METH BUST - THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN DRUG SEIZED IN SEPARATE LOCAL
INCIDENTS

Less than 12 hours after receiving information from a patrol officer,
an early morning traffic stop by the Washington County Sheriff's
Office took approximately $50,000 worth of methamphetamine off of the
street.

According to WCSO Lt. Shawn Judy, he, Investigator Doug Gregg and
Deputy Kevin Sanders and K-9 Scout stopped Joseph Bryan Robertson, 37,
217 Watertank Road, Jonesborough about 7:45 a.m. Wednesday.
Robertson's driver's license listed his address as Brimer Road,
Elizabethton.

Robertson was pulled over in the parking lot of Southwest Baptist
Church. Before the morning was over he was charged with resisting
arrest, three counts of assault on an officer, possession of drug
paraphernalia and possession of schedule II, IV and VI narcotics for
resale.

Asked if Robertson had any weapons in his possession, Judy responded,
"He didn't need any." Judy said the three WCSO officers had to wrestle
Robertson approximately 50 yards after he exited his vehicle before he
was subdued.

After Robertson was handcuffed and placed in a patrol car, other WCSO
officers joined the search of his 2004 GMC extended cab truck as well
as an attached trailer.

More than 3.8 ounces of methamphetamine was confiscated, as well as
more than $3,000 in cash. This is the second such seizure this year of
meth alone, as opposed to the more frequent meth lab arrests. The
methamphetamine was described as very high quality by Gregg. "This
probably wasn't made around here," he said. "I suspect this was made
in one of the super labs of California."

Sheriff Ed Graybeal said it was one of the largest drug seizures made
by the WCSO this year.

Robertson was the second local man arrested on meth charges Wednesday.
About 5:15 a.m., Sullivan County Sheriff's Office Deputy Danny Gilliam
received a call in reference to a suspicious person walking on U.S.
Highway 11W.

When Gilliam located the man, later identified as Tommy Lane, 32,
Captain Avenue, Elizabethton, he started to pat him down and
discovered 29 grams of methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and nearly
$1,500. The street value of the meth found was estimated at $3,500.

Lane was charged with possession of schedule II narcotics for resale,
violation of the Tennessee Drug Control Act and possession of drug
paraphernalia. Lane reportedly had wrecked the vehicle he was driving
prior to walking along the highway. He was being held in the Sullivan
County Correctional Facility in Blountville pending a bond hearing.

Wednesday afternoon, Graybeal said the two cases were not connected
"as far as we know."

District Attorney General Joe Crumley said Wednesday that since
Tennessee passed laws placing medications containing pseudoephedrine
behind store counters, there may be more incidents of imported meth.

"In the future the question is going to be can the chemists find
another component to replace ephedra," Crumley said.

Crumley said that in the 1970s and 1980s, meth, also known as "crank"
or "ice," was associated with over-the-road truck drivers and outlaw
motorcycle gangs. At that time, the primary method of use was snorting
the drug. Today, according to Crumley, most meth users either smoke
the drug or inject it intravenously.

Assistant District Attorney General Cris Ledford recently attended a
1st Judicial District Drug Task Force class offered to a variety of
professionals, such as paramedics and Department of Children's
Services officials.

"They need to know more than anyone (how to recognize the components)
because they are going into those homes all the time," Ledford said.

Ledford said she was surprised to learn the drug's attraction is a
"high" that lasts between eight and 12 hours. Those who smoke "crack"
cocaine experience a 15-minute high. And Crumley said he has been told
by meth users they were addicted to the substance after their first
use.

Crumley said he had heard the same about crack cocaine addicts but
that health problems in meth users usually manifest much sooner. "One
thing that's a real concern is the cost associated with inmates who
used meth." He said the dental decay associated with the consumption
of sodas and other sweet drinks is extreme among meth users.

Crumley said he recently met with members of the DTF, Johnson City
Medical Center employees, DCS officials and the Children's Advocacy
Center to develop a protocol for the medical treatment of children
exposed to meth labs.

"It's so common to have children present where a meth lab is
discovered," Crumley said. "When people think of labs they think of
test tubes and beakers. In the case of meth labs, they need to think
of extremely toxic chemicals in dangerous combinations."

The state's district attorneys general have also united in the fight
against meth. Recently Crumley traveled to Nashville to participate in
the production of the task force's Web site, www.MethFreeTN.org.

In 2004, according to the Web site 1,574 meth labs were seized in
Tennessee, second only to the state of Missouri.