DEATH * BY * METH

This is dedicated to Travis Holappa who was kidnapped, tortured and murdered on July 25, 2004 in Northern Minnesota. This was all due to meth. I am Travis' mother and I wish to make this devastation turn into a better thing by educating and exposing the truth about meth, the dangers, and the deadly consequences it brings about to individuals and communities.

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Name:
Location: Colorado, United States

I want to do what I can to educate people about what is going on around the world with the meth problem. I want people to know about it BEFORE they even get the idea to want to try it. It is a dangerous drug and will ruin your life as well as all those who love you. I am on a mission on behalf of my only son, Travis.

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Mommy's Making That Rock Candy

Battling to save meth's youngest victims
by Maggie Behringer and Aaron Mesh

August 30, 2006

Betsy Dunn had been working for Tennessee’s Child Protective Services for a decade. She had seen children’s lives rent by abuse, neglect and cruelty. She had seen families destroyed and, every so often, she had seen hope restored. But when she walked into a Cookeville house in 1999, she saw something new.

“We were looking for a particular child, a child who wasn’t there when we arrived,” Dunn recalled in 2005. “But we saw all of this strange paraphernalia lying around. Immediately, I developed a terrible headache. I couldn’t stop coughing. It was like a bad case of bronchitis. There was a very strong odor in the home…

“My co-worker started breaking out into a rash. I said, ‘What is this? What is going on?’ It was my first meth case.”

Dunn shutters now, thinking back to the first methamphetamine lab she discovered in Cookeville. Then, she knew nothing about methamphetamine – the chemicals a lab produces, the effects those chemicals have on the body, or the extent to which her work would change because of the drug.

Now, she knows too much. “Children are living in environments that I would call gas chambers,” she says. “These are extremely toxic environments.”

Detective Steve Hope of the Red Bank Police narcotics department has also found his work changed substantially due to meth. Watching Hope in his small brown office, laughing with other officers and occasionally reaching for the Coke bottle that serves as his spit cup, doesn’t make for the standard tough-cop impression. However, once Hope is prompted to talk about meth, a store of knowledge and emotion emerges.

Hope illustrates the effects of each chemical through a series of graphic pictures. The images cycling on Hope’s computer screen, while horrible, could be the same as those run on the front page of a newspaper or shown throughout Frontline’s famed report on meth.

Until the series settles on one shot of a toddler. The small boy’s inner thighs have two red inch wide marks. Hope explains that these marks which look like diaper rash are in fact chemical burns caused by exposure to the manufacturing process of meth.

Lieutenant Tommy Farmer, a member of the South/East Tennessee Methamphetamine Task Force, has grown accustomed to a further horror: meeting children whose parents have become walking dead. “If they’re lucky, and they don’t blow themselves or the kids up, they’re going to get arrested or robbed or killed,” he says. “The children are going to lose that provider, that breadwinner, that affection, that person in the family.”

Hope, Farmer and Dunn might disagree on whether or not children can actually become addicted to meth though contact with a lab. Yet all three maintain that the drug presents more dangers to children than other drugs do. And even with meth lab seizures down by 70 percent in Tennessee, officials say use hasn’t dropped – and children are still being used as human shields in the drug wars.

Sitting at his desk, Hope introduces the chemicals used to produce the drug: anhydrous ammonia found in fertilizer, sodium or lithium metal from batteries, sudephedrine, fuel, sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide from Red Devil lye. The list continues: ether, Draino, red phosphorus, paint thinner and gas treatments. It’s a recipe for disaster. Ammonia and lye leave burns. Sulfuric acid creates teeth erosion and respiratory difficulties. Iodine is fatal if ingested.

(Meth connoisseurs vary the formula to fit their personal tastes. Farmer says that addicts will change the ingredients to alter the texture, look and high of meth. “I’ve heard individuals say they would rather use ether instead of Coleman fuel because [Coleman fuel] leaves a fuel taste,” he explains.)

Since cooking meth is a chemical process, it releases particles like other chemical processes. Those particles settle in carpet, wood, and air ducts, on ceilings, walls and toys. Children have a tendency to put their hands in their mouths – 200 to 400 times a day, according to Hope. This means the particles which children easily pick up crawling on the floor or playing with their toys are just as easily transmitted to their mouth.

Signs of meth exposure range from chemical burns and meth bugs – scabs on arms, legs and face – to a dirty appearance and a change in personality. Abuse, both physical and sexual, is also a factor. Parents who manufacture or use the drug are either unconcerned or unaware of the people coming in and out of their houses. “We may see the child forced to do the drug, which is not uncommon,” Farmer says.

As if that weren’t enough cruelty, there’s often another ironic twist: a meth-addicted parent will begin to see his child as an enemy. “The paranoia makes him think that the child is working with law enforcement, is spying on him,” Farmer says.

Other dangers can begin even before a child enters the world. Hope has recently developed classes on meth and pregnancy, self-described “shocker classes” designed specifically to get the attention of indifferent high school students. Should a woman use meth during her nine months, she places her fetus at serious risk. Meth travels very well through the umbilical cord, the same route that provides nutrients. This prevents internal organ growth. After birth, respiratory complications and brain underdevelopment are immediate problems. Then, there is the condition of withdrawal: a fetus, surviving for months on a diet laced with meth, suffers from disturbed sleep and eating patterns, much like any other deprived user. While long term effects have not yet been studied, abnormal habits through the crucial time due to other causes are often devastating.

How many children are placed in this sort of danger? Farmer says 750 children came into state custody because of meth in 2005 alone. But no one in law enforcement can say how many more children haven’t been discovered.

But while 750 children may be a statistic, each individual case is a tragedy. Dunn has seen the tragedies; she has heard the voices. “I’ve had children say to me, ‘Miss Betsy, my mommy’s making that rock candy on the stove and it caught on fire and we had to leave the house.’”

It was one such case that has shaped Dunn’s dealings with the drug, giving her a purpose. “It’s a personal promise I made to myself that everyone would know this story,” she begins calmly in her bright southern drawl.

When testifying before the House of Representatives’ subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy and Human Resources in 2005, she told the story. Dunn laughs and admits she cried on CSPAN; she jokes about her ultimate embarrassing moment. The specific case has become her consistent example when talking to the media about meth.

A few years ago, police located a lab in Cookeville, run by a mother and daughter along with several others. Through observation, officers discovered two babies and a 17 year-old boy, whom Dunn refers to as Jeremy. He proved difficult to place in the order of the house; police could not tell if he was involved in the manufacturing or simply a resident. His mother and sister quickly clarified the situation, disregarding him as “retarded.” He had also recently undergone a liver transplant.

Arrests were made and police dismantled the lab. Both the nine month old and the 18 month old babies were carried out in space blankets. Jeremy was dressed in a Tesnek suit, similar to a hazmat suit. “We call it the bunny suit,” Dunn explains. “I told him we were playing astronaut today.” She spent six hours in the Cookeville emergency room with Jeremy, watching as he ate everything in sight. He had eaten only one hot dog the day before.

After talking with him, Dunn realized that while the young man was mentally handicapped, he had been completely aware of what was happening in his home. The full understanding of what he had seen might have escaped Jeremy. Yet, between mouthfuls, he recited the step by step process of manufacturing meth, including ingredients. Dunn was shocked. “He really didn’t understand everything that was going on, but he had seen enough meth cooked know exactly what the process was,” she said in her House testimony. “But what was especially tough to swallow was the fact that he was a liver-transplant patient who was somehow trying to recover while in the toxic environment of a homemade meth lab.”

Looking around her office at picture of Jeremy and a Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal that was a gift from him, Dunn remembers a better moment of their conversation. They found that they shared birthdays and Dunn promised to celebrate with him.

Jeremy now lives in the same foster home in which he was placed that March. His foster mother is trained to care for adults with limited mental capabilities. The two babies were placed with relatives. For Dunn, the example of how meth affects children will always lie with Jeremy.

“He may have been a young man, but mentally he was no different from an infant,” she says.

Thanks in part to the recent laws pushed through legislation by Governor Phil Bredesen’s Methamphetamine Task Force, law enforcement and social workers have seen a 70 percent decrease in number of labs raided in Tennessee. However, Farmer notes that the Chattanooga area’s proximity to three state lines provides manufacturers access to three different sets of laws. If someone can only buy a limited amount of ephedrine in Tennessee, he can easily buy more in Georgia or Alabama. And Mexican methamphetamine is now streaming across the borders.

“The meth is still there,” he says. “It’s just been replaced by the Mexican methamphetamine. … There’s still a heck of a market for it.”

