BUSTED METH LABS DROP BY 40 PERCENT IN 2006

RALEIGH, N.C. - The number of methamphetamine labs found by North
Carolina law officers dropped 40 percent between 2005 and 2006,
thanks largely to a law restricting the sale of cold medicines used
to make the illicit drug, authorities said Friday.

State figures show there were 197 labs found in 2006, down from 328
the previous year.

"I think that they got the word that we're serious about this," said
Lt. Jackie Turner Jr. with the McDowell County Sheriff's Office. The
county topped the state's 100 counties with 25 labs busted last year.

Still, it's a big drop from the 61 labs broken up in 2005, and the 43
labs busted in 2004. Turner credits the cold medicine law for much of
the reduction in his rural county near Asheville, but he said
trafficking and mobile lab operations remain a problem.

The drug is cheap to make and often "cooked" in homes, cars, or motels.

"There's still a few out there but they're getting smarter about how
they do it, going to remote areas and cooking" and often using
portable labs, Turner said.

Labs found in neighboring Rutherford County, which also has been
hard-hit by the drug in recent years, dropped from 44 in 2005 to just
17 last year. There were 43 labs busted there in 2004.

"When you have to ask for it, it makes a difference," Rutherford
County Sheriff Jack L. Conner said of the cold medicine restrictions.

The law, which took effect on Jan. 15, 2005, requires anyone who buys
cold tablets containing pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, such as
Sudafed, to show a photo ID at a store counter and sign a log. Most
liquid, gel-capsule and children's forms of the medicines, which are
not generally used to make the drug, remain freely available on
retail store shelves.

Harnett County had the largest increase during 2005-06, up from four
labs to 23 _ the state's second-highest total last year. Harnett
County busted four labs in 2004.

Also, the number of labs found in Anson County on the South Carolina
line rose from six labs in 2005 to 21 busted last year. One lab was
found there in 2004.

"I think the increase would have been even more significant without
this new law," said state Attorney General Roy Cooper.

North Carolina had already enacted laws calling for jail time for
meth producers and stricter penalties when children were present
during the manufacturing of the drug.

"We've avoided the meth lab epidemic seen in other states because we
attacked the problem early," Cooper said of the cold medicine
restrictions, adding that the state was the first on the East Coast
to enact such a law.

A similar federal law also took effect last year.

Methamphetamine _ also called crank, crystal or ice _ is cheap to
make and easy to sell.

The drug's high lasts longer than those of other drugs, and users can
stay awake for days at a time. Addiction leads to psychotic or
violent behavior and brain damage. Withdrawal symptoms include
depression, anxiety, fatigue, paranoia and aggression.

Meth use began in the West and has been spreading east for years.
North Carolina's foothill and mountain counties have been
particularly besieged by the trade.

Nine meth labs were found in North Carolina in 1999. Four years
later, the number had climbed to 177 labs, then almost doubled to 322 in 2004.

Officials removed 95 children from homes where meth was being made
from Jan. 15 through Nov. 28, 2005. Only 38 children were found in
meth labs during the same period last year, officials said.

Law officers say that despite the reduction in meth labs, the drug
remains a problem here because of trafficking from Mexico and
so-called super labs in the U.S. They also say more treatment
programs are needed.

Cooper said he plans to ask the state Legislature for money to hire
more State Bureau of Investigation agents to combat trafficking.

"We are working feverishly to find and arrest the drug kingpins who
are trafficking drugs into our state and endangering our communities
and families," Cooper said.