AG SAYS METH LABS WILL MAKE APPEARANCES IN DURHAM

DURHAM -- Methamphetamine labs are on their way to this part of North
Carolina, state Attorney General Roy Cooper told the N.C. Sheriff's
Association on Friday.

Durham County Sheriff's Maj. Lucy Zastrow agreed, noting that it is a
growing problem in the eastern part of the state. But so far, she said,
"Durham County has missed that adventure."

However, Cooper warned, "it is coming."

In 1999, the State Bureau of Investigation reported nine methamphetamine lab
busts. In 2003, 177 labs were found in North Carolina.

"This year, we are probably going to double that," Cooper said. "So we have
got to have a plan in place."

Methamphetamine is a stimulant that can give drug users a longer and
stronger high than drugs like cocaine, officials say, sometimes with a high
lasting for up to six hours. Meth, as it is commonly referred to, can be
injected, snorted or swallowed and can be made by mixing common household
products and decongestant drugs available at local retail stores.

Until now, meth has primarily been a problem in the Western United States,
but it is coming to the East Coast, officials say. Both Johnston and Watauga
counties in particular have seen problems with meth, and the drug has been
found in 45 other counties, according to the report from a 2003 statewide
summit on the issue.

Meth labs also were popular with biker gangs in Durham County in the late
1970s, Zastrow said, but that died out as people blew up their homes and
realized how dangerous it was.

In January, Cooper released a plan for fighting the meth problem, as well as
the report's preliminary findings.

Among those findings were that state laws are insufficient, because meth
manufacturers who have no record generally receive a suspended sentence, and
that North Carolina's laws are worse or weaker than those in other states.

In addition, about 25 percent of the meth labs busted in North Carolina in
2003 were in homes where children also lived, the report found.

Cooper said that when children are exposed to the drug through fumes and
residue in the carpet, drapes or furniture, those "children might as well be
taking it." The drug's side effects include brain damage, violent behavior
and paranoia, he said.

The report also found that the drug is stressing the state's resources for
fighting it.

The chemicals used in manufacturing meth can produce dangerous gases, which
can be fatal if inhaled and are highly flammable, easily triggering
explosions. So when busting the labs and gathering evidence, SBI agents must
wear disposable suits that can cost up to $600. In addition, the average
cost for cleaning up a meth lab runs between $4,000 and $10,000, the report
said. And it takes SBI crime laboratory chemists up to 45 hours to process
each meth lab compared to one hour for processing cocaine labs.

The report recommended that the state should increase its penalties for
manufacturing and possessing meth, and should make it a crime to produce
meth when a child is present.

Other recommendations included better training, more equipment and informing
residents and merchants about how to identify waste and smells generated by
cooking meth, along with how to spot the key ingredients used in making
meth.

Zastrow said law enforcement officers in Durham County, like other counties
across the state, are being trained on how to detect and deal with the
hazardous drug.

"I think we are doing a pretty good job of sort of heading it off at the
path," Zastrow said.