Farmer adds that much of the challenge still lies in public perception. “People think that drug use is a victimless crime,” he says. “That’s false. That’s false from the root up.”

Dunn fears that many of the victims have yet to experience the worst of their suffering. She’s seen too much of methamphetamine, but there are still things she can’t see yet.

“Long-term effects on these children, we really don’t have any idea,” she says. “What will this do to a developing liver, a developing brain, developing lungs? We do not know what the effect will be on these children.”
http://www.chattanoogapulse.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/08/30/44f47bcf0b0fb

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

States list meth offenders on Web

DRUG USE

About 15% of people age 12 or older reported using some type of illicit drug in the previous 12 months. What they used1:

• Marijuana/Hashish: 10.6%

• Painkillers for non-medical reasons: 4.7%

• Cocaine: 2.4%

• Methamphetamine: 0.6%

• Heroin: 0.2%

Some users reported taking more than one drug.

Source: HHS Office of Applied Studies (2004 figures, latest available)

REGISTRIES Approved

Illinois

Minnesota

Montana

Tennessee


REGISTRIES Proposed

Georgia

Maine

Oklahoma

Oregon

Washington

West Virginia

By Donna Leinwand, USA TODAY
States frustrated with the growth of toxic methamphetamine labs are creating Internet registries to publicize the names of people convicted of making or selling meth, the cheap and highly addictive stimulant plaguing communities across the nation.
The registries — similar to the sex-offender registries operated by every state — have been approved within the past 18 months in Tennessee, Minnesota and Illinois. Montana has listed those convicted of running illegal drug labs on its Internet registry of sexual and violent offenders since 2003. Meth-offender registries are being considered in Georgia, Maine, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington state and West Virginia.

SAFETY : Illinois communities back meth registries | On Deadline

The new registries represent the latest effort by governments against meth, which can be made from household ingredients such as cold medicines that contain pseudoephedrine. As meth labs have spread east from California during the past decade, most states have increased penalties for meth manufacturing and restricted the sale of medicines used to make the drug. Those laws have contributed to a decline in meth labs, according to the Drug Enforcement Agency, which reported that authorities found more than 17,000 labs in 2003 and more than 12,000 last year.

Tennessee has more than 400 people in its meth-offender database, which was created partly in response to complaints from landlords and other property owners about the toxic waste created after chemicals are "cooked" to make meth.

Illinois lawmakers approved a meth-offender registry in June, and last month Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty used his executive powers to create a registry that is to be online by Dec. 31.

The registries generally include the names, birthdates and offenses of convicted meth manufacturers, dealers and traffickers. The dates of their convictions and the locations of their crimes also are included. The listings are not as specific as those in sex-offender registries, which include offenders' addresses and photos.

Officials in Minnesota and elsewhere say residents and landlords will be able to use the registries to check for meth offenders in their communities. "We want to arm citizens with information, so they can protect themselves and their communities," says Brian McClung, a spokesman for Pawlenty.

The meth-offender registries have not been challenged in court, but the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other critics say there are legal and practical drawbacks to them.

Graham Boyd, director of the ACLU's Drug Policy Litigation Project, says the prospect of being listed on a meth-offender registry for at least several years after a conviction amounts to an extra punishment "that's not allowed under our Constitution."

However, three years ago the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a similar double-jeopardy argument when it upheld state registries for sex offenders, who the court said posed a unique threat to communities.

If meth registries are challenged in court, a key question would be whether meth offenders are as much of a threat to public safety as sex offenders.

Studies consistently have shown that offenders who abuse drugs have high re-arrest rates. Recidivism rates among sex offenders can vary widely.

Boyd also says drug users could use meth-offender registries to locate dealers. "One group for whom this registry is going to be an incredibly good resource is people looking to buy methamphetamine," he says.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-08-22-meth-registries_x.htm?POE=NEWISVA&POE=click-refer

Monday, August 21, 2006

Most at-risk children to get 'hug from community' (North Carolina)

By Rochelle Moore Daily Times Staff Writer

Eva Rogers and Kirsten Poythress thanked members of a Wilson church Saturday for reaching out to some of the most at-risk children in the county.


Members of Wilson's First Seventh-day Adventist Church presented Rogers and Poythress "Bags of Love." The bags, filled with toys, a stuffed animal, handmade comforter and personal hygiene items, will be stored and later given to children who are removed from a home during a methamphetamine bust.

"This will fill a great need because their environment will be very toxic, and they will not be able to take their things with them," said Rogers, the district administrator of the Guardian ad Litem program. "When a child is found in that environment, they will know there are people in the community who care — like you."

Rogers and Poythress were given 10 Bags of Love Saturday by members of the church's women ministry, which prepared each of the age-specific bags through the support of the church's missions department.

"When the kids come out of a meth lab, they can't bring anything with them," said Poythress, a child protective services social worker with the Wilson County Department of Social Services. "This right here is a hug from the community.


"These are the most at-risk children we will ever see. These are the absolute worst situations."

Even though methamphetamine busts have become more rare in Wilson County, the drug trade is expected to move more from the west to the east, Rogers said.

When police arrive on the scene of a methamphetamine bust, the home is often closed off and eventually condemned due to contamination from the drug manufacturing process.

The church's Bags of Love are one step in preparing for future meth busts, which occur unannounced.

"It's coming here from the west," Rogers said. "We're trying to be really, really prepared."

Once a child is removed from the home, they are placed in the custody of DSS, and, through a court order, assigned to a guardian ad litem. Guardians serve as advocates for neglected or abused children in court.

Members of Wilson's Seventh-day Adventist Church, on Lake Wilson Road, decided earlier this year to help the children through its Bags of Love program.

"I don't know why but I have a burden for them," said Betty Cox, a member of the church.

The first 10 Bags of Love are only a start for the church, which plans to continue giving the bags to DSS as needed.

"We just felt it's something that's needed and overlooked," said Gary Williams, an elder of the church. "It's a traumatic situation and shock to them to be displaced and lose their family and every item they have."

rochellem@wilsondaily.com | 265-7818

http://www.wilsondaily.com/Wil_region/Local_News/322126638219925.php

Man claiming 7 killings in Mo. charged

By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press Writer
© 2006 The Associated Press

DREXEL, Mo. — The wooded yard looked like an archaeological dig as investigators sifted the soil Monday for more evidence of the seven people Michael Lee Shaver Jr. says he shot, cut up and burned in his bedroom fireplace.

Shaver, who authorities say started talking about the bodies after he was arrested following a failed carjacking, was ordered held Monday on $1 million bail on charges of murder and armed criminal action in connection with one 2001 killing, and more charges could be coming.

A search of the rural property where he lived with his mother has so far turned up five quarter-sized bone fragments.

A forensic anthropologist determined Saturday that the remains belonged to two people, said Cass County Sheriff's Capt. Chuck Stocking. He said investigators expect to be at the property for at least a week and might drain a pond and septic pool.

It wasn't immediately clear when Shaver would be arraigned or if he had an attorney, Cass County Cpl. Kevin Tieman said.

According to an affidavit filed with the charges, Shaver told authorities he had bought methamphetamine from the man he is charged with killing in 2001. He said they met at an abandoned trailer in Kansas City, Kan., and Shaver later invited the man to his home for another drug transaction, the affidavit says.

Shaver said he shot the man while he was walking to the back door of the home near Drexel, then took some meth and $200 from the body, dragged it to a wooded area, dismembered it and burned it, according to the affidavit.

At first, Stocking said, he was skeptical of Shaver's claim.

The 33-year-old first mentioned that he knew something about human remains on the property near Drexel, an hour south of Kansas City, when officers arrested him Friday following the carjacking attempt.

Shaver later told investigators that he killed seven men _ all between the ages of 20 and 40 and from the Kansas City area _ during narcotics transactions so he could take their money and drugs, authorities said.

According to the probable case statement, he said he dismembered the bodies, burned them in the fireplace, then used a hammer to crush the bones. Shaver said he then spread the bone fragments around the back yard.

Stocking didn't ruled out the possibility that Shaver was exaggerating.

"He can say that he killed 50, but we have to prove that he actually did," Stocking said.

The killings are believed to have started about five years ago, about the time Shaver moved into the house.

According to court documents, Shaver was sentenced in 1997 to four years in prison for threatening a Kansas City police officer with a knife.

Neighbor Russ Feeback said people in the rural area noticed a lot of traffic at the house, and often heard the heavily tattooed Shaver yelling.

