Introduction

DEALER'S STORY: THE HUMAN FACE OF A DRUG PLAGUE

Starting in the late 1990s, a tidal wave of drugs came crashing down onto
rural Kentucky. Newspaper headlines screamed, overdose numbers spiked and a
parade of police and politicians called for tough new laws.

All along, though, public dialogue overlooked key issues: how drug
trafficking operations come to be, how they thrive and why removing one
might not add up to much change.

The life of one dealer, David Perkins, reveals a constellation of causes
behind the rural drug epidemic -- factors that remain from year to year, no
matter how many traffickers go to prison:

. The poverty that helped drive Perkins is rooted deeply.

. Local law enforcement lacks the resources to stem the flow.

. And, if anything, more big-city suppliers are reaching out to rural
markets each year.

This is the story of a man who rose and fell in one of those markets, doing
business in the forest land of McCreary County. It seems a strange starting
point for a tale of shots fired, Mexican whorehouses, stacks of cash,
family feuds and, in the end, betrayal.

But, like so many other counties in rural Kentucky, it proved fertile ground.

(Sidebar)

This story is based on hundreds of court documents, interviews with 11 of
the 13 defendants or their lawyers and research from various state and
federal law enforcement agencies. It was written and photographed by the
following Herald-Leader staff members:

Tom Lasseter, a graduate of the University of Georgia, joined the staff of
the Herald-Leader in 1999. He is a general assignment reporter on the
newspaper's state desk.

David Stephenson, a graduate of Western Kentucky University, joined the
Herald-Leader photography staff in 1997. He was named newspaper
photographer of the year in 2000 and 2002 by the Kentucky News
Photographers Association.

The following men are not mentioned in the story by name, but were part of
the drug ring:

. Chuck Payne: Pleaded guilty to selling cocaine. Sentenced to 36 months.

. Estil Trammel: Pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute
cocaine and being a felon with a firearm. Sentenced to 57 months.

. Robert Walgenbach: Pleaded guilty to selling cocaine. Sentenced to 96 months.

Drugs in the story Oxycontin: For 24-hour relief of long-term, moderate to
severe pain. Made from oxycodone, with a time-release mechanism that
abusers disarm by crushing pills. Overdose dangers: Abnormally slow
heartbeat and low blood pressure; drowsiness leading to coma and death.

Street price: Can reach $1.50 per milligram. Doses range from 10 to 80
milligrams.

Cocaine: Dangers: Powerfully addictive. Cocaine-related deaths are usually
caused by cardiac arrest or seizures, followed by respiratory arrest.

Street price: $1,300 an ounce in McCreary County.