METH USE HITS COUNTY PROBATION

Officers Push For Community-Based Response

During a random house check last week, Blaine County Parole Officer
Jodi Brown discovered that a 17-year-old former Wood River High School
student was using methamphetamine. The student, who had been kicked
out of school because of his alleged involvement with drugs, violated
the terms of his probation.

Brown said the teenager allegedly bought the drugs on Lollipop Lane in
Gannett, the small town south of Bellevue where Brown lives. A search
of the youth's home produced a modified light bulb used for smoking a
rock of methamphetamine.

"Anytime we have information about drug activity, we share it (with
the police) as a matter of public safety," said Teresa Espedal, Blaine
County's chief probation officer, who hopes that the community doesn't
try to pass the problem off as someone else's. "It's costing millions
(nationwide). It's going to affect the (entire) financial picture."

The mission of the Blaine County Probation Department is to put
together plans for restoring justice that emphasizes an offender's
accountability for his actions, while assisting him in his education
and development of skills necessary to function in the community.

Juveniles with drug-related offenses fall under the purview of the
department, which has been recognized for its success at using local
resources for keeping young people out of the state correction system.
But, the state's preference for a diversionary program to help
redirect first-time offenders falls short where methamphetamine drug
use is involved, said Eric Thomas, a juvenile probation officer with
the department, housed in the new Blaine County Annex in downtown Hailey.

"Meth's a different game," Thomas said, adding that although many
adults are addicted to the drug, the fact that children are using it
is particularly troubling. "It is so fast-acting, so powerful, kids
are certainly hurting ... the luxury of experimentation comes at a
real high cost ... even the abuser doesn't deny the side effects." The
diversion program for juveniles has been in place since 1996. It is
typically linked to some kind of community service and restitution for
a violation of the law, but Thomas said the department is trying to
embrace a method of correction called "restorative justice" that is
even more integrated in the community. He said the system has been
shown to be effective in more rural communities like Bend, Ore.

"It puts more responsibility on the offender to fix the wrong," Thomas
said. "Who's been harmed? How are you going to fix it?"

Thomas said traditional responses and methods for helping an
individual get back on track in the community is falling short where
methamphetamine use is part of the offense, simply because the drug is
so highly addictive.

Treatment for many is elusive, either from a cost factor or when a
family support system is lacking, Thomas said. "It takes a long time
to heal. Meth corrupts basic human needs. It becomes a
substitute."

Despite the power of the drug to control lives, Thomas said rather
than drive addicts away from the community, what is essential is that
individuals interact and reconnect.

"Some of the education process has started," he said, adding that meth
has become a problem for younger people in part because they have seen
that some people succeed at being recreational users rather than the
full-blown addicts who are advertised in anti-drug campaigns. Kids
realize they are not going to die right off the bat.

"There is a natural state of depression when you come off this stuff,"
Thomas said, stressing again that the key to staying clean is
community support and interaction. Meth users with strong family
support are much more likely to kick the habit. "It's almost a
mandatory part of recovery, but it's not a guarantee."

"There needs to be a cultural change. We need the political leaders
here. Everyone spins around looking for the silver bullet."

Rathter than a silver bullet, Thomas suggests that people ask
questions like: "What type of community do we want to be? What kinds
of relationships are we going to have?"

To emphasize his point, Thomas makes a correlation with Las Vegas,
explaining that not everyone lives on the strip in utter hedonism.

"Las Vegas doesn't allow (tourism) to dictate the social norms of
their community," Thomas said. "We don't have to be a boring town that
no one is willing to come to. (But,) we can't let tourism be the
reason for not taking action. Accountability is not there. As a
community we can be different. We don't have to be what our visitors
are. We can work at policies that will make us a vibrant healthy
resort community."