"Every once in a while there would be a gunshot. I just tried to stay away from him," Feeback said.

Another neighbor, Keith McMeins, said he sometimes heard loud fights between Shaver and his mother.

Tieman confirmed that the owner of the land was trying to evict the people because of a dispute over the home. Tieman also said county officers had been to the property about a dozen times in the last five years, including once on Thursday.

Shaver's mother, Shirley A. Bryson, 53, was arrested Thursday and charged with hindering prosecution, but was released on bail Sunday.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.mpl/ap/nation/4131186

Record meth bust in Atlanta suburbs (Georgia)

KATE BRUMBACK
Associated Press
ATLANTA - Federal officials on Monday announced a "record-breaking seizure" of crystal methamphetamine buried in the back yard of a suburban home that they say was operated by a Mexican-based drug ring.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents found 187 1/2 pounds of suspected meth and 41 1-kilo bricks - just over 90 pounds - of suspected cocaine during a search last week, said Sherri Strange, special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Agency's Atlanta office.

She called it the third largest meth seizure in the U.S. this year, with an estimated total street value of $25 million to $50 million.

"Atlanta continues to be a hub for meth distribution in the Southeast," Strange said.

Four men have been charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine: Eduardo Castro Torres, 43, of Michoacan, Mexico, also a resident of California; Julio Ruesga Barajas, 28, of Santa Ana, Calif.; Ignacio Castro Torres, 39, of Buford, Ga.; and Enrique Medina, 25, of Madalena, Mexico. All four were at the home in Buford at the time of the seizure. Buford is 33 miles northeast of Atlanta.

A notebook found in a hidden compartment of a Nissan Quest found on the premises is believed to detail transactions involving large quantities of meth and cocaine.

Strange said the agents were watching the house Wednesday and saw two of the men uncovering something in the backyard. The cache was hidden in duffel bags inside 55-gallon trash cans that were buried so that the tops were flush with the ground.

She called the case unique because the house itself was pretty "clean" - everything was hidden outside.

Law enforcement officials found a money counter and digital scales buried in a Rubbermaid container next to the garage. Inside the garage, they found $30,000 in cash wrapped in a clear plastic vacuum-sealed bag.

Officials said the operation in Buford was part of a Mexican drug ring that imports and distributes multi-kilogram quantities of meth and cocaine from Mexico by moving it through California and Texas to points throughout the U.S.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Thomas said the seizure "underscores the increasing significance that Atlanta plays in the world of drug trafficking."

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/mld/ledgerenquirer/news/politics/15326424.htm

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Tip leads to meth lab bust in county (Missouri)

By Joey Vaughan
jvaughan@cdispatch.com

A tip that a Lowndes County man was buying precursors led to the bust of a methamphetamine lab by Lowndes County Sheriff's and Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics agents, authorities said.

Lewis Perrigan, 47, of 536 Ward Road, was arrested Tuesday around 1:15 p.m. by LCSO narcotics agent Ivan Bryan and an MBN agent after he bought precursors at the Southern Family Market on Alabama Street.

“I had received tips and information on this guy manufacturing meth at his house,” Bryan said. “When his name popped up on the tip, I followed him to a couple of stores.”

After his arrest on the possession of precursors charge, Perrigan gave Bryan consent to search his mobile home. There, agents found Perrigan had a “shake-and-bake” meth operation, Bryan said.

Shake-and-bake is a method of making meth that involves combining the ingredients in a plastic bottle and shaking them to form the drug.

“It was a pretty good-sized lab,” Bryan said. “The problem with shake-and-bake is we're not getting the tremendous smell we used to get on cooking labs in the county. It's hard to find it because you can hide it in a two-liter bottle. He had his in a Tropicana fruit bottle.”

More traditional labs where the ingredients were cooked emitted an odor that often could be smelled from some distance.

LCSO narcotics agent Joey Brackin said Perrigan didn't have “a lot” of meth Tuesday, but it was apparent the lab had been in operation for some time.

“He had so much stuff where he had been making it in the past,” Brackin said. “It was quite a setup.”

The agents called in a meth lab processing service from Birmingham to clean up the site. Because of the volatile nature of chemicals used in making meth, rank-and-file law enforcement officers do not clean up the labs. Instead, agents trained in hazardous materials take care of those duties.

Bryan was at the scene until nearly 9 p.m. supervising the cleanup.

Perrigan is charged with possession of meth, possession of precursors and manufacturing meth.
http://www.cdispatch.com/articles/2006/08/16/local_news/area_news/area06.txt

Feds, tribal police unite in meth bust (Arizona)

Michael Ferraresi and Angelique Soenarie
The Arizona Republic

More than 500,000 doses of methamphetamine are off the Salt River Reservation after a seven-month investigation by tribal police and federal narcotics agents.

Officials targeted drug dealers preying on addicts in Arizona's Indian country. Salt River police announced the bust Wednesday with other members of a multiagency task force created through the Drug Enforcement Agency, considered the first to specifically target meth on an Arizona reservation. Officials said the partnership between tribal police and federal authorities could become a model for other tribes.

Most of the 15 pounds of raw meth, along with other drugs and guns, were seized from as many as 16 people focused on dealing on the Salt River Reservation. Some suspects were caught smuggling drugs from Mexico, officials said. advertisement




"All credit goes to the DEA for having the foresight to establish a partnership in Indian country that will make an impact," said Salt River Police Chief Stanley Kephart.

Salt River Tribal President Joni Ramos said she and other tribal leaders, along with police, have struggled to find a way to help families devastated by the grim aftereffects of meth addiction. Some families have children as young as 13 experimenting with meth.

A rising number of violent crimes and more drug overdoses are just some of the issues the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community has been forced to cope with, tribal leaders said.

"The medical costs that go with (meth) are just staggering, from overdoses to the little tiny baby that was born addicted to this insidious drug," Ramos said.

"The costs to this community have been great and will continue to be a challenge in the foreseeable future."

With the drugs coming up through Mexico, it is hard for investigators to say how much goes to Salt River or to neighboring communities such as Mesa and Scottsdale.

Mesa and Scottsdale police contributed to the investigation, along with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Fort McDowell police; Tohono O'odham police; and the U.S. Attorney's Office. Smaller quantities of cocaine, heroin and marijuana were also seized. The meth and other drugs have a street value of more than $1 million, officials said.

The maximum penalty for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute meth is 20 years in federal custody or a $1 million fine.

Salt River is considered the first Arizona Indian community to actively join a meth initiative, something authorities hope more tribes will consider.

"The message we want to deliver is that you cannot act with impunity in Indian communities," said Paul Charlton, U.S. attorney for Arizona.

Last summer, the Arizona Indian Country Methamphetamine Eradication Proposal was presented to 21 Arizona tribal police chiefs on ways to address drug trafficking in Indian communities. That proposal provided special training for tribal law enforcement agencies to work alongside state and local investigators.

The fast-rising meth problem was also a hot topic among community members at a recent election forum for Salt River Tribal Council candidates seeking a seat Sept. 5.

Some pledged to fight for better treatment programs and educational public-outreach programs to curb meth addiction.

Salt River is also part of an emerging group, the Northeast Valley Coalition Against Methamphetamine, which also relies on inter-agency information sharing to tackle the meth problem.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0817meth0817.html

Mom to be retried in baby's meth poisoning case (California)

The Associated Press
CORONA- A woman accused of breast-feeding her son methamphetamine-laced milk will be retried a third time on a murder charge, a judge ruled Monday.

"It was abundantly clear to the court that the cause of death of the victim was due to methamphetamine intoxication," Riverside County Judge Patrick Magers said in rejecting a defense request to dismiss the charge.

Amy Leanne Prien, who is currently serving a 10-year sentence for felony child endangerment, said she woke up Jan. 19, 2002, and found her son dead in bed.

Prien, 34, of Mead Valley, was convicted of second-degree murder in 2003, but an appeals court overturned the conviction citing flawed jury instructions. The district attorney's office retried the case, but a judge declared a mistrial in June after a jury deadlocked 6-6.

In the most recent trial, the prosecution argued Prien, who had smoked meth for 10 to 15 years, breast-fed her child after smoking even though she knew it could damage him.

When Prien was arrested, blood tests showed the methamphetamine levels in her blood were within a potentially lethal range, but police never tested her breast milk.

Her attorney, Joe Reichmann of Los Angeles, argued the charges were based on "make-believe science" because authorities never knew how much of the drugs were in her milk.

