DRUG CRACKDOWN TO TARGET 'CRANK'

Officials hope to stem 'epidemic' of new cases in western Wisconsin

Attorney General James Doyle and U.S. Attorney Peggy Lautenschlager
announced Wednesday a major effort to stem "an epidemic" of methamphetamine
use and trafficking they say is spreading along Wisconsin's western border.

Doyle and Lautenschlager began a crackdown on methamphetamine, often known
as "crank," last fall after several northwestern Wisconsin counties reported
increased problems with the drug. The two said Wednesday they were expanding
those efforts after a January survey found the highly addictive drug has
emerged for the first time as a problem in southwestern Wisconsin as well.

For the most part, the new effort is targeted toward the state's western
border counties, which Doyle described as the "battleground" against the
drug. But Doyle said he also wants to expand efforts throughout the state.

Doyle and Lautenschlager announced that nine counties reported a rise in
methamphetamine cases: Crawford, Grant, Green and Lafayette in the state's
southwestern corner; Green Lake in the east-central part of the state;
Douglas in the far north; and Pierce, Polk and St. Croix in western
Wisconsin. All but the latter three are reporting a rising problem for the
first time.

"This drug has moved rapidly in other states and we are trying to make sure
we are out in front of this," Doyle said. "The problem we face is a serious
one."

Doyle called the synthetic stimulant "the number one drug priority" for
authorities in western Wisconsin.

The epicenter for the drug remains in the northwestern corner of the state,
and Doyle said the number of cases statewide still pales in comparison with
those involving crack cocaine, or the number of crank cases seen in
neighboring states. But he said that final 1998 numbers showed crank use is
rising in Wisconsin.

Overall, the number of meth cases submitted to the State Crime Laboratory
rose from 42 in 1996 to 112 last year. Last year, 86 meth investigations
were launched, and 40 people were prosecuted.

The drug, now called by authorities the "Midwest drug of choice," has been
found widely used in Minnesota, Missouri and Iowa. Doyle said he wants to
ensure "we don't follow in their footsteps." The drug spread west from
California before arriving on Wisconsin's borders a few years ago.

The attorney general said he and Lautenschlager were launching a "major
coordinated initiative to bolster enforcement, training and prevention
measures to attack the dangerous drug."

The new Wisconsin effort, equaled in scope only by efforts against crack
cocaine, will include:

Holding regional training conferences on meth this spring in La Crosse,
Superior and Wausau for educators, law enforcement officials, hospital
emergency room workers and others. They will be similar to a
first-of-its-kind meth summit held last fall in Menomonie. Training for DARE
officers so they can begin incorporating the dangers of the drug into their
lessons with schoolchildren.

Increasing from three to 14 the number of Department of Justice special
agents trained and certified to handle meth cases. Assigning a state
prosecutor to assist local authorities with methamphetamine cases in state
and federal courts.

Providing statewide training on meth for local law enforcement officials at
a conference planned for this spring.

Previous efforts were more narrowly focused on the northwestern area of the
state around St. Croix County.

Last fall, Doyle and Lautenschlager announced a list of seven counties
reporting increased problems. Eau Claire, Dunn, Chippewa and Dane counties
were on that list. Those counties did not report a rising problem during the
latest survey, which Doyle said might be an indication that law enforcement
efforts are having an effect.

Doyle said he also would like to hold meth seminars in areas not yet
reporting problems, including southeastern Wisconsin.

In Milwaukee, methamphetamine has been found only "in bits and pieces," said
Jack Riley, agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in
Wisconsin. "Generally speaking, Milwaukee goes the same way as Chicago in
terms of drug trends, and Chicago is not hitting a lot."

But Riley said Chicago reported its first major meth seizure last month.
Doyle said that concerned him because Milwaukee and Chicago also were among
the last areas to get crack cocaine. But crank often is found in rural
areas.

Methamphetamine, in fact, is often labeled the "rural crack" because of its
popularity with working-class, small-town people. A stimulant affecting the
central nervous system, it is highly addictive when smoked, injected,
ingested or inhaled.

The drug also is called "chalk" and "crystal." It causes anger, panic,
paranoia and hallucinations. Its users often stay awake for days or even
weeks on end.

The drug's high lasts hours longer than crack cocaine. It can be made in
homemade labs -- basically fruit jars or the like -- with household
chemicals that include everything from cat tranquilizer to car starter
fluid.

More than 300 home labs were seized in Iowa last year alone, Doyle said. He
said the drug is often labeled the "child abuse drug" because domestic
violence rises along with use.

In St. Croix County, child abuse cases have "skyrocketed" in the past few
years since meth emerged, he said.

Doyle said he was particularly concerned that, while 10 labs containing
dangerously explosive chemicals were discovered in Wisconsin in all of last
year, five more have already been discovered this year.

But most of the meth here is manufactured out of the state, Doyle said, and
much of it can be traced back to Mexican drug cartels.

Lautenschlager, the U.S. attorney for the western district of Wisconsin,
said the expanded effort is designed to be a broad-based attack.

"Clearly, people in law enforcement are recognizing that enforcement efforts
alone are not sufficient to solve community crime problems," she said. "They
need to be supplemented with education, training and public awareness.

"We need to get the message out that this is a dangerous drug," she added.
"One of the things most disturbing to us is that so many of the people we
find using meth in these smaller communities are high school kids, and I
don't think many of them are cognizant of the severe consequences to them
personally, physically and legally."

Correspondent Kevin Murphy, reporting from Madison, contributed to this
report.