METH RESURGENCE EVIDENT IN S.C.

Methamphetamine Use Especially Rising Among Middle Class In York County

York County, like many counties across South Carolina, is seeing a growing
number of people using methamphetamine.

Once popular among bikers in the 1980s before its popularity faded in the
1990s, meth has made a resurgence - this time, among middle-class white and
Hispanic youth, said Marvin Brown, commander of the county drug unit.

The average York County user differs somewhat from the profile of the
typical Carolinas meth user, whom officials describe as young and white
with limited education and a blue-collar career.

Methamphetamine - also known as crank, crystal, glass and speed - is a
powerful stimulant that targets the brain's pleasure center, giving users
an hourslong, manic high. Users say the effects can last longer than cocaine.

In South Carolina, the number of people seeking treatment for meth
addiction has skyrocketed. In fiscal year 1992, the state logged 14 cases
of people seeking treatment for meth. By fiscal year 2003, that number
jumped to 200 cases, according to the S.C. Department of Alcohol and Other
Drug Abuse Services.

"Meth is getting to be more and more regular here," Brown said. "It's
popular among the yuppie kids, especially those who are doing ecstasy."

Ecstasy is an illegal mood-elevating drug that produces a euphoric feeling.
It is primarily sold in clubs.

Lancaster and Chester county sheriff's offices said they have not seen much
of an increase in the number of people carrying meth. But they said their
offices have discovered a few meth labs during the last couple of years.

Part of meth's appeal to dealers is the relative ease with which it can be
made. For about $400, meth manufacturers can buy the chemicals they need
from hardware or grocery stores and cook the chemicals on a stove top to
make $6,000 worth of the drug.

Chester County Sheriff Robby Benson said tracking the labs can be challenging.

"The way they have the labs set up, they can cook one day, then move it,"
Benson said.

Brown said that nearly every weekend, York County's drug unit finds someone
with meth. He said much of the supply is coming not from local meth labs,
but from outsiders funneling other drugs, such as cocaine, marijuana and
ecstasy, into the area.

In January, the drug unit arrested two Myrtle Beach men for bringing more
than 57 grams of meth - enough for about 60 doses - into the county.

On Feb. 20, the drug unit arrested a Winthrop student and charged her and
two alleged accomplices with selling meth out of her apartment near campus.
The group also had ecstasy and marijuana, sheriff's office reports said.

Jessica Walsh, 20, was charged with four crimes related to the sale of
about 13 grams of meth and possession of three grams of meth. The charges
are still pending and no trial date has been set. She could not be reached
for comment.

Brown said the officers in his unit are bracing themselves for more such
cases. With meth already popular in other parts of the county, he said
officers knew it was just a matter of time before it flourished here.

"They told us it was coming this way," Brown said. "We've been training for
it, and I think we're going to see more."

Staff writers Greg Lacour and Alice Gregory contributed to this report.