OFFICIALS PLAN METH STRATEGIES

CULLOWHEE -- Officials and concerned citizens from around the region
gathered for a summit on the dangerous drug methamphetamine Wednesday.

Western Carolina University's Public Policy Institute hosted "Winning
the War on Methamphet-amine: A Multidimensional Approach" at the
Ramsey Regional Activity Center on campus.

Attorney General Roy Cooper, who has backed and implemented several
policies in Raleigh to battle the meth problem in North Carolina, was
the keynote speaker.

Several panels of experts from the fields of law enforcement, health,
state government and the media also informed the audience of the
various issues related to a dramatic increase in meth abuse in the
region over the last four years.

Meth is "the most dangerous drug that we have seen on the scene," said
Cooper. "It is a highly volatile synthetic drug."

Meth is a powerful central nervous system stimulant that interferes
with normal neurotransmission of the brain and spinal cord.

It is stronger and lasts longer than cocaine or heroin, according to
the SBI.

Cooper said that officials find children in 20 to 25 percent of the
meth labs uncovered. Rutherford County has lead the state for children
taken from homes with a presence of meth for two years. So far this
year, 25 children have been removed from those homes by the Department
of Social Services.

Cooper said that he saw a case where a mother had taught her
nine-year-old and her 14-year-old to help cook the drug.

Meth is often produced in small labs by uneducated addicts who use
simple ingredients found in various retail stores including items like
pseudoephedrine cold tablets, coffee filters, matchbooks, lye, iodine,
rock salt and paint thinner.

Rutherford County Sheriff's Chief Deputy C. Philip Byers told the
audience about his recommendations to the U.S. Congressional
Subcommittee on Criminal Justice in July.

He said that the meth lab problem is decreasing due to stronger
penalties and increased difficulty in obtaining the materials to make
meth, but that meth addicts are still on the street and they will get
their drug from importers.

"Those addicts, I promise they are going to get the drug no matter
what it takes," said Byers. "We are up against supply and demand, but
we can do something about it."

Byers said that pseudoephedrine products should be restricted in all
50 states.

He said that since Rutherford County is so close to South Carolina
that the addicts here will simply travel across the state line to
purchase precursor materials.

Byers recommended to the subcommittee in July to:

Restrict the sale of pseudoephedrine products nationally;

Tighten the Mexico border to help prevent meth trafficking from
Mexico;

Address the pseudoephedrine black market in Canada and
China;

Implement longer prison sentences for meth traffickers and meth,
producers and anyone who involves children in the trade or allows
children to reside in a home used for meth production;

Continue to prosecute meth manufacturers in the federal court system
for longer sentences that are beneficial to local law
enforcement;

Continue funding interstate drug interdiction teams;
and

Work with mental health providers to develop a better recovery and
treatment plan.

Byers also highlighted the recent announcement of federal funds to
provide a drug interdiction team in Rutherford County that will
consists of four officers, to help fight the trafficking problem.

Principal Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Michell Hicks
told the audience about how his tribe has handled the drug problem
there.

Hicks said that the Cherokee Police Department has worked to educate
the public on the signs of meth labs in the community. Hicks said that
21 percent of the cases in the Cherokee court system are drug-related
and the tribe has a drug program with 478 clients per month.

"Historically, drug users have found a haven in Cherokee," said Hicks.
"The new battle is bigger than we have ever seen before, but it is not
impossible to win."

A new law which will go into effect in January will control the sale
of key ingredients used to make meth. The law will require that tablet
forms of pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, commonly found in
over-the-counter cold remedies, be sold from behind a pharmacy counter.

Customers will also be required to show a photo ID to purchase cold
tablets that contain pseudoephedrine. Purchases will be limited to no
more than 9 grams of pseudoephedrine within a 30-day period without a
prescription.

Liquid and gel products would not be restricted by the law because it
is too difficult to isolate the chemicals used to make meth from those
products.

Oklahoma has seen an 80 percent drop in meth labs since enacting a
similar law last year.

Cooper said that the new law, which he championed to the legislature
and fought of retail and pharmacy groups to enact, will definitely
help.

Some critics of the law say that it will make it difficult for
law-abiding citizens to get help with common cold and allergy
symptoms. Cooper is not buying that.

"It is much easier for us to get treatment for someone with sniffles
than to treat a baby with brain damage from meth fumes," said Cooper.

Cooper said that he would like to form a statewide task force to
continue the battle against meth.

A final policy report will be written from the summit's surveys and
ideas from the discussions.