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/healthscience/homepage/article_1243577.php

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Guns, drugs and money were found inside Unique Photo (California)

Cops bust photo shop co-owner for meth

By Rachel Cohen, STAFF WRITER

PACIFICA — Behind the windows of an innocuous-looking photo shop filled with family portraits, a co-owner sold the hard-core drug crystal methamphetamine, authorities said.
Demetrio Tinsay Nagtalon, 62, was arrested Monday at 3 p.m., the culmination of a month-long investigation and surveillance into Unique Photo, located in the Fairmont Shopping Center. Nagtalon was co-owner of the business. His partner is not implicated in the bust.

San Mateo County Narcotics Task Force officers seized eight ounces of crystal methamphetamine — with a street value of $18,240 — almost a dozen firearms and more than $22,000 in U.S. currency from the 757 Hickey Blvd. business, a task force spokesman said.

"It is a sad case that he [Nagtalon— has drugs and guns inside when people are going there to do legitimate business. Now the public can feel good about going there," Narcotics Task Force Cmdr. Mark Wyss said.

Some of the guns and methamphetamine were found behind the sales counter and the majority was in a small back office. The methamphetamine was packaged in ready-for-sale bags and bulk quantities, along with packaging material and scales, Wyss said. No books or "pay and owe sheets" tracking the sales were found.

Two of the guns were loaded — one was behind the front counter and the other back in the office. Wyss added that it's common for drug dealers to arm themselves for protection. In total, the officers seized six handguns, two rifles and two shotguns

in the shop, plus an additional shotgun in a follow-up search at Nagtalon's Daly City home, he said.

"The guns in the office were not hidden; it was very small and cluttered," Wyss said.

The investigation began more than a month ago, when officers received a tip about the business. The task force sent undercover officers twice to purchase the drug. They presented their compiled report in an affidavit to a judge who issued a search warrant.

Before entering the shop Monday, the task force officers conducted an observation for some time to make sure Nagtalon was working and that no customers or other employees were present. Police said Nagtalon cooperated with them.

Nagtalon is charged with two counts of sales of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine for sale and possession of firearms while trafficking narcotics. He is being held at the county jail in lieu of $450,000 bail; arraignment is set for 1:30 p.m. today at the county courthouse in Redwood City.

A Unique Photo employee said they were open for business Thursday and would be open today.


Rachel Cohen covers public safety and can be reached at (650) 348-4339 or by e-mail at rcohen@sanmateocountytimes.com.

Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/448/police_drug_corruption.shtml

Another week, another set of corrupt cops. More problems in Memphis, a former cop in St. Paul gets indicted in a major coke and meth haul, and yet another prison guard gets caught smuggling dope behind the walls.

In Memphis, three police officers have been indicted on charges they ripped off drug dealers and arranged to sell the drugs themselves. Memphis Police Officers Antoine Owens and Alexander Johnson joined with former officer Arthur Sease in setting up drug deals, then swooping in with uniformed officers, detaining the drug dealers, and stealing their drugs, cash, and jewelry. According to WREG-TV in Memphis, police are naming Sease as the ringleader. He faces a 50-count indictment with charges including conspiracy, extortion, possession of a controlled substance, and numerous civil rights violations. Officers Owens and Johnson are charged with two conspiracy counts.

In St. Paul, Minnesota, a retired police officer was indicted on federal drug charges Tuesday, KSTP-TV reported. Former officer Clemmie Howard Tucker, 51, was identified as the man who tried to pick up a suspicious package at a Minneapolis bus depot. That package contained 22 pounds of cocaine and eight pounds of methamphetamine. The 25-year veteran faces one count each of attempting to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine.

In Richmond, Virginia, a Henrico County sheriff's deputy was charged last Friday with smuggling drugs, cigarettes, cigars, and other contraband into the Henrico County Jail. Deputy Ronald Washington, 23, allegedly made more than $1,000 for his efforts. Washington is charged with felony delivery of a controlled substance to a prisoner and misdemeanor delivery of articles to prisoners, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. He is being held without bond at the Pamunkey Regional Jail in Hanover County.

DEA: Meth Superlab Discovered by Mexican Authorities

News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 10, 2006
DEA Public Affairs
202-307-7977

DEA: Meth Superlab Discovered by Mexican Authorities
New U.S. Anti-Meth Initiatives Help Lead Mexican Law Enforcement to Massive Lab


Mexican authorities, in protective hazmat suits, prepare to enter the meth superlab.
AUG 10- (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – DEA Administrator Karen P. Tandy today announced the seizure of a large scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory discovered on August 1, 2006 by Mexican law enforcement officials in Jalisco, Mexico. The laboratory was discovered in a ranch in Tlajomulco de Zuniga, which is located just outside the city of Guadalajara. About 100 kilograms of finished methamphetamine, 3,000 liters of various solvents and chemicals, as well as four barrels of iodine were seized in the raid. Because of its size and production capability, the laboratory is classified as a “superlab.”

Four individuals were arrested at the scene of the superlab by the Jalisco Judicial Police and will be prosecuted in Mexico.

In May 2006, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, along with Administrator Tandy outlined a comprehensive anti-meth initiative which included training for nearly 1,000 Mexican police officials on a variety of investigative enforcement and regulatory methods related to methamphetamine trafficking.

The Mexican law enforcement officers from the Jalisco Judicial Police received a week of clandestine laboratory training from DEA prior to the discovery. DEA training efforts continue with several other police precincts throughout Mexico.

“Our new anti-meth initiative with Mexico is already making a difference in our fight to combat this deadly and highly addictive drug,” said Tandy. “Through extensive training and enhanced intelligence sharing, this bi-national law enforcement working agreement should keep meth traffickers looking over their shoulders every second of the day.”

Also seized was a large hydraulic press used to finish the methamphetamine product and chemicals used to manufacture generic cough syrup.

http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/pubs/pressrel/pr081006p.html

Police track ever-changing meth sources (Colorado)

By Pamela Dickman
The Daily Reporter-Herald

What was developed in 1800, used by the government during both world wars and now is considered a scourge of the nation?

Methamphetamine — a highly addictive drug that is taking hold at all levels of society.

The Larimer County Drug Task force spends most of its time trying to combat the use and sale of meth.

On Thursday, the Drug Task Force’s Lt. Craig Dodd and Sgt. Gordon Coombes gave the Larimer County commissioners a past, present and future look at the drug.

During World War I and World War II, the U.S. government used it as a combat aid because soldiers on the drug did not require as much sleep, food or water, Coombes said.

Japanese kamikaze pilots also used methamphetamine.

Although the recipes and methods of manufacture have changed, the results are the same: Users seem to need less sleep and nourishment. However, authorities know a lot more about the dangers and deadly risks of long-term use.

Illegal use began to grow in the 1960s with motorcycle gangs, spread to blue-collar workers wanting to enhance their performance on the job, then to all levels of society, Coombes said.

When Dodd first became a narcotics detective in the late 1980s in Larimer County, meth mainly was used by motorcycle gangs, he said.

“The issue was very small, and we were able to deal with it very quickly,” Dodd said. “The threat today is much more severe.”

Meth use exploded in the late 1990s with the information explosion on the Internet.

Online, anyone could find recipes to cook the drug. The number of highly explosive and toxic labs increased.

The drug became much easier to make and three to four times more potent, Coombes said.

Now, people’s sources for meth are changing.

In the current decade, Mexican cartels are taking hold as the main supplier, and the number of labs is decreasing. Drug officers say most of Larimer County’s meth is streaming in over the southern border.

The decrease in labs — three busted in Larimer County so far in 2006 compared with 19 in 2005 — is partially due to new laws that make it more difficult to obtain the required number of cold tablets for a batch, according to Coombes and Dodd.

The drug seems here to stay, at least in the foreseeable future, as do the ripple effects — children neglected and exposed to toxic chemicals, spikes in other crimes including thefts to pay for meth and violent crimes associated with the paranoia linked to use and failing health of the addicts.

The task force spends most of its time dealing with meth and could use more officers to do even more, Dodd said.

“I do consider the Larimer County community safer than most,” he said. “But we’re on the brink of losing ground.”

By the numbers

6 pounds of toxic waste is created per pound of methamphetamine manufactured

95 meth-related arrests in 2005 by Larimer County Drug Task Force officers, or more than half of the total 175 arrests

3 meth labs dismantled in Larimer County so far in 2006

10.9 pounds of methamphetamine seized in Larimer County in 2005

83.5 pounds of marijuana, 1,894 pot plants and 12.9 pounds of cocaine seized in Larimer County. These drugs are considered “gateway” substances to methamphetamine use.

