DA: IF METH IS NOT A WEAPON, IT'S TOXIC SLUDGE

Assistant District Attorney Charlie Byrd told a roomful of
district attorneys and assistant district attorneys that the 24th
Judicial District is working to unveil a new weapon in the war against
the "cooking" of methamphetamine.

District Attorney Jerry Wilson, pending appeal, has lost one weapon in
the fight, but is reaching into the bag of charges to find another
creative indictment tool to deal with meth manufacturing and meth cooks.

A little more than a week ago eight defendants sat in orange,
county-jail jumpsuits as Superior Court Judge James Baker dismissed
charges of possession, manufacture or storage of weapons of mass
destruction. The accused were also charged with possession or
manufacturing of methamphetamine (meth) or the precursor chemicals for
the manufacturing of meth.

Those charges were not affected by Baker's ruling.

District Attorney Jerry Wilson and Assistant District Attorney Charlie
Byrd argued to Baker that a necessary part of the manufacturing, or
"cooking," process was the "knowing" creation of toxic gasses and
chemical combinations.

That "knowing" creation, they argued, fit within the language of a
statute designed to keep chemical "weapons" out of the hands of the
public.

Baker dismissed Wilson's charges and said that the statute was not
intended to deal with the manufacturing of drugs. He added that the
language of parts of the statute would include innocent conduct, the
innocent possession of some chemicals and was unconstitutionally vague.

In addition to the statute sections that were unconstitutionally
vague, Baker ruled that Wilson's use of the statute was
unconstitutional as applied to the people in the orange jumpsuits and
several others fortunate to be able to afford a bail as high as $500,000.

As Baker dismissed the charges, he attributed Wilson's actions and
creative indictments, in part, to frustration with the relatively mild
sentences and bail available in the statutes dealing with
manufacturing of controlled substances. He said that the proper remedy
rested with the General Assembly.

As Baker dismissed the charges, Wilson announced that he would appeal
the rulings.

District attorneys and assistant district attorneys from around the
state were in Watauga County for their semiannual conference last week
and the subject of meth was one of the conference topics. Wilson said
that the appeal notice had been filed and the state's attorney
general, Roy Cooper, had agreed to take and argue the appeal of
Baker's ruling.

Byrd presented an update on the meth problem in Watauga County as an
example of a problem that would affect every county, if it hadn't already.

He said that accused meth "cooks" would no longer be charged with
possession, storage or manufacturing weapons of mass destruction until
the issue of Baker's ruling could be decided at the appellate level,
but the district attorney's office has no intention of sitting and
waiting for the slow process that will decide if meth cooks are
creating weapons.

Byrd said that the DA's office is investigating charges of improper
dumping of hazardous waste.

Byrd told the DA conference that he and Wilson had faced eight
attorneys in Baker's court and all eight of the defense counsel had
argued that the meth-cooking process had created "pollution" and was
never intended to create a "weapon."

Cooking meth involves the combination of a number of volatile
substances, acids, salts and solvents. The combination creates
additional toxic materials that are often discarded by the meth cooks.

Byrd said that the DA's office listened to the arguments and, if the
substances created in the manufacturing process are not weapons, they
are, at a minimum, hazardous materials. Improper disposal of the
hazardous material is a state and federal crime.

"The defense counsel argued that it was pollution. We'll see what they
(defense counsel) say when we charge them (meth cooks) with dumping
hazardous waste."

Byrd was not specific as to which statutes the DA was considering. A
quick review of the N.C. statutes reveals at least two charges
directly addressing the improper dumping of hazardous material. Both
are felony offenses:

. N.C. statute 14-159.1 prohibits contaminating a public water
system.

"(a)A person commits the offense of contaminating a public water
system, as defined in G.S. 130A-313(10), if he willfully or wantonly:
Contaminates, adulterates or otherwise impurifies or attempts to
contaminate, adulterate or otherwise impurify the water in a public
water system, including the water source, with any toxic chemical,
biological agent or radiological substance that is harmful to human
health...

(b) Any person who commits the offense defined in this section is
guilty of a Class C felony.

Byrd, Wilson and investigators have said that meth cooks frequently
dump the byproducts of manufacturing and often do so near streams,
creeks and rivers, the source of water for the towns of Boone and
Blowing Rock.

. N.C. statute 14-284.2 prohibits the dumping of toxic substances: "It
shall be unlawful to deposit, place, dump, discharge, spill, release,
burn, incinerate, or otherwise dispose of any toxic substances as
defined in this section or radioactive material as defined in G.S.
104E-5 into the atmosphere, in the waters, or on land, except where
such disposal is conducted pursuant to federal or State law,
regulation, or permit. Any person who willfully violates the
provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class F felony.

The fine authorized by G.S. 14-1.1(a)(8) for a conviction under this
section may include a fine of up to one hundred thousand dollars
($100,000) per day of violation."

Byrd said that he would be meeting with representatives of the North
Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to
discuss charges, definitions and procedure for dealing with the
dumping of hazardous waste.