An Ohio legislator said this week that he will not continue the push for recreational marijuana legalization after a resolution to give Ohioans a vote in the matter was sidelined last year in the Ohio House of Representatives. However, he said legalizing medicinal marijuana in the state is still a priority. One week after marijuana dispensaries opened their doors in Colorado, signaling the denouement in the state's march toward legalizing recreational use of the drug, speculation is running high on how the change will affect policy in other states. [continues 1327 words]
PARKERSBURG - Not only is there a new sheriff in town, the Wood County Sheriff's Department will welcome in the new chief and chief tax deputies today. Chief Deputy Shawn Graham said he and the Sheriff Ken Merritt plan on meeting with Wood County deputies in the first week of taking office. "We have ideas on what's working and what's not," said Graham. "I have my own ideas." Graham said he would like to make a bigger commitment to the drug problem in the Mid-Ohio Valley. He said it is "much worse than people realize." [continues 202 words]
There has been plenty of bad news in recent months about illicit drug use, particularly in regard to highly destructive methamphetamine. But there's a little good news for a change from an ongoing federal survey of teenage drug and tobacco use: Fewer teens are using illegal drugs and tobacco today than was the case a few years ago. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an annual survey of close to 70,000 people, illegal drug use among those ages 12-17 dropped from 11.6 percent of the group to 10.6 percent-a 9 percent reduction-between 2002 and 2004. Tobacco use also declined slightly, from 30.4 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds to 29.2 percent. [continues 159 words]
PARKERSBURG - For the past 20 years, the task of combating organized drug trafficking and other illegal activity has fallen upon the shoulders of the Parkersburg Narcotics Task Force. After 20 years of investigating crimes of every variety, the task force has accumulated a storied history. Through the years, PNTF agents have faced investigations involving illegal gambling as well as all types of narcotics trafficking, including cocaine, crack, heroin, marijuana, LSD and methamphetamine. From humble beginnings as a loosely organized, informal vice squad, the task force grew into a highly structured, federally backed unit that continues to be the bane of area drug traffickers, founding members said. [continues 1174 words]
In the fight against illegal drugs, the government of Mexico for too long has been all but a bystander. The spreading scourge of methamphetamine abuse, which unlike previous waves of drug abuse readily crosses social and economic lines, has changed policymakers' willingness to tolerate Mexico's indifference. Legislation rapidly gaining support in Congress would tie foreign aid to efforts to control distribution of pseudoephedrine, an essential ingredient of meth. Mexico imports far more of the chemical than plausibly could be used legitimately, and much of U.S. meth trafficking is supplied by so-called "superlabs" in Mexico. Under legislation sponsored by Rep. Mark Kennedy, R-Minn., top importers and exporters of pseudoephedrine would be subject to extra scrutiny. The president would have to certify that such countries are taking adequate measures to fight meth trafficking or else reduce U.S. foreign aid. In other contexts this might be called "pay for performance." Want U.S. taxpayers to bankroll subsidies for your country? Then help us fight meth. The measure was added to the State Department's budget bill in a lopsided House vote, and it now awaits Senate action. [continues 222 words]
PARKERSBURG - Teen drug use continues to be an issue in the Mid-Ohio Valley, officials said this week. Patrice Zucker, executive director of the Mid-Ohio Valley Fellowship Home, said it seems youths are abusing "harder" drugs these days. "I have a background in adolescent addiction. I think that it's a very present problem. If there's a trend I've seen in the last decade, it's that the amount and the intensity of the substances that are abused have worsened. They're getting into the tougher stuff quicker," she said Friday. [continues 626 words]
PARKERSBURG - Wood County commissioners agreed Monday to grant a request for $43,625 to cover lost grant funding in the prosecutor's office. During a meeting last week, Conley told commissioners she needed $36,316 to help pay salaries that were part of the lost grant funds. She informed the commission Monday, the total needed, including benefits would be $43,625. The commissioners voted unanimously to allocate the funds, with the stipulation if the Drug Task Force grant furnds ($20,800) come through, that amount would be subtracted from the allocation. The funding through the drug task force grant helps partially pay for an assistant prosecutor's salary who handles drug cases. [continues 494 words]
If an employer suspects that people are using illegal drugs in the workplace, does the employer have a right to use surveillance technology to catch lawbreakers who may be endangering their co-workers by getting high on the job? According to the National Labor Relations Board and the D.C. Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, no. The facts in a case decided by the court are these: Anheuser-Busch suspected that some brewery workers were using an elevator control room to smoke marijuana during work hours, so the company installed a tiny surveillance camera. [continues 225 words]
Laws dealing with criminal matters are written with the intent to protect the innocent citizens from the criminal element. Most laws do this. However, many of the laws do this while at the same time inconveniencing the very people the laws are written to protect. On Friday, we will again witness this when a law official comes on the books to combat the making of methamphetamine. Last week, on July 8, all stores selling any over-the-counter cold and allergy medication in which pseudoephedrine is the single active ingredient was required to be moved from the shelves to the counter. Before a sale can be made, stores require a picture ID, a signature and a reporting of the sale to the state Pharmacy Board. In addition, customers are only be allowed to purchase up to three packages of the drug every month. And, because of the limited amount of counter space at pharmacies, the fear is many drug stores will now carry fewer brands of these cold medications. [continues 363 words]
