'MY NAME IS CRYSTAL METH'

Drug Controls Lives Of Local Residents

It's late afternoon and investigators have been hiding in the bushes
in 100-degree weather, covered in ants, for more than 24 hours.

A bust is about to go down.

Today's target -- a suspected methamphetamine cooker who works out of
a shack behind his cluttered trailer in rural Coffee County.

Informants have told authorities that meth can be bought throughout
the county and investigators say it is impossible to stop the spread
of meth that is ruining countless lives.

Thanks to the local Women's Missionary Union, which sponsored the
event, members of the Coffee County Sheriff's Department on Saturday
shared personal stories about sacrifice and life-threatening
situations they encounter as they fight the rise in popularity of the
highly-addictive methamphetamine.

Chief Deputy Sheriff Ronnie Whitworth, and Sheriff's Department drug
investigators Tony Harrison and Neal Bradley say when they leave for
work each day, they never know if it will be for the last time.

"When we bust in that door and shout 'Police!' we never know what to
expect," Bradley said. "We go into the homes of these meth users and
who knows what we will find when we open the door? We have found
people shooting up with a needle in their arm and holding a gun."

History Of Meth

Bradley said methamphetamine has been around since about 1919 when it
was first formulated by a Japanese pharmacologist and was
subsequently distributed to soldiers in World War II.

Methamphetamine is a form of amphetamine, which was prescribed in the
50s and 60s as a medication for depression and obesity and has also
been used as a stimulant medication for ADD and Parkinson's disease.

"It does have some medical value," Bradley said. Later the highly
addictive nature of meth was recognized, but some medical experts say
it was too late and the growing number of addicts have led to "meth
babies" and homes where children are forced to live and breath the
harsh chemicals used to manufacture meth.

The growth of labs has ballooned because the process of making meth
is comparatively simple. Meth's key precursor ingredient is ephedrine
or pseudoephedrine - basic ingredients in cold medicine. It can be
extracted from over-the-counter pills and cooked down until it's
chemically transformed into the finished product. Thus, most meth
starts out as cold pills on the shelf of a local convenience store,
easy to find and cheap to buy.

In an attempt to curb meth manufacturing a bill was passed a couple
of years ago which requires retailers that sell over-the-counter cold
medications containing Sudafed, locked up.

"Even though you have to be 18 years old to buy it, you have to have
identification and the transaction is recorded we still stop people
who will have many boxes of it their possession, but they are
purchased from different stores," Bradley said.

Tracing Meth Into Coffee County

Illegal meth labs sprung up in the Wiregrass area in the late 1990s,
according to Whitworth.

"When I took over as chief of police in Elba in 1996 I had never
heard of meth," he said, adding that in fact at a state meeting of
law enforcement officials that year only about six people had heard
of the highly addictive drug. "We were warned at that time..'it's
coming' and ladies and gentlemen, it's here and it is very bad."

Whitworth says the meth problem is out of control and is not just a
law enforcement problem, "it is our problem, this community, as a hole."

"Everybody knows somebody that is either using, cooking or selling,"
he said. "Meth users are not always low class, low income people. We
have seen in affect families, professionals, lawyers ...anyone can
become addicted."

In the past two years, investigators have destroyed 54 meth labs.
Eight of those labs have been discovered in the last six months.

Methamphetamine can be smoked, snorted, injected or ingested. When
used, the brain triggers a sense of euphoria. Users experience
hallucinations, rapid weight loss, rotting teeth.

"A user may not sleep for days. When coming down, he or she may
become paranoid, have anxiety attacks, be irritable, depressed, and
suicidal," Bradley said.

Many users have surveillance systems installed on their property
because of the paranoia, and guns are also frequently found when
arrests are made. "When we (investigators) go into the homes of these
meth users we never know what to expect when we open the door,"
Bradley said. "We have found people shooting up with needles in their
arms and holding a gun."

Homes or trailers of the abuser are usually kept dark with shades
pulled or the windows are blacked out.

"They (the meth user) is always thinking someone is after them," he said.

The Truth About Meth

Coffee County DARE Office Misti Smith counsels primarily fifth and
sixth graders about drugs and making good decisions when confronted
with peer pressure, but says the hardest part of her job is hearing a
child say that her mother or father uses drugs.

