Newest Tucson City Council Members Get To Work

Dec 6, 2005, 10:23 AM MST

By Dan Marries KOLD News 13 Weekend Anchor

Methamphetamine use plagues cities across America including Tucson. It's a cheap and highly addictive drug whose users will do just about anything to get their next fix. That's why the Tucson City Council recently passed a law to restrict the sale of over-the-counter medications containing pseudo ephedrine—a key ingredient in the making of meth.

In their first order of official business, newly elected council members Nina Trasoff and Karin Uhlich got an update on the city's fight against the devastating drug.
"I feel like there's good progress being made," says Uhlich, a Democrat representing the city's ward 3, "as I noted, the importance is that products themselves are now off the shelves and behind the counter and I think there are other steps we will take together with the police department to build upon the progress and I'm very pleased by that."

Ward 6 Councilwoman Nina Trasoff, also a Democrat, echoed those same feelings. "I'm very pleased with what the police department is doing but it's only a first step, but we have to keep moving on that. I'm concerned because it's only $250,000 instead of the one million dollars in funding, so we're going to get very creative and I'm looking forward to working with the police department to find ways to do the rest of that plan even though we didn't get all of the money we wanted."

Tucson Police Captain David Neri told the council while officers continue to bust meth manufacturers the key to eradicating the problem depends on users getting treatment.

He said, "Meth addiction is truly the most difficult drug addiction to overcome so even for those people who have turned a corner in their life and have decided they want to seek help they still face probably the most difficult challenge they've ever had to face. In the absence of being able to diminish to demand, the profitability of this industry, it's availability will continue to plague us."

Does anyone know if the city officials of Tucson are really getting somewhere as this story suggests? Every little bit helps we know.... I just wish this meth demon that plagues the United States would be brought under control and eliminated. Kim