METH'S 'TRAGEDIES'

I would like to take this opportunity to commend The Bee and all the
McClatchy news reporters who contributed to your special report, "A Madness
Called Meth." The many hours spent in the field by your reporters and the
marshalling of statistics to back up the assertions was, I am sure, a
monumental undertaking.

Through this effort the public was presented with the enormity of the
personal tragedies of families afflicted by this drug; the personal,
emotional, physical and other costs suffered by its users; as well as the
costs inflicted on taxpayers for court services and cleanup of the toxic
waste generated by this substance.

As a judge for more than 20 years in Tulare County, I have seen many of the
results discussed on your report. Those of us in the judicial system
recognize that this major problem in the Valley can only be addressed
through a variety of means. Purveyors of this drug need to understand there
will be significant punishment if convicted; users need to be provided
opportunities for breaking the drug's grip through constructive programs,
such as the intensive Drug Court programs, which provide counseling, drug
testing and court and probation supervision. Law enforcement and probation
services need adequate funding to aggressively go after the manufacturers
of this drug, which causes such havoc in our communities.

Turning the spotlight on methamphetamine use will help those of us working
in the system to better accomplish our missions and perhaps, even if it is
only a small number of people, cause some to turn away from this
destructive drug.

Walter L. Gorelick, Judge, Tulare County Superior Court