consideration.

"At a meeting with local law enforcement last fall, I was surprised to learn that criminals who use a fake ID to buy medicine containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine are not charged under the criminal code," Sullivan said.

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SPRINGFIELD - State Sen. John Sullivan, D-Rushville, introduced legislation which will significantly bolster the punishment for buying over-the-counter ingredients for methamphetamine production with a fake or borrowed ID. The bill unanimously passed out of the Senate Judiciary Criminal Law Committee on Wednesday.

Methamphetamine production is one of the biggest problems facing west-central Illinois police departments.

"At a meeting with local law enforcement last fall, I was surprised to learn that criminals who use a fake ID to buy medicine containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine are not charged under the criminal code," said Senator Sullivan. "With this legislation we send the message that if you misrepresent your identity to buy the ingredients to make meth, you face severe consequences."

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Sometimes the wheels of justice turn slowly. In the case of a former Galesburg Police lieutenant, they've been too slow.

The public has waited four months just to find out if an officer of the law committed a crime. We're still waiting. And it might be a while longer before we know.

Lt. David Hendricks was suspended with pay around Sept. 21, 2006, for violating department policy. We don't know what he did, but it was serious enough to call in the Illinois State Police to investigate. Sources tell us the allegations are that drugs may have been removed from the evidence locker.

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Medical marijuana has had a lot of successes. Eleven states have legalized the therapeutic use of cannabis for people whose doctors think they can benefit from it. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the right of physicians to recommend pot to their patients. A 1999 report by the federal government's Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded, "Scientific data indicate the potential therapeutic value of cannabinoid drugs, primarily THC, for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation."

But elsewhere, medical marijuana has stalled. Most states still don't allow it, and even in those that do, federal laws still ban the possession of cannabis. That means sick people who need marijuana for symptoms that don't respond to approved drugs must either do without or risk going to jail. Despite the IOM's call for more research, studies have been few and far between. As a result, the therapeutic value of cannabis remains largely unknown and untapped.

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Editor's Note: This is the third segment in a series of articles on drug trends in the area and the impact of the disease of addiction.

MONMOUTH - Steven has battled various addictions his entire life, but nothing compares to the stranglehold methamphetamine had on him.

Steven is a Warren County resident who agreed to talk about the dangers of methamphetamine as long as the Review Atlas agreed to protect his identity by not using his real name. Steven is his middle name. Methamphetamine, better known as crystal meth or crank on the streets, has become the worst drug epidemic in U.S. history. Most law enforcement officials agree the current methamphetamine epidemic is far worse than the crack cocaine craze of the 1980s.

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Jennifer Ledford stood at the lectern, her hands draped over a square, beige urn.

"This is the result of using drugs," she said, choking back tears.

Inside the box were the ashes of her 22-year-old son, Joe Hicks, who died of a fentanyl overdose just four months ago.

The room of 150 Marseilles Grade School students was silent as the mother told her son's story of drug addiction and her family's struggle with his death.

But for Ledford, the hardest part she continues to cope with is that her son was trying to get clean when he died. And he had been clean - -- for six months -- when he just had to have one more high.

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Regarding John Donald O'Shea's Feb. 11 op-ed, the U.S. Supreme Court made a terrible mistake when it created an exemption to the Constitutional and ruled in favor of allowing drug tests for students in extracurricular activities.

Student involvement in after-school activities like sports has been shown to reduce drug use. They keep kids busy during the hours they are most likely to get into trouble. Forcing students to undergo degrading urine tests as a prerequisite will only discourage participation.

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The first reaction for anyone reading "The Cocaine Epidemic" package in Sunday's paper should be alarm. Profound, unsettling alarm. Mounting cocaine arrests across the region during the past year testify to the epidemic's pervasive nature. Rising crime committed against businesses and private property hits home for many. Worst of all, violence spawned by drugs and gangs is increasing. Two homicides in Rock Falls appear to fit the mold.

However, it's the second reaction to this news that is more important.

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STERLING - From a secure location, an undercover officer peered through binoculars, looking for movement at a house on a busy Sterling street, well known to police.

Dressed in torn blue jeans, the Black Hawk Area Drug Task Force officer barked his observations into a pair of cell phones, one in each hand. On the other end were police from Sterling, Rock Falls, the Whiteside County Sheriff's Department and the Illinois State Police - a total of 17 officers - taking part in a joint drug operation.

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Drug abuse has reached "epidemic proportions" in Sterling and Rock Falls - splitting families, disrupting public safety, straining government resources and hurting the bottom line of area businesses, Whiteside County's top prosecutor warned in his annual report to the county board.

The most common drug police encounter is cocaine, in both its powder and "crack" forms, and the substance's effects are devastating the community, Whiteside County State's Attorney Gary Spencer said in an "editorial comment" attached to his report, which will be reviewed at Wednesday's board meeting.

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The Rockridge school district will host a community meeting at 7 p.m. Feb. 28 in the high school auditorium to discuss random student drug testing.

In January 2006 the Rockridge School Board approved a drug-testing program, but it won't be implemented until a five-person steering committee, formed by Superintendent Jack Bambrick, gathers feedback and researches aspects of drug testing.

With the help of the feedback from this community meeting, as well as one held in early January, the committee will explore who would be tested and how, costs, and pros and cons.

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