CARLSBAD -- More than 500 Carlsbad students who graduated from the D.A.R.E. program with their fifth-grade year were eligible to attend the first Carlsbad D.A.R.E. lock-in at the recreation complex Saturday. Only six showed up. Youth Adviser Bianca Morales was upbeat Saturday about giving the kids who did show a good time -- a little extra attention for their graduation from the drug-prevention program. The six participants were not all from the same elementary school, and were scrounging through the large plastic bags filled with T-shirts (500), squirt guns and other rec equipment planned for use during the lock-in. [continues 407 words]
CARLSBAD -- A representative of U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., lunched with members of the Carlsbad Community Anti-Drug and Gang Coalition at the Stevens Inn Monday to discuss methamphetamine problems and the community's response. John Lovell, Pearce's district representative, attended the lunch to prepare for a methamphetamine awareness workshop the congressman will be hosting from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. July 31 at the Pecos River Village Conference Center. The workshop will be open to the public. The congressman is working to spotlight the problems with meth and other drug addictions and what individual communities can do to alleviate these problems locally. [continues 373 words]
Behind marijuana, methamphetamine remains the second drug of choice for users in Clovis and Curry County, according to officials. And the destructive nature of the drug poses a community concern because it feeds crime rates and causes health and family deterioration, they say. Although meth production is down, meth-related use and crimes are a continuing problem statewide, according to New Mexico Drug Czar Herman Silva. According to a recent PNT story, law enforcement agencies in Roosevelt County said they have noticed a downward trend in meth arrests in the last few months, while cocaine use has risen. [continues 676 words]
Behind marijuana, methamphetamine remains the second drug of choice for users in Clovis and Curry County, according to officials. And the destructive nature of the drug poses a community concern because it feeds crime rates and causes health and family deterioration, they say. Although meth production is down, meth-related use and crimes are a continuing problem statewide, according to New Mexico Drug Czar Herman Silva. Arrests directly related to meth possession, manufacturing and distribution within the city of Clovis have dipped 65 percent as of the end of May compared to the same period in 2005, according to figures provided by the Clovis Police Department. There were 121 meth-related arrests by the department in 2005; this year there have been 28 in the first five months. [continues 614 words]
PORTALES -- The number of cocaine-related arrests is on the rise, according to Portales Police officials. Portales Police Capt. Lonnie Berry gave some examples: n A recent drug bust near the city park uncovered 50 to 54 baggies of prepackaged cocaine. n A search warrant executed May 27 netted several arrested and the recovery of 60 grams of cocaine. n In April, an ounce of crack cocaine was seized. Portales Police Department Chief Jeff Gill said 129 individuals have been arrested on drug-related charges since May 2005, and the more prevalent drug in those arrests is cocaine. [continues 255 words]
SANTA FE The state"s crackdown on methamphetamine production and sales continues, as new laws take effect limiting the availability of pseudoephedrine and toughening the penalties for trafficking meth. This is the second time in three years the Legislature has acted to control the spread of meth in New Mexico. Two years ago, it passed a bill making it child abuse to manufacture the drug in the presence of children, and taking the first step to control the ingredients used meth production. [continues 857 words]
FARMINGTON --A As new statewide laws limit the sales of pseudoephedrine and increase penalties for methamphetamine trafficking, local officials tout the initiative as a step in the right direction. Ken Christesen, director of Region II Narcotics Task Force, said his agency has seen positive results from similar laws. "We've seen a steady decrease in (meth) labs over the past several years," he said. "That's due to tougher laws and people watching ephedrine, and the amount of it sold." Although much of the substance is produced in Mexican superlabs near the U.S. border, Christesen said there are always users who produce for personal use. Those who manufacture for personal use often sell small amounts to offset the cost of their own supply. [continues 157 words]
SANTA FE -- The state's crackdown on methamphetamine production and sales continues today, as new laws take effect limiting the availability of pseudoephedrine and toughening the penalties for trafficking meth. This is the second time in three years the Legislature has acted to control the spread of meth in New Mexico. Two years ago, it passed a bill making it child abuse to manufacture the drug in the presence of children, and taking the first step to control the ingredients used meth production. [continues 664 words]
Measure outlawing cyber hunting also takes effect today Customers are now required to show photo identification to a pharmacist to buy medicine containing pseudoephedrine -- a key ingredient used to make methamphetamine -- under a new state law that takes effect today. The measure is among more than 20 new laws taking effect today. It and a companion measure increasing criminal penalties for trafficking in methamphetamine are designed to combat the manufacture and distribution of the drug. Gov. Bill Richardson, who signed the legislation into law this year, said Friday that the measures will give law-enforcement officers better tools to fight meth dealers. "Along with the nearly $800,000 we are spending on meth treatment this year, these laws show that New Mexico is committed to throwing the book at those who manufacture and deal meth," Richardson said in a news release. [continues 223 words]
First Of Two Parts Methamphetamine labs may not have the stranglehold they once had on New Mexico, but the number of victims the drug is enslaving continues to rise. Statewide, police are turning to the Meth Watch program to combat the addictive substance, and in Rio Rancho, that means more public education. Friday's first meth-awareness class, presented by the Rio Rancho Department of Public Safety on behalf of the Meth Watch program, came not only with information, but also with a challenge to act. About 15 people attend the class. [continues 1033 words]
