GETTING INVOLVED MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Getting involved isn't always easy, particularly when getting involved
means reporting a suspected crime. For generations, most people have opted
to turn their heads, preferring to let someone else handle situations that
seem a bit too risky for their taste. But as clandestine drug activity
continues to grow, and the perils of those activities become more
prevalent, and to more innocent people, it's time to rethink the old
feeling that it's better not to get involved. Last week, between a seminar
held at Sampson Community College to alert business and community leaders
to the dangers of methamphetamine labs and the terrible addictions that
come from the drug's use, people's eyes have been opened to the need to be
more aware and certainly more involved.

And it's already paying off.

Late last week, it was reported that because of a citizen's tip, officers
were able to dismantle a meth lab.

According to law enforcement reports, a citizen in the Green Path Road area
of Sampson County was alerted to what they viewed as suspicious activity
and alerted authorities.

It was a good call on the part of the citizen.

That call led officers to a clandestine mobile meth lab, a vehicle that was
being used for the manufacture of the highly addictive drug.

It was that call that made the difference.

It was that person, willing to go the extra mile that helped officers take
one more lab out of business.

There are other labs, dozens of them, we suspect, right here in our
county,. and officers suspect there are others in the Green Path Road area.
But they can't find them alone.

Meth labs can be just about anywhere - in hotel rooms, apartments, storage
sheds and cars.

For that reason, it takes residents who know the neighborhoods and who
understand when something out of the ordinary is taking place, to alert
officers to the activity.

It means getting involved.

We applaud this anonymous citizen who came forward with information that
shut down a lab in the northern part of our county.

That person's willingness to step out boldly made a difference and, quite
frankly, could have saved lives. Meth labs are dangerous and can easily
harm innocent people unaware of their existence.

We hope other residents will take this citizen's lead and, when necessary,
get involved in what's happening in their communities.

By doing so, they can take back their communities from the illegal
activities that often go on and go unreported.

It's time to get involved. We urge residents to do just that.

(c)The Sampson Independent 2004