Thread: Stats: 70 percent of drug arrests are meth-related

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Stats: 70 percent of drug arrests are meth-related


By JIM SECKLER

Saturday, February 25, 2006 8:35 PM PST



The Daily News

KINGMAN - Law enforcement agencies from three states are waging the war on methamphetamine in the Tri-state area.

The good news is the Mohave County Sheriff's Office has seen a decrease in the number of meth labs.

The bad news is that the use of meth has steadily increased with the county's increasing population, Sheriff Tom Sheahan said.


In 2004, the sheriff's office conducted 554 arrests involving drugs. In 2005, there were 591 drug arrests. About 65 to 70 percent of all drug arrests involve methamphetamine, Sheahan said.

Education is one of the main tools the sheriff's office uses to fight the use of meth in the county.

Since the early 1990s, the sheriff office's Drug Abuse Resistance Education program has aimed its program at 1,000 to 1,500 sixth-grade students in the schools in the unincorporated areas of the county including Fort Mojave, Mohave Valley, Topock and Golden Shores.

Next school year, the program will also expand to include fifth-grade students in county schools, Sheahan said.

Another key in the war on meth is working with local retailers to monitor unusual purchases of ingredients used to make the drug.

Bullhead City and Kingman, as well as Phoenix and Tucson, recently restricted the purchase of over-the-counter drugs such as pseudoephedrine at local pharmacists within city limits.

Lawmakers are trying to pass a similar law statewide.

Pseudoephedrine and ephedrine are main ingredients used to make methamphetamine, the drug directly or indirectly responsible for the majority of crimes.

Large amounts of purchased items such as iodine, matches or coffee filters that go into making meth are red flagged by retailers who alert the sheriff's office.

The sheriff's K-9 team is also instrumental in fighting meth. Police dogs save deputies valuable time and manpower in searching homes or vehicles for meth.

Sheahan said the number of meth labs found has decreased in recent years because of the persistent enforcement and the increasing difficulty in buying items used to make meth.

About four to five years ago, sheriff detectives raided 50 to 65 meth labs. Last year, only about 20 labs were discovered, Sheahan said.

Meth production has shifted to Mexico where large “super labs” can produce larger and cheaper amounts and better quality meth.

Mexico does not have the regulations that this country has to purchase ingredients used to make the drug.

It is estimated that about 70 percent of the methamphetamine produced now comes from Mexico's super labs, which is then smuggled into this country.

The issue involving the Mexican border greatly impacts Mohave County.

Sheahan said the federal government needs to put more effort securing the border, which would have a substantial impact on the meth problem. More border patrol agents are needed as well as using the National Guard, he said. A fence or a wall may also have to be built to restrict the flow of meth into this country.

Illegal immigrants cannot only import terrorism but Mexican gangs bring meth across the border to sell in Mohave County and throughout the state.

Another measure currently going through the Legislature is a radar detection system running the length of the state's border with Mexico.

About 60 to 70 percent of the inmates at the county jail are in custody because crimes they committed are indirectly related to meth use, Sheahan said.

More men than women are generally arrested but the number of women who use the drug is about the same as men. The people who use meth can be any race, any age and people with high, middle or low income. Sheahan said even seniors in their 70s have been arrested for using meth.

Meth destroys one's teeth, face and overall physical appearance, making it more difficult to find a job.

That leads many women, and men, to resort to committing property crimes, fraud and identity theft crimes.

Elementary age children tend to try marijuana, alcohol and other drugs instead of meth. Children tend to graduate to meth in their mid-teens, Sheahan said.

Children whose parents use meth are also more likely to follow in their parent's footsteps and use the drug.

Sheahan said 25 years ago as a sheriff deputy, he arrested the parents of people who are arrested today for meth use.

“When children are brought up in that culture, that's what they know,” Sheahan said.

Sheahan said parents should also be aware of who their children's friends are to protect them from drugs.

San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office Det. Clayton Bailey said his Needles office works closely with Mohave County's law enforcement agencies in combating meth along the Colorado River communities.

Meth is not as prevalent for high school-age students in Needles, who generally use alcohol or marijuana.

Like in Mohave County, Bailey said the use of meth has stayed consistent with the population growth. Meth labs, however, have decreased significantly in the Needles area.

Meth labs that still exist are usually found in cheaper motels. Motel owners notify police when bed linen is ripped up to make filters used in cooking meth.

Meth cookers generally cook a small batch of meth then flee in the middle of the night, Bailey said.

Like in Mohave County, about 70 percent of the Needles-area drug arrests involve meth. Those arrested for drug use are sent to San Bernardino County's drug court or other rehabilitation programs, Bailey said.

Meth labs in the Laughlin area are also becoming rare but the use of meth, especially at the hotels and casinos, has seen a steady increase, Las Vegas Metro police Sgt. Gino Briscoe said.

Briscoe said he has not seen a meth lab in the Laughlin area in the past three years. Like in Mohave County and Needles, meth is now coming from labs in Mexico.

Las Vegas Metro police also target sixth-grade students on the dangers of meth with its DARE program.

Another method is undercover operations that include the area's hotels and casinos. Metro police officers also conduct highway stops as another tool to search for drugs.

Briscoe also said officers conduct the “knock and talk” method of knocking on doors and talking to Laughlin citizens to gather information on the drug trade.

If someone is arrested for meth, they can be assigned to drug court for six months that includes drug counseling and testing. If they successfully complete drug court, the offender's felony charge would be reduced to a misdemeanor, Briscoe said.

“When children are brought up in that culture, that's what they know,” Sheahan said.

And in this area, they have a lot of kids who are in need of foster homes because their parents are in prison or dead for making or using meth.

Sheahan said the federal government needs to put more effort securing the border, which would have a substantial impact on the meth problem.

Another Sheriff asking for help. This epidemic is poisoning our people in almost every state. Sad very sad.

And since it has become quite obvious that the federal government has no intention of securing any borders, I'm thinking it is about time for the states to take it upon themselves and whatever happens will happen. We can't sit around waiting forever, can we?