STATE METH LAB CASES GO UP

Tuscaloosa County Assistant District Attorney Lyn Durham has watched
methamphetamine cases steadily rise over the last two years.

He said the increase is either the result of police using tougher laws to
crack down harder on meth labs or the drug is flourishing in the state,
reaching epidemic proportions -- or both.

Durham blames technology for the proliferation of meth labs in Alabama.

"It's the Internet," Durham told the Tuscaloosa News. "You can learn how to
make it on the Internet. Anybody can look it up. I could look it up right
now and get a recipe for it."

Statewide, resource-strapped authorities are scraping to combat
methamphetamine. The number of meth-related busts and court cases has risen
exponentially over the last two years, and authorities have their hands full
trying to stay on top of a problem that is only getting bigger.

The explosion of the highly addictive and cheap meth on the state drug scene
has authorities worried that this is only the beginning.

Meth lab cases in Tuscaloosa County have increased from nine in 2001 to 86
this year.

Similarly, the DeKalb County Drug Task Force raided its 49th meth lab of the
year last weekend after finding 46 labs in all of 2002.

In September 2001, a law went into effect that bolstered law enforcement's
ability to charge methamphetamine manufacturers.

Previously, police had to catch meth cooks with the lab and the finished
product before they were able to charge them with manufacturing of a
controlled substance.

Now, police only need to find the person in possession of two precursor
chemicals -- the ingredients for making meth -- and evidence they intended
to make meth with the chemicals to warrant the charges.

Cocaine and marijuana remain the most common drugs in Tuscaloosa County, but
maybe not for long, said Eddie Alley, a Tuscaloosa County prosecutor.

"Methamphetamine is going to be bigger than crack," Alley said. "It's going
to be more devastating and more deadly, simply because these people can make
it, and they can get as much as they want as long as they can get the
precursor chemicals and everything together."

Law enforcement's ability to fight the meth emergence has been hindered by
fiscal restraint.

Most state agencies face deep budget cuts if voters don't approve Gov. Bob
Riley's $1.2 billion tax package on Sept. 9.