— Source: The Larimer County Drug Task Force

Mother held after home fire (Idaho)

Officials say she was high on meth while son played inside with lighter

Taryn Brodwater
Staff writer
August 12, 2006

An Athol woman allegedly high on meth was arrested Thursday after her 4-year-old child set the family's home on fire while playing with a lighter.

Authorities who responded to the home on Goodhope Road said 32-year-old Teryn Ann Sizemore's home was littered with rotten garbage and so cluttered that it was hard to walk, according to police reports.

Her three children, described in sheriff's reports as dirty and smelly, told a Kootenai County sheriff's deputy that they hadn't eaten at all that day and couldn't remember if they were given anything to eat the day before.

The children – ages 4, 5 and 6 – were placed in foster care, and Sizemore was arrested on three felony charges of injury to a child. She was also charged with being under the influence of methamphetamine and resisting arrest, both misdemeanors.

Bail was set at $50,000 during her initial court appearance Friday.

Timberlake Fire responded to the family's home at 26412 N. Goodhope Road late Thursday afternoon. Sizemore told them her 4-year-old son had been playing with a lighter in her bedroom and started the fire.


Firefighters called the Sheriff's Department after Sizemore allegedly refused to stay out of the burning home and out of their way as they fought the fire.

According to a deputy's report, she picked up a bottle and threw it at the house and was yelling.

In the report, the deputy wrote that Sizemore "kept moving and swaying, and could not focus on what I was asking her."

The deputy asked Sizemore if she was under the influence of drugs, but Sizemore said she wasn't. A drug recognition expert with the Idaho State Police later did an evaluation and concluded that Sizemore was under the influence of methamphetamine, according to the report.

When asked about the mess in the house, Sizemore said her husband was dead and "that was the best that she could do."

Her daughters told the deputy that their younger brother played with the lighter all the time and was lighting pieces of paper on fire when a bed was ignited.

Sizemore's 6-year-old daughter said the children "don't eat very often because there's no food" and don't bathe often. She said they have to take cold baths when they do because there is no electricity.

According to statements from Sizemore's landlord, he was trying to evict her from the home. He said he had previously called the state Department of Health and Welfare out of concern for the children's welfare.

A neighbor told authorities that her husband almost ran over the children one night because they were in the road after dark.

In a written statement, she described how she once had seen the children eating a smashed watermelon off the road. She said the children told her their mother had told them to go eat it.

As the children's home burned Thursday, the neighbor watched them in her yard.

"The boy told me he lit a fire under his mom's bed, and (his sisters) told him he was dumb for doing it," the neighbor wrote. "I asked him later why he did it, and he said he was cold."

See story at: http://www.spokesmanreview.com/idaho/story.asp?ID=144470

Friday, August 04, 2006

Recovery Resources!!!

16 Steps of Discovery and Empowerment, Box 1302, Lolo, MT 59847; (406) 273-6080;
www.charlottekasl.com/16steps.html: Offers support for addiction, codependency, abuse and empowerment with The 16 Steps to help members celebrate personal strengths, stand up for themselves, heal physically, express love and see themselves as part of the entire community.

Adult Children of Alcoholics WSO, P.O. Box 3216, Torrance, CA 90510, (310) 534-1815;

www.adultchildren.org: A 12-step, 12-tradition program of women and men who grew up in alcoholic or otherwise dysfunctional homes, who meet in a mutually respectful, safe environment and acknowledge common experiences.


AIDS Service Center of Lower Manhattan, Inc.: Empowerment, 41 East 11th St., 5th Floor, New York, NY 10003; (212) 645-0875 ext. 148; www.ascnyc.org: Facilitates the creation of Empowerment, a peer-delivered recovery community organization.

Al-Anon/Alateen, 1600 Corporate Landing Parkway, Virginia Beach, VA 23454-5617; (757) 563-1600 or

(888) 425-2666; www.al-anon.alateen.org: Provides support for families and friends of alcoholics.

Alcohol and Drug Council of Middle Tennessee: Nashville Area Recovery Alliance, 2612 Westwood Drive, Nashville, TN 37204; (615) 269-0029 ext. 138; www.adcmt.org: This grassroots, membership-based organization is comprised of individuals in recovery, as well as their families and friends.

Alcoholics Anonymous, P.O. Box 459, New York, NY, 10163; (212) 870-3400; www.aa.org: Offers a support group that provides sponsorship and a 12-step program for life without alcohol. For AA meetings in your community, go to http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org/en_find_meeting.cfm.

Alcoholics Victorious, 1045 Swift St., Kansas City, MO 64116-4127; (816) 471-8020;

www.alcoholicsvictorious.org: A Christian-oriented, 12-step support group offering information and referrals, literature, phone support, conferences, support group meetings and a newsletter.

Alliance for Recovery, 6601 Grand Teton Plaza, Suite A, Madison, WI 53719; (800) 787-9979;

www.volunteersolutions.org: Empowers people to become advocates for recovery.

American Indian Community House, 708 Broadway, Eighth Floor, New York, NY 10003; (212) 598-0100; www.aich.org: Provides health and social services for American Indians in New York City.

American Self-Help Sourcebook, Saint Clare's Health Services, 100 East Hanover Ave., Suite 202,

Cedarknolls, NJ 07927; (973) 326-6789; www.mentalhelp.net/selfhelp: A searchable database of more than 1,100 national, international, model and online self-help support groups for addictions.

Anesthetists in Recovery, 8233 Brookside Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027; (215) 635-0183;

www.aana.com/peer/recovery.asp: A network of recovering nurse anesthetists who support one another through phone support, information and referrals to groups and treatment.

Asian Counseling and Referral Service, Inc., 720 Eighth Ave. South, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98104;

(206) 695-7600; www.acrs.org: Provides a culturally competent, linguistically accessible community recovery center for Asian and Pacific Americans and other immigrants and refugees with a history of alcohol and drug use disorders.

Association of Persons Affected by Addiction, 2438 Butler St., Suite 120, Dallas, TX 75235; (214) 634-2722; www.apaarecovery.org: A non-profit organization designed to engage the consumer and recovery community voice in reducing stigma and enhancing services, providing recovery support services.

Association of Recovery Schools, 145 Thompson Lane, Nashville, TN 37211; (615) 248-8206;

www.recoveryschools.org: Brings together students and secondary and post-secondary schools, and helps professionals to support students in recovery from alcohol and drug use disorders.

Augsburg College Step-Up Program, 2211 Riverside Ave., Campus Box 82, Minneapolis, MN 55454; (612) 330-1405; www.augsburg.edu/stepup/: Provides support to and special programs for students in recovery at Augsburg College.

Benzodiazepine Anonymous, 11633 San Vincente Blvd., Suite 314, Los Angeles, CA 90049;

(310) 652-4100: A mutual support group for persons in recovery from addiction to benzodiazepines (Xanax<0x00AE>, Halcion<0x00AE>, Valium<0x00AE>, Ativan<0x00AE>, Dalmane<0x00AE>, Librium<0x00AE>, etc.) or any other addicting prescription drug.

California Association of Addiction Recovery Resources, 2921 Fulton Ave., P.O. Box 214127, Sacramento, CA 95821; (916) 338-9460; www.caarr.org: Educates and provides statewide recovery resources for alcoholics and people with addiction problems.

Calix Society, 2555 Hazelwood Ave., St. Paul, MN 55109-2030; (651) 773-3117; www.calixsociety.org: A 12-step fellowship of Catholic alcoholics who help one another maintain sobriety through Alcoholics Anonymous and a focus on total abstinence and spiritual development.

CASASTART, The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), 633 Third Ave., 19th floor, New York, NY 10017; (212) 841-5200; www.casacolumbia.org: A community-based, school-centered program from Columbia University, designed to keep high-risk preadolescents (8 to 13 years old) free of drug and crime involvement.

Catholic Charities, USA, 1731 King St., Alexandria, VA 22314-2756; (703) 549-1390; www.catholiccharitiesusa.org: A membership association providing vital social services to people in need, regardless of their religious, social or economic backgrounds.

Celebrate Recovery, 25422 Trabuco Road, #105-151, Lake Forest, CA 92630; (949) 581-0548;

www.celebraterecovery.com/: A worldwide, Christ-centered recovery ministry focusing on the 12 Steps and their Biblical principles and the corresponding Eight Recovery Principles found in the Beatitudes.

