STATISTICS SHOW PROGRESS IN THE WAR ON DRUGS

Law enforcement agencies and statewide drug enforcement programs are
reporting major strides in the war against drugs in the Central Valley.

According to statistics provided by the Tulare County Sheriff's Department,
the number of methamphetamine labs disassembled by county authorities
dropped significantly in 2005. Meanwhile, the number of drug seizures
reached new highs.

The data on drug activity was collected by the California
Multi-Jurisdictional Methamphetamine Enforcement Team program, or Cal-MMET.

The program is run in conjunction with the Central Valley High Intensity
Drug Trafficking Programs and administered by the Governor's Office of
Criminal Justice Planning.

For the 2000-01 period, 27 meth labs were seized by county law enforcement
agencies, according to Cal-MMET.

Compare that to a total of two clandestine laboratories seized during the
2004-05 period. During the same time, only one meth "super lab" was located
by officials. A "super lab" is a production site with the capacity to
manufacture 10 pounds or more of the illegal substance in one production cycle.

There were 61 dump sites from meth production found within the county in
2000-01, with just 17 dump sites located in 2004-05.

Additionally, seizures of currency reported for 2004-05 jumped from $63,000
in 2003-04 to $300,328 in 2004-05.

Putting a halt to the manufacture and abuse of methamphetamine in the
region remains a top priority for law enforcement agencies, as do state and
county efforts to combat marijuana gardens.

In 2005, the Campaign Against Marijuana Planting seized 133,038 marijuana
plants in Tulare County, with the state total in excess of 1 million.

The state CAMP program recently received an award for distinguished service
in 2005, according to a Jan. 19 news release by California Attorney General
Bill Lockyer.

Last year, CAMP unified marijuana eradication efforts in 31 counties.

"The largest increase in illegal marijuana seizures over the past seven
years is a reflection of the skill and commitment of each law enforcement
agency that participates in the program," Lockyer said.

Since 1999, CAMP has seized a total of 3.5 million illegal marijuana plants
worth an estimated $13.9 billion; made 203 arrests and seized 274 weapons.