A methamphetamine bust is never routine for law enforcement officers. Because of the combustible mix of chemicals used in making the highly addictive drug and the possible volatile condition of suspects, this has become one of the most dangerous operations in law enforcement. This fact was evident last week when five lawmen and three suspects were sent to the hospital following a meth raid in Marietta. When the five officers, all members of a federally backed, multijurisdictional drug unit, began the raid the suspects began breaking glass containers holding chemicals. The eight were hospitalized and released after exposure to hydrogen chloride gas. [continues 401 words]
A countywide survey concerning student drug and alcohol abuse shows some disturbing numbers for Wood County Schools. More than 5,500 local students in grades 6-12 participated in the national PRIDE Survey for the 2004-05 school year. The results for Wood County were released Friday during a meeting of the Wood County Board of Education. According to the survey results about 56 percent of students in grades 10-12 reported they had drank beer during the 2004-05 school year and nearly 55 percent reported liquor use during the same year. In grades 6-9, about 27 percent reported drinking beer and 20 percent reported consuming liquor. [continues 450 words]
Presented with a challenge to California's dubious "medical marijuana" law, the Supreme Court might have taken the narrow course of upholding the federal government's authority to regulate dangerous drugs. That would have taken care of the problem-and, make no mistake about it, it is a problem. But instead, the court hinged its decision on the precedent of an old, badly flawed decision concerning limitations on wheat growers and the federal government's authority to regulate interstate commerce. Back in 1942, the Supreme Court upheld federal agricultural authorities' power to limit wheat crops. In that case, a farmer raising wheat for his own consumption challenged the rules. The court ruled that because his little crop theoretically could have a minor impact on the larger wheat trade, therefore the federal government could regulate even crops not grown for commercial purposes. [continues 235 words]
Probably no one in Parkersburg or vicinity shed any tears when four area men were sentenced to prison Monday for trafficking in drugs. What is, in our opinion, slightly eyebrow-raising is these four individuals had been suspected of trafficking more than $1 million worth of drugs-mainly cocaine-since 1995. These men, unlike many of the more recent drug busts, were not operating a meth lab out of a trailer. Meth use has been getting most of the publicity recently, for good reason. Meth is a dangerous and volatile drug. It is dangerous not only to the people making or "cooking" it, but because of the volatile nature of its contents to neighbors and the police who investigate suspects. Its use has been growing in West Virginia and other regions around the country because of the relative ease in obtaining material needed for its production. Legislatures in many states have attempted to tighten the law, making it harder to obtain these materials. [continues 312 words]
PARKERSBURG - Future federal budget cuts may adversely affect the local drug task force. West Virginia's share of funds from the Justice Assistance Grant Program has fallen from $4.4 million in 2003 to $3.3 million for the fiscal year that begins July 1, said Michael Cutlip, deputy director of the state agency. The Bush administration wants to ''zero out'' the money the following fiscal year and dedicate the funds to projects under the Department of Homeland Security, he said. [continues 325 words]
The West Virginia Legislature finally seems intent on addressing the explosive problem of methamphetamine manufacturing in the state. The usage and manufacture of this illegal substance has become one of the biggest problems facing this and nearly every other state. Meth users often turn to crime to feed their habit, and the manufacturers of this substance not only endanger themselves, but their innocent neighbors as well. Thanks to a push by Gov. Joe Manchin, lawmakers, it seems, finally got the message. [continues 440 words]
PARKERSBURG - Efforts are being stepped up to keep schools and students drug free. Ralph Board, principal of Parkersburg High School, said a few drug-related incidents have created concerns among parents and residents. "There are always concerns," he said. "I would be accused of having my head in the sand if I said there weren't concerns about students using drugs." Arrests on or around the PHS campus along with several lockdowns and drug sweeps of area schools this year have heightened fears about drug use by students. [continues 477 words]
Never before, at least in recent memory, has there been a more violent weekend than the one that just past. Three apparent murders-two victims found in 19th Street apartment after fire officials were summoned to a blaze at the residence, and another, also burned, found in a field in Mineral Wells occurred within hours of each other. Police are investigating whether there is a connection between the three victims. In addition there also was a separate shooting incident Saturday that sent two people to the hospital, one in critical condition. [continues 403 words]
PARKERSBURG - The Parkersburg Narcotics Task Force raided 30 methamphetamine laboratories in 2004. Capt. Rick Woodyard, commander of the task force, said this number is significantly lower than in previous years. The task force seized 51.9 grams of methamphetamine worth about $5,100. "We did 30 labs last year within our area, which was down quite a bit from the two prior years," Woodyard said. In fact, the task force was recognized by the Drug Enforcement Administration as one of two agencies in the nation that significantly curtailed the production of meth in their area in 2004. [continues 350 words]
PARKERSBURG - In many cases, police are disappointed when they don't find drugs during a search. That wasn't the case Wednesday during a search of Parkersburg High School. Detective Greg Collins, training and public relations officer for Parkersburg police, said he was happy no drugs were found during the 1 p.m. sweep of the school. Drug-sniffing dogs from area departments cooperated in the search of the school grounds. Classrooms, lockers, book bags and vehicles were searched during the operation, said Ginny Conley, Wood County prosecuting attorney. [continues 492 words]
Congratulations are due for another job well done by our law enforcement officers led by the drug task force who took down more drug pushers who poison people daily. Speaking from personal experience when we lost our son to a drug overdose sold by the likes of these peddlers a year and a half ago. Continued cooperation from the various police agencies along with the prosecutor's office and courts we hope will serve notice and a long prison term for those involved in the sale of illicit drugs. We appreciate our police officers who serve daily with little or no recognition for their efforts to rid our community and nation from this scourge. David W. Tallman Vienna [end]
