EASLEY PLEDGES TO BATTLE SPREAD OF METH LABS

Governor Backs Efforts With $500,000 Grant

RALEIGH - Gov. Mike Easley pledged Wednesday to back tougher penalties for
making methamphetamine and more money for law enforcement to stop the
manufacture of the drug from spreading statewide.

Easley described meth labs, which can explode because of the chemicals used
in the drug's manufacture, as "the biggest threat to every community in
North Carolina."

The labs have been found in apartment buildings, cars, houses and hotel
rooms, and the toxic fumes could harm children who live in homes where the
drug is made.

"We're not going to allow people to blow up our houses, abuse and neglect
our children and endanger our communities," Easley said.

The governor's announcement lends support to attorney general and fellow
Democrat Roy Cooper, who says he will ask lawmakers to adopt a $14 million
anti-meth plan this spring.

Cooper's proposal would train law enforcement, launch a public awareness
campaign and lengthen prison sentences for people who possess chemicals
used to make meth. Right now, the sentence for manufacturing meth is about
the same as the sentence for possessing small amounts of marijuana.

The attorney general's staff is still refining the proposal. Lawmakers
might take it up when they return to work May 10.

Cooper wants the laws to catch up to the growing problem. Meth busts in
North Carolina grew from nine in 1999 to 177 last year. Law enforcement
officers have made 89 such busts in the first three months of 2004.

State law officials worry the pace will keep growing, since meth is
relatively easy to make with ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, which are common
ingredients in cold medicines, and other ingredients that can be bought
readily in stores.

Easley joined the push Wednesday by announcing a $502,166 grant from the
Governor's Crime Commission to buy two additional mobile response vehicles.
The trucks, which look like large ambulances, contain biohazard suits,
chemical detectors and other devices that make it safer for law enforcement
officers to handle the volatile chemicals in the labs.

The state has only three trucks. That puts a burden on State Bureau of
Investigation officers, who have to drive to the scene of every meth lab
bust in the state.

The drug has moved east across the state in recent years, as it has moved
east across the country for decades.

Asked about laws in other states that require store owners to keep
medicines with ephedrine or pseudoephedrine behind the counter, Cooper said
he wasn't considering that at this point. Instead, he wants to launch a
campaign to keep stores from selling the medicines in large doses.

Cooper said he would consider tougher legislation if volunteer measures
don't work.