OTTAWA CRANKS UP METH SENTENCES

Producers and traffickers of crystal meth will face stiffer penalties as
high as life in prison, the federal government announced Thursday.

Methamphetamine, sometimes known as "the poor man's cocaine" because it is
cheap to make, will join drugs like cocaine and heroin covered under
Ottawa's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. That moves the maximum
penalty for production, trafficking, possession and importing or exporting
of meth from a present 10 years to life in prison.

Crystal meth is easily produced in small clandestine labs, often in
kitchens and bathrooms, but are notoriously dangerous, often causing
hazardous chemical fires.

Meth addicts are also among the most difficult to treat.