Series: Part 4 Of 8

TACKLING ONE DEALER AT A TIME

L.B. Police: Finding Even A Small Stash Makes An Important Contribution To
Fighting The Spread Of Meth.

LONG BEACH - A sticker above a studio apartment door in downtown Long Beach
offers this message: "Hugs not Drugs."

Below that, a handwritten note states, "Warning. do not knock on my door!!
If u need to speak to me, call me on the front intercom!!"

Long Beach Police Department officers ignore the warning and break down the
door anyway, replacing the mellow tunes of the Steve Miller Band with a
loud crash.

Inside, 28-year-old Ignacio Molina wails as officers pin him to the floor
and handcuff him. Other officers search an apartment decorated with Marilyn
Monroe posters, a red neon party sign and stripper pole for crystal
methamphetamine.

They find and seize a sixteenth of an ounce of meth worth about $100, a
pipe, a torch, a straw, a tiny scoop and a scale.

"It's a pretty small amount as far as quantity goes," says LBPD Sgt. Paul
LeBaron, who works in the narcotics detail. "But it doesn't matter if we're
seizing a pound or a sixteenth of an ounce. They're bringing in the
influence. That's not acceptable and has to be dealt with."

Detectives, who were acting on a tip, arrested Molina July 6 for possession
for sale. Two weeks later, Molina pleaded guilty and received three years
of felony probation.

The raid was one of 69 arrests that narcotics officers have made this year.
Most were sales-related.

"Sometimes our investigations only show one arrest, but we're taking down
an entire organization that affects hundreds of people, between buyers and
sellers," LeBaron says.

Crystal meth is an equal-opportunity drug, and has replaced cocaine as the
fastest-growing drug in Long Beach, narcotics officers say. Production in
Long Beach has slowed as restrictions have been placed on primary
ingredients, such as the ephedrine found in cold medicine and red
phosphorous, making them harder to buy in mass quantities.

But sale and possession are still widespread.

"One thing I can say is that meth dealers are not at a want for clients,"
he says.