NEW MAINE LAW CRACKS DOWN ON DRUGS

AUGUSTA, Maine -- Hoping to stem abuse from designer and prescription
drugs, lawmakers have cracked down on users and traffickers of drugs such
as Oxycontin and Ecstasy.

The Legislature passed a bill Monday making it harder to forge
prescriptions and lie to doctors to get prescription narcotics like
Oxycontin, a painkiller.

The law requires that steps be taken to prevent unauthorized copying or
tampering of prescription forms, and makes it easier to bring forgery
charges when bogus forms are used.

A second component of the bill, which has been signed by Gov. Angus King,
outlaws "club drugs" like ecstasy and date rape drugs such as GHB and
ketamine, an animal anesthesia.

The law imposes serious penalties for possession or trafficking of such
drugs. It also creates a charge of aggravated trafficking when 300 or more
units are discovered.

Statewide, the number of arrests involving illicit prescription pills has
roughly doubled every year since 1998, according to the attorney general's
office. Last year, it stood at 156.