METH EPIDEMIC HITS HOME

Warnings from law enforcement officials about the growing scourge of
methamphetamine in Shawnee County gained credence Wednesday.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation released unofficial figures indicating
Shawnee County led all Kansas counties last year in seizures of labs used
to make the illegal drug.

Kyle Smith, spokesman for the KBI, said initial reports indicated Shawnee
County recorded 58 meth lab seizures, compared to 54 for second-place
Cowley County and 48 for third-place Sedgwick County.

"A little like coming in first place in an ugly contest, but it looks like
Shawnee County will have the most seizures," Smith said.

He said the KBI was continuing to receive reports of meth lab seizures and
wouldn't release a final count until Jan. 17, "but the lead will probably
hold up."

By leading the state in meth lab seizures, Shawnee County would wrest that
dubious distinction from Barton County, where authorities seized 39 meth
labs in 1999. Unofficial figures indicate Barton County tied for 11th among
Kansas counties last year with 18 meth lab seizures.

Statewide, Smith said, the KBI has recorded 655 meth labs seized last year,
compared to 511 in 1999, 189 in 1998, 71 in 1996, seven in 1995 and four in
1994. Authorities say Kansas finished third nationally in 1999 in the
number of meth lab seizures.

Methamphetamine is produced in clandestine labs by "cooks" who usually have
no chemistry training. Authorities say the operations are typically low
rent and low tech. Some meth labs are so small they can be stored in a box.

In Shawnee County, KBI records show, the number of labs seized rose to 58
last year from 23 in 1999, three in 1998 and one in 1997.

While some might see that as reflecting poorly on Shawnee County, the
increased number of seizures shows that authorities have recognized the
problem and are doing something about it, Smith said.

Sgt. Marsha Baird, of the Shawnee County Sheriff's Department, which made
many of last year's seizures, said production of the drug appears to have
exploded within the past 18 months. She said most of the county's 23
seizures in 1999 came toward the end of that year.

"Things were getting pretty intense by the end of '99," Baird said. "As we
hit 2000, things just went crazy."

Though there are many recipes for cooking the drug, Shawnee County
narcotics officers say meth makers in this area seem to favor a method that
uses the chemical anhydrous ammonia. Almost all other ingredients needed
for that meth-making method -- including cold or allergy tablets, acetone
and ether -- are readily available at stores.

Baird said meth production has become so prevalent locally that when
narcotics detectives start investigating people dealing other types of
drugs, they almost invariably find out those people are involved with meth,
too.

"Even our patrol guys are getting meth cases where they've seized boxed
meth labs from vehicles they've stopped," she said.

Cristi Cain, prevention specialist with Shawnee Regional Prevention and
Recovery Services, said 119 residents sought treatment for methamphetamine
addiction in Shawnee County during fiscal 1999.

KBI records indicate law enforcement officers also are seizing an increased
number of meth labs in areas surrounding Shawnee County. Initial KBI
figures show meth lab seizure totals between 1999 and last year rose:

• To 19 from seven in Jackson County.

• To 18 from three in Lyon County.

• To 10 from seven in Jefferson County.

• To eight from one in Osage County.

• To five from one in Wabaunsee County.

Cowley and Sedgwick counties, which appear to have finished second and
third in meth lab seizures, are both in southern Kansas.

State records show that second-place Cowley County, which includes the
cities of Winfield and Arkansas City, had a 1997 population of 36,716.
Sedgwick County, which includes the city of Wichita, recorded a 1997
population of 438,679. Shawnee County's 1997 population was 164,932.

Meth Lab Seizures

1. Shawnee County 58

2. Cowley County 54

3. Sedgwick County 48

4. Allen County 43

5. Saline County 38

6. Cherokee County 32

7. Crawford County 31

8. Butler County 23

9. Reno County 22

10. Jackson County 19