"I went to school in January for this job and it has changed my
life," she said. "But there is only so much that law enforcement can
do. The education has to start at home. Parents have to care where
their kids are and know what they are doing. Parents must lead by example."

Smith tells her DARE students that people who abuse drugs are not bad
people, but that they are people with problems who need help.

She also urges parents to pay attention to warnings signs of possible
drug abuse in their home.

"Many times the child will not care what they look like, they are
hostile, break curfews, are physically and or verbally abusive, they
have new friends, they steal or they are constantly asking for
money," she said.

"Unfortunately meth has infiltrated our schools and parents need to
be aware of this. We have already had about five or six cases
involving juveniles."

Smith ended the program by reading the poem "My name is Crystal Meth."

"Sometimes there's no more to say than what has already been said,"
Smith said. " This poem was written by an addicted meth user
incarcerated on drug charges."

Smith said the poem always has a profound effect on its readers.

Getting Help

Meth is relatively a cheap drug. A person can spend about $200 and
have the ingredients needed to make a batch of meth. It takes a few
hours to cook and can be sold for about $2,000.

"It sells for $100 a gram," Whitworth said. "Imagine if the small
amount of white powder found in a pack of sweetener was meth. That
amount will sell for about $100."

Unfortunately for the meth addict, recovery is not easy or cheap.

Methamphetamine is intensely addictive, with many longtime users
becoming hooked after just one hit, and unlike cocaine, marijuana or
alcohol, it rarely relents its hold on an addict. It is estimated
that between 96 and 98 percent of users become addicted, Whitworth
said that if a person addicted to meth is arrested they are monitored
and sent to the hospital for treatment if they become ill.

"We can't force anyone to go into treatment but I am always hopeful a
person can stay long enough to start thinking rationally and clearly
and then they choose to get help," he said. "If you are concerned
about someone, call social services or mental health. Be aware and
watch around your neighborhood. Call the sheriff's department. We get
many tips from the public about smelling strong unusual odors, a
possible sign of a meth lab, or they report unusual activity. The
problem won't just go away."

My Name Is Crystal Meth:

I destroy homes, I tear families apart, take your children, and
that's just the start.

I'm more costly than diamonds, more precious than gold, The sorrow I
bring is a sight to behold.

If you need me, remember! I'm easily found, I live all around you -
in schools and in town.

I live with the rich; I live with the poor, I live down the street,
and maybe next door.

I'm made in a lab, but not like you think, I can be made under the
kitchen sink.

In your child's closet, and even in the woods, If this scares you to
death, well it certainly should.

I have many names, but there's one you know best, I'm sure you've
heard of me, my name is crystal meth.

My power is awesome; try me you'll see, But if you do, you may never
break free.

Just try me once and I might let you go, But try me twice, and I'll
own your soul.

When I possess you, you'll steal and you'll lie, You do what you have
to - just to get high.

The crimes you'll commit for my narcotic charms Will be worth the
pleasure you'll feel in your arms,

You'll lie to your mother; you'll steal from your dad, When you see
their tears, you should feel sad.

But you'll forget your morals and how you were raised, I'll be your
conscience, I'll teach you my ways.

I take kids from parents, and parents from kids, I turn people from
God, and separate friends.

I'll take everything from you, your looks and your pride, I'll be
with you always - right by your side.

You'll give up everything - your family, your home, Your friends,
your money, then you'll be alone.

I'll take and take, till you have nothing more to give, When I'm
finished with you, you'll be lucky to live.

If you try me be warned - this is no game, If given the chance, I'll
drive you insane.

I'll ravish your body, I'll control your mind, I'll own you
completely, your soul will be mine.

The nightmares I'll give you while lying in bed, The voices you'll
hear, from inside your head.

The sweats, the shakes, the visions you'll see, I want you to know,
these are all gifts from me.

But then it's too late, and you'll know in your heart, That you are
mine, and we shall not part.

You'll regret that you tried me, they always do, But you came to me,
not I to you.

You knew this is would happen, many times you were told, But you
challenged my power, and chose to be bold.

You could have said no, and just walked away, If you could live that
day over, now what would you say?

I'll be your master, you will be my slave, I'll even go with you,
when you go to your grave.

Now that you have met me, what will you do? Will you try me or not?
It's all up to you.

I can bring you more misery than words can tell, Come take my hand,
let me lead you to hell.