N.C. FIGHTS METH WARS

Cooper Offers Plan On Ways To Quash Drug's Production

RALEIGH - Saying that it is more dangerous than crack cocaine and that
Watauga County is ground zero for the drug in North Carolina, Attorney
General Roy Cooper issued recommendations yesterday for efforts to combat
the spread of methamphetamine.

"This issue is so much more serious than crack because, No. 1, the drug
produces a high that lasts so much longer," Cooper said.

"And then the manufacture of methamphetamine is so dangerous - the danger
of fire, the danger of explosion, the danger of toxic chemicals," he said.
"That's why this is so much more dangerous."

Though the drug has been spreading east from California for more than 20
years, Cooper said, North Carolina has had a twentyfold increase in the
drug in recent years.

Authorities raided nine labs where methamphetamine is made in 1999, but by
last year the number of labs raided had grown to 177. Watauga County
accounted for 34 of those raids, Ashe County for eight, Avery for four and
McDowell for seven.

"It's been said that the first step toward fixing a problem is
acknowledging you have one. And here in North Carolina, we have a huge
problem," Cooper said.

Robin Pendergraft, the director of the State Bureau of Investigation, said
that it is no coincidence that those mountain counties are near the border
with Tennessee, which has an even bigger problem with meth than North
Carolina does.

"I think they're sharing in the 'how to,'" Pendergraft said.

Methamphetamine - known variously as meth, crystal meth, speed or ice - is
a central nervous-system stimulant that produces a euphoria that can
typically last six hours.

The drug can be made from ephedrine or pseudoephedrine, common ingredients
in over-the-counter cold medicines, and "cooked" or produced in a home kitchen.

Officials said that it is highly addictive.

Cooper issued his preliminary recommendations - which include stiffer
penalties for manufacturers, more money for law enforcement and
public-awareness campaigns - after holding a summit in Winston-Salem on
methamphetamine last October.

He said he wants to hear responses from the public and law-enforcement
officials before making his final recommendations.

"We're going to work to put in tougher penalties, and we're going to ask
the General Assembly to do that," Cooper said.

Cooper said that law-enforcement officials have few tools to combat the
spread of the drug, and he mentioned that Jerry Wilson, the district
attorney for Watauga County, charged one offender with producing a weapon
of mass destruction last year.

"I think the weapon-of-mass-destruction charge that the district attorney
made out there was out of frustration," Cooper said.

He said he wants to toughen penalties for those who make meth - including
possession of precursor chemicals - because current law issues tougher
sentences for those who sell it.

Manufacturers with no criminal record generally get a suspended sentence
and probation, he said, quoting a Watauga narcotics officer who said: "Some
of them were back out cooking before we could get the paperwork done."

Cooper also cited a special danger to children, saying that 25 percent of
the meth labs that the state busted last year were also homes to children
who were exposed to toxic fumes and the risk of fires and explosions.

The state should toughen its child-endangerment laws to make penalties
stiffer for adults who place children in such situations, he said.

Because the drug can be produced from ingredients in over-the-counter
medicines, Cooper said that authorities also want pharmacy and other
retailers to alert officials to big purchases.

"They need to know that a person who goes in and buys 10 boxes of Sudafed
is not a big family with a bad cold," he said.

Sheriff Donnie Harrison of Wake County said that officials also hope for
help from hotel and motel workers. Officers raided a lab at a Raleigh motel
last year where law-enforcement officers and legislators were staying, he said.

"If you have people who come in and don't want their room cleaned ... the
maids can really help us," Harrison said. "It can explode, and there's no
telling what could happen."

Cooper said that the meth epidemic affects multiple agencies: law
enforcement, first responders, prosecutors, health officials and social
services.

Though no figures were available yesterday, Pendergraft said that
law-enforcement authorities need more money to combat the drug. For every
raid on a lab, agents must wear protective "moon suits" that cost as much
as $600 each and can't be reused, she said.

Cooper also wants the state to develop standards for the cleanup of meth
lab sites.

"Five to 6 pounds of toxic waste is produced with every pound of
methamphetamine made. It's got to go somewhere, and oftentimes it's left on
the ground or in the water," he said.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

After a summit on methamphetamine in Winston-Salem in October, Attorney
General Roy Cooper released preliminary recommendations yesterday to combat
the drug. Among them:

Enhance penalties for the manufacture of methamphetamine. Currently, those
who make the drug get lighter sentences than those who sell it.

Enhance penalties for child endangerment. Of 177 labs raided in the state
last year, 25 percent had children present who were exposed to toxic fumes
and the risk of fire and explosion.

Stiffen penalties for possession of precursor chemicals. Penalties for
possession of chemicals used in meth are lighter in North Carolina than in
other states.

Enhance penalties for those who sell a fatal dose. Cooper wants the General
Assembly to add methamphetamine to the list of drugs that can trigger a
charge of second-degree murder for a supplier when a death occurs.

Train certain workers to recognize signs of a meth lab. Workers who might
see signs of a lab include farmers, garbage collectors, motel workers,
landlords and pharmacy workers.

Work with retailers to monitor sales of precursor chemicals. Officials say
that ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, common ingredients in cold medicines,
are essential ingredients in methamphetamine.

Train responders about the dangers of meth labs. Firefighters,
emergency-medical personnel and law enforcement can be exposed to toxic
fumes, fire and explosions.

Increase spending on law enforcement to combat meth. Law officers need
additional training. And each time a lab is raided, officers must wear
"moon suits" that cost $400 to $600 each.

Develop statewide guidelines for decontamination and occupancy of former
labs. Making one pound of methamphetamine produces five to six pounds of
hazardous waste, Cooper said.