SCHUMER UNVEILS THREE-PART PLAN FOR NIPPING METH PROBLEM IN THE BUD

U. S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer said Wednesday that for rural New York,
it is 1984.

The state's senior senator wasn't citing an Orwellian prophecy, but
saying that in 2004, methamphetamines are to rural New York what crack
cocaine was to New York City 20 years ago - a budding problem.

"When I became a congressman, there was this new drug people talked
about, and it was called crack," Mr. Schumer said in a morning press
conference at the Metro-Jefferson Public Safety Building, Watertown.
"No one paid attention at first, and it became a problem. It took us
about 15 years to get the crack problem in hand. We don't want to do
the same thing with crystal meth."

The Brooklyn Democrat's visit came in the same week that local police
discovered two clandestine laboratories allegedly used to produce
meth. In 1999, two meth labs were busted state wide, compared with 73
in 2003. Almost one third, 24, were in Jefferson County and eight more
alleged labs have been found this year. Mr. Schumer said the problem
in Jefferson County is the second worst in the state, behind Tioga
County.

"If today we had a theme, it would be to nip a problem in the bud,"
Mr. Schumer said.

To address the problem, the senator outlined a three-part program that
he wants to be added to the Senate's anti-crime bill for 2004, known
as the "gangs bill," along with a forth proposal to limit the sale of
cold medicine containing pseudoephedrine, the main ingredient in meth.

The first part of the program would launch a national advertising
campaign aimed at informing people about the dangers of the often home
made drug, which is derived from a collection of household ingredients
and cold medicine. He said the White House Office of National Drug
Control Policy should model the anti-meth campaign after its
anti-marijuana campaign, which the administration claims has reduced
marijuana use by 11 percent.

The second part would make $30 million available in "crystal meth
police grants" to provide funding for counties with a meth problem to
hire officers dedicated specifically to eradicating the drug.

Third the senator proposes an increase in funding for rehabilitation
and prevention. He called for a $125 million increase for substance
abuse prevention and treatment block grants, a $50 million increase
for the Center for Substance Abuse prevention, and a $125 million
increase for the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. While this
funding is not typically drug specific, the senator said he would want
a focus on grant request for combating methamphetamines.

Last, Mr. Schumer proposed the Methamphetamine Blister Pack Loophole
Elimination Act to limit the number of pseudoephedrine tablets that
can be sold to customers. Federal law already prohibits the sale of
more than 9 grams of liquid pseudoephedrine, but not the sale of tablets.

"We're getting good support from senators across the country, so I
think we have a chance," the senator said, regarding the likelihood
that his proposals will come to fruition.

Among those standing with Mr. Schumer at the podium were Jefferson
County Sheriff John P. Burns, Watertown City Police Chief Robert A.
Piche, Watertown Mayor Jeffrey E. Graham, Assemblyman Darrel J.
Aubertine, D-Cape Vincent, District Attorney Cindy F. Intschert and
county Legislature Chairman Robert J. Thomas, R-Glen Park.

Mr. Aubertine said Mr. Schumer's federal plan, in combination with his
bill (A.10378) in the state assembly, will help law enforcement battle
the spread of meth. The bill, which was created with input from Mr.
Burns, would give local and state authorities the same powers as the
federal Drug Enforcement Administration to seize clandestine
methamphetamine laboratories and make operation of such a laboratory a
class C felony.

"The reason we are here this morning is to address what I feel is a
scourge and a plague in Jefferson County," the assemblyman said. "We
need to give law enforcement the tools they need."

Ms. Intschert said she is glad to see the problem being noticed by
state and federal leaders.

"It's a problem we've been addressing as a team locally," she said,
listing the local and state law enforcement agencies involved in
combating drugs. "It's been a true team effort all along, and the
announcement today is a sign of that."

She said the senator's proposal covers many of the things law
enforcement officials would like to see in place.

Methamphetamine is a relatively new drug to New York State. In the
United States, the drug gained popularity on the West Coast first but
has come prevalent in varying degrees nationwide. Though Mr. Schumer
cited statistics that one third of the people arrested in San Diego
have meth in their system, rural communities tend to be fertile ground
for its production and distribution.

The drug, often called crystal meth, ice, crank or poor man's coke,
can be smoked, eaten, snorted or intravenously injected. It provides a
high similar to crack cocaine, but while crack's high usually lasts
less than an hour, meth provides an initial 15- to 30- minute rush
with a less-intense high lasting about another six to 12 hours.

The meth-making process is highly explosive and often involves garden
hoses, glassware and a stove, oven, microwave or grill to heat the
ingredients.

Some common supplies for creation of the drug are acetone, kerosene,
Epsom salts, lithium from camera batteries, aluminum foil, lighter
fluid, fertilizer, red phosphorous derived from matches, cold
medicines containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, muriatic acid and
lye.

The extraction of one pound of the white, odorless, bitter-tasting
crystalline drug from these ingredients usually produces about five to
six pounds of waste.

Users typically don't need sleep or food when high and often
experience high-energy mood swings that rang from sociable and
friendly to paranoid and sometimes violent. Symptoms of a meth user
include increased physical activity, acne, tooth decay and rapid
weight loss.