Center for the Application of Substance Abuse Technologies, Frontier Recovery Network, University of Nevada, Reno, Mailstop 279, Reno, NV 89557-0256; (775) 784-6265; DEverett@unr.nevada.edu: Assists recovering individuals with education and referrals for treatment, housing, transportation, child care and life skills.

Center for Community Alternatives: Syracuse Recovery Community Support Project, 115 East Jefferson St., Suite 300, Syracuse, NY 13202, (315) 422-5638 ext. 222; www.communityalternatives.org: Organizes recovering individuals involved in the criminal justice system to improve the delivery of treatment to offenders and ex-offenders and to help reduce the dual stigmatization of ex-offenders in recovery.

Center for the Study of Addiction and Recovery at Texas Tech University, Box 41162, Lubbock, TX 79409-1162; (806) 742-2891; www.hs.ttu.edu/csa/: Provides social and financial support to students in recovery, offers a Substance Abuse Studies Minor and received a federal grant from the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment to begin replicating its Collegiate Recovery Community at other college campuses around the country.

Chapter Nine Group of Hollywood, MD, 1168 White Sands Drive, Lusby, MD 20657; (410) 586-1425;

www.medhelp.org/amshc/amshc52.htm: A 12-step program of recovering couples in which partners work together.

Chemically Dependent Anonymous, P.O. Box 423, Severna Park, MD 21146-0423; (888) CDA-HOPE; www.cdaweb.org: Carries the message of recovery to the chemically dependent person with desire to abstain from drugs or alcohol.

Children of Alcoholics Foundation, 164 West 74th St., New York, NY 10023; (646) 505-2060; www.coaf.org: Aims to reduce the impact of parental substance use on children and families and help children reach their full potential by breaking the intergenerational cycle of parental substance use.

Co-Anon Family Groups, P.O. Box 12722, Tucson, AZ 85732-2722; (520) 513-5028; www.co-anon.org: A fellowship of men and women - husbands, wives, parents, relatives or close friends - of someone who is chemically dependent, offering a 12-step program that combines self- and mutual support systems.

Cocaine Anonymous World Services, 3740 Overland Ave., Suite C, Los Angeles, CA 90034; (310) 559-5833; (800) 347-8998; www.ca.org: A fellowship of men and women who share their experiences, strength and hope to help others recover from addiction.

Community Recovery Network, P.O. Box 28, Santa Barbara, CA 93102, (805) 899-2933;

www.communityrecovery.org: Provides leadership in community responses to alcohol and drug use disorders.

Connecticut Community for Addiction Recovery, 530 Silas Dean Highway, Suite 220,

Wethersfield, CT 06109; (860) 571-2985; www.ccar-recovery.org: A community of persons in recovery, family members and friends whose goal is to put a positive face and voice on recovery.

Connecticut Department of Mental Health Addiction Services, 410 Capitol Ave., P.O. Box 341431, Hartford, CT 06134; (800) 446-7348; www.dmhas.state.ct.us: Promotes and administers comprehensive, recovery-oriented state services in mental health treatment and alcohol and drug use disorder prevention and treatment.

Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, 232 East Canon Perdido St., Suite H, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; (805) 963-1433; www.sbcada.org: Provides peer-led recovery support services in Santa Barbara.

Crystal Meth Anonymous, 8205 Santa Monica Blvd. PMB 1-114, West Hollywood, CA 90046-5977; (213) 488-4455; www.crystalmeth.org: A 12-step fellowship for those in recovery from addiction to crystal meth.

Double Trouble Recovery, Inc., P.O. Box 245055, Brooklyn, NY 11224; (718) 373-2684;

www.doubletroubleinrecovery.org: A fellowship of men and women, dually diagnosed with an addiction and a mental disorder, who share their experience strength and hope.

Dual Diagnosis Anonymous World Services, Inc, 320 North "E" St., Suite 209, San Bernardino, CA 92401; (909) 888-9282; www.ddaworldwide.org: Addresses the needs of individuals diagnosed with co-occurring alcohol and drug use disorders and mental illness.

Dual Recovery Anonymous, P.O. Box 8107, Prairie Village, KS 66208; (877) 883-2332;

www.draonline.org: A self-help program for individuals who experience a dual disorder of chemical dependency and a psychiatric or emotional illness, based on the 12 steps and personal experiences.

Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians: A-Ye-Ga: Awakening the Recovery Spirit, Eastern Band of Cherokee Nation, PO Box 455, Cherokee, NC 28719; (828) 497-2088; www.nc-cherokee.com: A recovery community organization of, by and for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

El Paso Alliance, Inc.: Recovery Alliance, 6000 Welch No. 7, El Paso, TX 79905; (915) 594-7000;

www.recoveryalliance.net: A community organization of people in recovery from alcohol and drug use disorders and their family, friends and community allies.

Faces and Voices of Recovery, 1010 Vermont Ave. NW, Suite 708, Washington, D.C. 20005;

(202) 737-0690; www.facesandvoicesofrecovery.org: A national recovery advocacy campaign mobilizing people in recovery from alcohol and drug use disorders and their family members, friends and allies.

Families Anonymous, P.O. Box 3475, Culver City, CA 90231-3475; (800) 736-9805;

www.FamiliesAnonymous.org: A 12-step self-help, recovery and fellowship of support groups for relatives and friends of those who have alcohol, drug, or behavioral problems.

Family Empowerment Network 777 South Mills St., Madison, WI 53715; (608) 262-6590;

(800) 462-5254; www.fammed.wisc.edu/fen: Offers support, education and training for families of children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects, as well as interested professionals.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Family Resource Institute, P.O. Box 2525, Lynnwood, WA 98036;

(253) 531-2878; www.fetalalcoholsyndrome.org: A grassroots coalition of families and professionals concerned with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Effects, offering educational programs, brochures, information packets, group meetings, phone support, conferences and referrals.

Friends of Recovery-Vermont, P.O. Box 1202, Montpelier, VT 05601; (802) 229-6103 or (800) 769-2798; www.friendsofrecoveryvt.org: A grassroots advocacy organization that offers a speaker's bureau, stages recovery celebration events and provides resources for schools and legislators.

General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church, 110 Maryland Ave. NE, Suite 404, Washington, D.C. 20002; (202) 548-2712; www.gbgm-umc.org: Offers faith-based programs for people with alcohol and drug use disorders.

GROUP Ministries, Inc.: Peer Outreach to Recovery Community, 1333 Jefferson Ave., Buffalo, NY 14208; (716) 883-4367, ext. 18; abeeboyd@aol.com: Provides peer recovery support services focused primarily on African Americans and other people of color.

Hope Networks/We Recover Foundation, 8867 Highland Road, Suite 320, Baton Rouge, LA 70808;

(888) 472-0786; www.hopenetworks.org: Supports community efforts around treatment, job skills, living skills and retraining programs to reduce poverty, crime and illiteracy.

Hypoics Not Anonymous, 8779 Misty Creek Drive, Sarasota, FL 34241; (941) 929-0893;

www.nvo.com/hypoism/hypoicsnotanonymous/: A group open to anyone with any type of addiction, using the philosophy that addictions are caused by neurological mechanisms rather than personal weaknesses.

International Lawyers in Alcoholics Anonymous, P.O. BOX 158, Polson, MT 59860; (406) 883-2173; www.ilaa.org: A clearinghouse for support groups for lawyers who are recovering alcoholics or have other chemical dependencies.

Inter-Congregational Alcoholism Program, 7777 Lake St., Suite 115, River Forest, IL 60305-1734; (708) 488-9770; www.crml.uab.edu/~jah/icaps.html: A network of recovering alcoholic women in religious orders.

International Pharmacists Anonymous, 11 Dewey Lane, Glen Gardner, NJ 08826-3102; (908) 537-4295; http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ipa/ipapage.htm: A 12-step fellowship of pharmacists and pharmacy students recovering from any addiction.

Jewish Addiction Services/Jewish Big Brother and Big Sister League, 5750 Park Height Ave., Suite 286, Baltimore, MD 21208; (410) 484-1991; www.jbbl.org: An outpatient treatment program for adolescents, adults and families suffering from alcohol, drug or other addictions

Jewish Alcoholics, Chemically Dependent Persons and Significant Others, 850 Seventh Ave., Penthouse, New York, NY 10019; (212) 397-4197; www.jacsweb.org: Assists Jewish alcoholics, chemically dependent persons and their families, friends and associates to explore recovery.

Johnson Institute, 613 Second St. NE, Washington, D.C. 20002; (202) 662-7104;

www.johnsoninstitute.org: A national organization working to identify and eliminate barriers to recovery by enhancing awareness, prevention, intervention and treatment practices for alcohol and drug use disorders.