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - It looked like Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson would coast toward re-election until Saturday when his little-known Republican opponent dropped out of the race and the GOP named a more aggressive candidate. J.R. Damron, who had no ballot opposition in this month's primary election, never got much traction in his campaign and was so far behind Richardson in fundraising that some GOP insiders questioned whether he could compete against the popular incumbent. The Santa Fe radiologist who has never held elected office addressed delegates at the Republican State Central Committee meeting and left without talking with reporters. [continues 424 words]
Researcher Says Data Will Help Hospitals In the emergency departments of St. Vincent Regional Medical Center and Espanola Hospital, 47 percent of patients who overdosed on drugs did so with the intent of killing themselves. They tended to be women, ages 23 to 35, who combined multiple substances, such as over-the-counter drugs, alcohol, tranquilizers, muscle relaxants and antidepressants, to harm themselves, according to a 14-month state Department of Health study of those two hospitals. It's unknown how New Mexico's overdose suicide attempts compare with other emergency departments around the country because such studies aren't common. However, the fact that more females were treated for nonfatal intentional overdoses than men corresponds with national trends. [continues 931 words]
On a typically busy Friday morning at Una Ala methadone clinic in Espanola, men and women pour into the tiny building and wait in line. Many clench money in their fists to pay for their daily dose of the synthetic opiate they drink as a substitute for the heroin they crave. Jeanne Block, a nurse and health educator for the New Mexico Health Department, waits by the front door so people looking for free doses of Narcan can find her. Narcan is a prescription drug that reverses the effect of heroin. Given to a person who has overdosed, the lifesaving drug "knocks the heroin off the brain receptors," Block says. It acts almost instantly, and those who've seen it take effect say it's like watching a dead person come back to life. [continues 647 words]
Chronic pain management is officially part of the war on drugs. The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Justice Department have had such bad results with controlling the illegal importation and use of heroin and cocaine that both departments have turned their focus on pain-management clinics to get some "success" stories. With a growing population of people suffering from severe chronic pain, prescribing strong opiates such as Oxycontin, have risen. Oxycontin, a Schedule II drug, gives up to 12 hours of time released pain control. [continues 415 words]
The founder of a drug and alcohol rehab program is hoping to turn an old Albuquerque detention center into a secure, residential treatment facility for New Mexico addicts in the near future. Renovations of the old jail have yet to begin, according to Second Chances founder Rick Kenery. At this stage in the project, he said it is hard to predict when the center will open. The title to the building was transferred last week, although the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center was relocated about five years ago, according to a jail division manager, Adan Carriaga. [continues 306 words]
Editor, I'm writing about Emil Crawford's thoughtful letter in Wednesday's Daily Lobo, "U.S. should follow Mexico by decriminalizing drugs." Suppose another country had almost no drug problem. Suppose that country had less than a small fraction of 1 percent of our drug arrests. And suppose that country had almost no "drug-related crime" and that their robbery rate was a tiny fraction of our robbery rate. Do you think it might be wise and prudent to carefully observe that other country's drug policy and that we should model that other country's drug policy? [continues 235 words]
Editor, In a bold move, the Congress in Mexico has voted to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, heroin and cocaine for personal use. The bill only awaits President Fox's signature to go into effect. The United States should follow Mexico's lead and decriminalize possession of drugs for personal use. The so-called war on drugs, one of America's longest and deadliest wars, has also proven to be one of the toughest wars to win. In effect, the war on drugs can only be won at the expense of personal liberty. [continues 141 words]
'Meth Watch' Aims To Help Retailers Recognize Customers Buying Meth-Making Ingredients New Mexico is adding another tool in its fight against methamphetamine, and it's beginning in Rio Rancho. On Friday, 13 New Mexico district attorneys gathered at the Department of Public Safety headquarters to announce an expanded methamphetamine-combating program and to train to take that program back to their districts. With the recent state legislation requiring pseudo-ephedrine products be kept behind a pharmacist's counter, many methamphetamine makers are importing that drug from across the Mexico border, state drug czar Herman Silva said. [continues 395 words]
Ronald Comanche Described As Gregarious, Positive By His Peers After Socorro High School teacher and coach Ronald Comanche was arrested last week on drug trafficking charges, students and coaches were asked about his nature as a person. Those who interacted with him directly gave positive reactions when given an opportunity by the Chieftain to comment on his character, and if there were any warning signs that illegal drugs might be something Comanche was or is involved with. Many seemed surprised by Comanche's arrest, saying news of his apprehension on Tuesday, April 11, was the first time they had heard his name connected with drugs. [continues 407 words]
ESPANOLA- More than two years after Gov. Bill Richardson demanded results from drug treatment providers in Rio Arriba County, the overdose death rate has remained constant and the state can't say whether treatment programs are working. While Health Secretary Michelle Lujan Grisham acknowledges that the state still doesn't have sufficient data to determine whether Rio Arriba County's drug treatment programs are effective, she said progress has nevertheless been made. The most visible sign, said Lujan Grisham, is the fact that treatment providers, consumers and others on the front lines of the drug war are now working together. That's a far cry from two years ago when they couldn't even stand to be in the same room, the secretary said during an interview Wednesday following a gubernatorial town hall meeting in Espanola. [continues 913 words]
Inside New Mexico
