ECSTASY PROBLEM GROWING IN WYOMING

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (Associated Press) - Wyoming police are seeing more of the
drug Ecstasy, although it is nowhere near as prevalent as methamphetamine
and marijuana.

Twelve to 18 months ago, Ecstasy was not even on Wyoming's radar screen,
said Steve Miller, deputy director of the Wyoming Division of Criminal
Investigation.

"We had zilch until last year," he said.

While Ecstasy does not begin to rival the abuse of methamphetamine,
marijuana and alcohol as illegal drugs of choice for Wyoming's residents
under 21, Miller said, he is concerned about the drug entering Wyoming.

"I see it as a growing issue," he said. "I think parents need to be very
concerned if their children are going to raves or getting unusual pills."

DCI has been part of three cases statewide involving Ecstasy in Cheyenne,
Laramie and Sheridan, Miller said.

The drug is most prevalent in the southeastern part of the state due to its
closeness to the Denver area, DCI director Tom Pagel said.

The Cheyenne case happened in October when officers arrested a Denver man
at Frontier Mall. Officials confiscated at least 100 green Ecstasy pills
from him.

Authorities also arrested four people on Ecstasy-related charges June 23
during a rave south of Cheyenne, Miller said.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency is investigating cases in Wyoming but DEA
official Paul Schmidt said he could not give any more information.

The emerging use of Ecstasy in the West has become a concern to law
enforcement. The DEA is holding special classes to teach officers statewide
about the drug.

"We realized it's becoming a problem," said Steve Karkos, a group
supervisor for the special support unit of DEA's Denver Division. "We're
trying to get ahead of the game here. We're trying to warn these cops what
to look for."

John Wiederspahn, a counselor at Southeast Wyoming Mental Health, said he
has heard more comments from young people about the availability of Ecstasy
in Cheyenne during the last year and a half.

"They can get it here," he said. "They don't have go to a big rave to get
Ecstasy. Any time kids are getting involved in stuff like that, it's risky."

Ecstasy is both a hallucinogenic like LSD and a stimulant like methamphetamine.

It has become closely associated with the rave/techno music scene across
the country, partly because of its ability to enhance the senses.

However, doctors say it affects a person's ability to regulate body
temperature and is addictive. People have died while taking Ecstasy because
they have become dehydrated and overheated.

"The potential for abuse is high and unfortunately its gotten an image as
being a soft drug," Miller said.

The drug may cause short-term effects like depression, anxiety, paranoia
and hallucinations, sleep problems and increased heart rate and blood
pressure, he said.

More than 2,850 people nationwide were admitted to hospitals for Ecstasy
abuse in 1999, according to the Drug Abuse Warning Network. There were 27
deaths associated with Ecstasy from 1994 to 1998.