The Legal Action Center, 153 Waverly Place, New York, NY 10014; (212) 243-1313; www.lac.org: A non-profit law and policy organization fighting discrimination against people with histories of alcohol and drug use disorders and advocating for sound public policies.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center SpeakOUT!: Voices for Recovery,

208 West 13th St., New York, NY 10011, (212) 620-7310; www.gaycenter.org: Works to create safe and welcoming spaces for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in recovery.

LifeRing Secular Recovery, 1440 Broadway, Suite 312, Oakland, CA 94612-2023; (510) 763-0779 or (800) 811-4142; www.unhooked.com: A worldwide nonprofit that promotes an alternative to spiritual 12-step programs with meetings led by peer volunteers and give-and-take dialogue, as opposed to the 12-step's uninterrupted monologue.

Maine Alliance for Addiction Recovery, 8 Mulliken Court, Augusta, ME 04330; (207) 621-8118,

www.masap.org/site/recovery.asp: A grassroots alliance of individuals aiming to change legislation and resource allocation, raise awareness through public acknowledgment and promote support by sharing experiences of recovering people, their families and friends.

Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery, 30 Winter St., Third Floor, Boston, MA 02108; (617) 423-6627; www.neaar.org/moar: A collective voice of people in recovery, families and friends helping educate the public about the value of living in recovery, and the resources to support recovery.

Marijuana Anonymous World Services, P.O. Box 2912 Van Nuys, CA 91404; (800) 766-6779

www.marijuana-anonymous.org: A fellowship of men and women who share a desire to stop using marijuana by using the basic 12 Steps of recovery.

Men for Sobriety, P.O. Box 618, Quakertown, PA 18951-0618; (215) 536-8026: Helps men recover from problem drinking through the discovery of self, gained by sharing experiences, hopes and encouragement.

Mesa Peer Recovery Program: Women in Recovery, Our Common Welfare; 860 North Center St.,

Mesa, AZ 85201; (480) 464-5764; www.winr.org: A recovery community organization for women in Arizona and New Mexico.

Nar-Anon/Narateen, 22527 Crenshaw Blvd., Suite No. 200 B, Torrance, CA 90505; (800) 477-6291; www.nar-anon.org: Provides support for families and friends of drug users.

Narconon, 7060 Hollywood Blvd., Suite 220, Hollywood, CA 90028; (323) 962-2404;

www.narconon.org: A non-profit drug rehab program dedicated to eliminating drug abuse and drug addiction through drug prevention, education and rehabilitation.

Narcotics Anonymous World Services, P.O. Box 9999, Van Nuys, CA 91409; 818-773-9999;

www.na.org: A non-profit fellowship society open to all men and women for whom any drug has become a major problem. For NA meetings in your community, go to http://www.na.org/phonelines/phonelin-toc.htm or call (818) 773-9999 and ask for fellowship services.

National Association on Drug Abuse Problems, Inc., 355 Lexington Ave., Second Floor, New York, NY 10017; (212) 986-1170; www.nadap.org: A private non-profit organization founded by business and labor leaders providing programs to assist at-risk and underserved individuals to become independent, self-sufficient and employed.

The Next Step,<0x00A0>276 Sherman St., Albany, NY 12206, (518) 465-5249; www.thenextstepalbany.org: Provides residential treatment for women recovering from alcoholism and drug abuse.

Overcomers In Christ, P.O. Box 34460, Omaha, NE 68134; (402) 573-0966; www.overcomersinchrist.org/: A recovery program that deals with every aspect of addiction and dysfunction using Christ-centered motivations.

Overcomers Outreach, Inc., P.O. 922950, Sylmar, CA 91392-2950; (800) 310-3001; www.overcomersoutreach.org: Provides Christ-centered, 12-step support for persons with any compulsive behavior, their families and friends.

Oxford House, Inc., 1010 Wayne Ave., Suite 400, Silver Spring, MD 20910; (301) 587-2916;

www.oxfordhouse.org: A democratically run, self-supporting and drug-free group home.

Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona: Community Change Oriented Recovery Effort,

9405 South Avenida del Yaqui, Guadalupe, AZ 85283; (480) 768-2025; claremcory@aol.com: Provides quality, competent and culturally compatible peer services to tribal and community members.

Pennsylvania Recovery Organizations Alliance, Inc. Statewide/Regional Community Mobilization Project, 900 South Arlington Avenue, Suite 119, Harrisburg, PA 17109; (717) 545-8929;

recovery@ezonline.com: Supports recovery through peer-driven support services and education.

Pima Prevention Partnership: People with Recovery and Disabilities, 330 North Commerce Park Loop, Suite 160, Tucson, AZ 85745; (520) 791-2711; www.pimaprevention.org: Aims to reduce relapse and supports wellness using a strength-based approach to recovery for Native Americans.

Pima Hispanic Council: Proyecto Bienestar (Project Well Being), 712 North Main St., Eloy, AZ 85231; (520) 466-7765; Varela_Ralph@yahoo.com: Seeks to empower members, motivating them to sustain recovery through education and training.

Por La Causa, Inc., 1112 East Buckeye Road, Phoenix, AZ 85034-4043; (602) 257-0700;

www.cplc.org: A s non-profit community development corporation offering social service programs and services throughout Arizona.

Presbyterians for Addiction Action, 100 Witherspoon St., Room 3041, Louisville, KY 40202;

(888) 728-7228 ext. 5800; www.pcusa.org/phewa/paa.htm: Assists Presbyterians as they minister in an addictive society to restore people of the Presbyterian faith.

Psychologists Helping Psychologists, 3484 South Utah St., Arlington, VA 22206; (703) 243-4470; www.crml.uab.edu/~jah/php.html: A mutual support group for doctoral-level psychologists or students who have had a personal experience with alcohol or drugs.

Rational Recovery Systems, Box 800, Lotus, CA 95651; (530) 621-2667; www.rational.org/: A program of self-recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs through planned, permanent abstinence using Addictive Voice Recognition Technique.

Recover Magazine, P.O. Box 4078, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33338; (954) 764-1069 or (866) 2-RECOVER; www.recovermagazineonline.com: A bi-monthly lifestyle magazine for people at all stages of addiction recovery.

Recovery Association Project, 1100 NE 28th Ave., Portland OR 97232; (503) 234-3133;

www.rap-nw.org: A peer-led recovery community organization focusing on building leadership and power among people in recovery through leadership and active citizenship.

Recovery Consultants of Atlanta, Inc., 1904 Glenwood Ave. SE, Decatur, GA 30316;

(404) 370-0123; www.recoveryconsultants.org: A faith-based organization collaborating with treatment programs, community organizations and faith institutions to develop services and programs to benefit the state's recovery community.

Recovery Resource Center, 1140 Lake St., Oak Park, IL 60301; (708) 445-0500; RRCDontUse1@aol.com: Links individuals in recovery to an array of holistic recovery supports, with special emphasis on meeting the needs of women.

Reviving the Human Spirit: A Faith Community Initiative, Rookwood Tower, 3805 Edwards Road, Suite 500, Cincinnati, OH 45209-1948; (513) 458-6640; www.healthfoundation.org/rths/rths.nsf/all/about: Dedicated to improving community health in Cincinnati and 20 surrounding counties.

Rockland Council on Alcoholism and Other Drug Dependence, Inc.: Friends of Recovery- Rockland, 20 Squadron Blvd., Suite 650, New City, NY 10956; (845) 639-7373 ext. 28; www.rcadd.org: Challenges stereotypes about addiction recovery.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 221 34th St., Newport News, VA 23607; (757) 244-9107; www.stpaulsnn.org: Hosts 12-step programs and other affiliate programs.

Self-Management and Recovery Training Recovery, 7537 Mentor Ave., Suite 306

Mentor, OH 44060; (888) 951-5351; (440) 951-5357; www.smartrecovery.org: Supports individuals abstaining from any type of addictive behaviors by teaching how to change self-defeating thinking, emotions and actions; and to work toward long-term satisfactions and quality of life.

Sober24.com: Virtual fellowship for recovery on the Internet with daily reflections, discussion boards, chat rooms, online meetings and software that helps those in recovery track their progress; based on Alcoholics Anonymous' 12-step program. Annual membership is $12.

SOS Clearinghouse (Save Our Selves), 4773 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90027;

(323) 666-4295; www.secularsobriety.org: Provides an alternative to those paths to sobriety depending on supernatural or religious beliefs.

Southcentral Foundation: Alaska Women's Recovery Project, 4130 San Ernesto Ave., Anchorage, AK 99508; (907) 729-5090; www.southcentralfoundation.com: Provides leadership training, mentoring and support for recovering women.

The Springs Rescue Mission, 5 West Las Vegas St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903; (719) 632-1822;

www.springsrescuemission.org: Reaches the poor and needy of Colorado Springs by providing for their physical needs while ministering restoration to their spirit, soul and body.

TASC, Inc. (Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities) Restoring Citizenship, 1500 North Halsted St., Chicago, IL 60622; (312) 573-8211; http://www.tasc.-il.org/preview/index.html: Supports ex-offenders in restoring themselves to healthy and productive citizenship; sponsors Winners' Circles, peer-led recovery support groups for ex-offenders and their families.

Western Massachusetts Training Consortium: The Franklin County Recovery Community,

187 High St., Suite 204, Holyoke, MA 01040; (413) 536-2401 ext. 3006; www.theconsortiumwmtc.org: A peer-led recovery community helping those in recovery assume meaningful roles in their towns and neighborhoods

Vera Institute of Justice - La Bodega de la Familia, 272 East Third St., New York, NY 10009;

(212) 982-2335; www.vera.org: Offers family- and community-based recovery services for people on parole or probation.

VOICES for Addiction Recovery, NC, Inc, P.O. Box 2925, Asheville, NC 28802; (828) 252-9022;

voicesnc@aol.com: Serves addicted, single pregnant women, addicted teenagers and adults who have become part of the criminal justice system and the growing Hispanic population with addiction issues.

White Bison, Inc.: Circles of Recovery II - Putting a New Face on Recovery, 6145 Lehman Drive, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80918; (866) 461-9194; www.whitebison.org: Conducts education, training, and development focused on Native American recovery communities on reservations and in urban areas.

Women for Sobriety, P.O. Box 618, Quakertown, PA 18951-0618; (215) 536-8026; www.womenforsobriety.org: Designed specifically to help the woman alcoholic achieve sobriety by addressing the need to overcome depression and guilt through the "New Life" program.

Don't meth up your life (Colorado)

Don't meth up your life

By John Mangalonzo Journal-Advocate staff writerjmangalonzo@journal-advocate.com

STERLING - It's a dawning of a new era in the fight against a menace to society known as methamphetamine proliferation and addiction.
Those who attended the Festival at the Park in Fort Morgan may have noticed a different kind of booth alongside other vendors and exhibitors.

Its catchy name, "Don't Meth Up Your Life," attracted inquisitive people of all ages to visit the booth to ask questions and share their life stories, heartaches and triumphs about their personal fight against meth.

A brainchild of the 13th Judicial District Attorney's Office, Don't Meth Up Your Life is a prevention and educational campaign geared toward the understanding and realization of the dangers of the drug, says DA Bob Watson.

Watson said there are three major components in the fight against meth: enforcement, prevention and rehabilitation.

Courtesy photo Diann Larson (left) a legal assistant for the District Attorney's Office, looks at an educational material as former Deputy District Attorney Kristin Knotts checks the brochures in the Don't Meth Up Your Life booth.

"My office's primary responsibility is the enforcement, and I think we are doing a great job on it," Watson said, adding that part of his office's responsibility is to engage in public awareness, education and outreach.

The booth, manned by volunteers from the DA's office - deputy district attorneys and legal assistants - will travel in all the county fairs all through the seven-county district jurisdiction.

"We will take it one day each on all county fairs," Watson said.

Watson added that he was surprised to see the public's positive response while the booth was on display in Fort Morgan.

On July 28, Watson's amazement grew when the booth attracted quite a crowd at the Phillips County Fair, which included people who have had personal experiences of meth addiction and recovery.

"These are people that shared their personal stories and how they were affected by it," Watson said.

The first of its kind, the educational campaign/booth will be a permanent feature of the DA's office's public awareness arsenal, Watson said.

"There is a need for this kind of awareness," DA's Office Chief Investigator Bill Boden said.

Boden said that he saw parents who visited the booth come back and bring their children to show them the effects of meth through a picture display.

The booth displays photos of facial progressions of people hooked on meth, as well as other photos showing the effects of the drug on an individual. Volunteers also hand out brochures and educational materials to booth visitors.

"We just pick the busiest day in a county fair and set up that day," Boden said.

Boden added that the DA's office sends out invitations to local law enforcement agencies to visit their booth so they can discuss the dangers and consequences of being hooked on drugs.

Along with drug awareness, volunteers in the booth also tackle Elder Watch, which addresses financial scams that target senior citizens.

Don't Meth Up Your Life, Boden said, has had considerable assistance from the National Guard and AARP. The program has also received input from the Tennessee attorney general's office.

Drug enforcement officials say that the meth epidemic not only affects people who are using and addicted to the drug. Meth destroys families, ties to the community and even children.

Recent studies found that meth usage leads to situations of profound neglect and abuse, physical danger resulting from in-house manufacture of the drug, parents teaching their children criminal behaviors and a paranoid distrust of authority.

Law enforcement authorities said meth is undeniably a nasty, dangerous drug, and a parent's addiction can place a child in harm's way. Some children need to go into foster care for their own protection, and an upsurge in cases might overwhelm child welfare agencies in some localities.

For these reasons, Boden said it's a must to start educating children about the dangers of not only meth, but all illegal drugs.

Boden added that parents also need to learn to watch for and recognize the warning signs of drug usage in their children and seek immediate help.

"And the kids that come to our booth are not bashful. They talk to us and ask a lot of questions," Boden said.

The campaign is a continuing process, Watson said, adding that his office is currently formulating a plan for a system of volunteers geared toward more community involvement.

"We did not have a lot of resources on this," Watson said, adding that local businesses had donated most of the items for the booth including the tent and tables.

The booth will be at the Logan County Fair all day Aug. 12.

Don't Meth Up Your Life schedule:

Aug. 4
Washington County Fair

Aug. 5
Sedgwick County Fair

Aug. 8
Yuma County Fair

Aug. 9
Morgan County Fair

Aug. 12
Logan County Fair

John Mangalonzo can be reached at

522-1990, Ext. 235 or by e-mail at: jmangalonzo@journal-advocate.com

Workshop outlines problems in combatting drug scourge (New Mexico)

Focus on meth

Alamogordo Daily News
By Christa Haynes, Staff Writer


LISTENING CAREFULLY -- Rep. Steve Pearce, center, joins the members of the Meth Research Group as they listen to Larry Wisecup from Children, Youth and Family Development during a methamphetamine awareness workshop Wednesday morning at the Sgt. Willie Estrada Memorial Civic Center. (J.R. Oppenheim/Daily News)

Rep. Steve Pearce was in Alamogordo Wednesday on the fifth stop in an awareness tour through New Mexico to aid communities in dealing with methamphetamine. Pearce opened the meeting with somber remarks about the reality of meth use, stating that where other drugs have a cure rate of about 40 percent, abusers of meth only have a 10 percent chance of beating the addiction.

Of that 10 percent, more than 70 percent of "recovered" abusers will relapse. Since his election to office in 2002, Pearce said he has recognized the importance of several of New Mexico's issues. One in particular stands out.

"As we look at the range of social issues that affect us, the one that continues to stand out is the use of methamphetamines," he said.

Pearce closed his remarks with a sobering account of how formidable an addiction to meth can be he recently learned that prisoners will trade their commissary privileges for the urine of new inmates that are addicted to meth.

"The body only absorbs about 20 percent of the chemicals," Pearce noted. "Now I imagine my daughter or granddaughter going to those lengths to feed this addiction É if I can impart one message today don't think that Washington can cure this problem. We'll only send money and pass laws. You have the responsibility to take back your community."

Pearce turned the meeting over to Alamogordo Mayor Don Carroll, who advised attendees the city is not only aware of the problem, but the community is willing to step up and do something about it. The recent Meth Awareness Week, held from April 17 through 21 this year, was viewed as a success, he said. Preparations for a Meth Awareness Month are in the works.

Lee Ann Loney spoke about the Methamphetamine Coalition, a group formed last year when Otero County Youth Empowerment Association was approached by El Paso del Norte Health Foundation and the Center for Border Health Research to participate in a program called Community Based Participatory Research.

"CBPR empowers communities through knowledge, and transforms that knowledge into action," she said. The CBPR is in the process of analyzing data from surveys of residents understanding of methamphetamine issues

See the rest of the story at:

http://www.alamogordonews.com/news/ci_4131871