PROGRAM COMBATS METH PROBLEM

SISKIYOU COUNTY - To combat California's methamphetamine problem,
the state established a new program called California
Multi-Jurisdictional Methamphetamine Enforcement Team.

Cal-MMET's mission is to:

o Reduce methamphetamine production, distribution and availability of
methamphetamine on the street;

o Reduce methamphetamine related criminal offenses;
and

o Reduce hazardous waste sites associated with the chemical
manufacture of methamphetamine.

According to Siskiyou County Sheriff Rick Riggins, Cal-MMET is a
regional effort, with sheriff's departments receiving grant money
through the Office of Emergency Management.

"We use these grants to pay for wages including overtime, equipment,
and 'buy' money for undercover operations," Riggins said. The grant
also helps to pay for administration and logistics costs as well.

In a few weeks, Riggins will appear before the county board of
supervisors to apply for another grant. On the average, counties
taking part of the Cal-MMET program received more than $200,000, he
reported.

Originally, Siskiyou County was part of a different multi-county Cal-
MMET effort based out of Shasta County, Riggins said. Siskiyou
County's grant money went towards the regional command headquarters
in Redding and was distributed from there.

"I liked the idea of working with Shasta County but we weren't
seeing a lot of results in our area," he said. His people working with
the Shasta Cal-MMET operation were busy in other counties, but "they
weren't doing a lot here in our county."

A number of counties decided to pull out of the Shasta regional
operation and pool their own resources. Riggins saw the benefits of
doing something similar.

He contacted sheriffs in Trinity, Modoc, Lassen and Plumas counties.
The sheriffs talked about their mutual situations and problems.

"Over a period of time, we came to an agreement," he explained. "By
pooling our money and resources, we (the sheriffs) feel that could
tackle the meth problem more effectively."

For example, Siskiyou County has K-9 units and other resources that
some of the other sheriff's departments lack, Riggins commented.

Right now, Riggins said that a pound of processed meth has the street
value of $18,000.

"When you have these cartel-operated 'super-labs' turning out 40 or
more pounds of meth a day, that gives the drug producers and
traffickers a lot of capitol to work with," he observed.

According to the Department of Justice, in the late 1990s and early
2000s, 80 percent of the meth flooding the United States came from
California. In 2003, more than 125 Californian super-labs were busted.
In 2006, just 12 super-labs were busted.

The DOJ reports that 80 percent of meth currently comes from Mexican
cartel-operated super-labs south of the border.

But Riggins thinks that domestic labs will make a comeback.

"Meth is easy to make. When you can get more than $18,000 a pound,
that's more than enough to get people started making their own
meth," he said.

When cartels making meth can generate hundreds of millions of dollars,
combatting the production and distribution of it, with five
counties' combined $1 million, is a daunting task.

Riggins feels that something can be done.

"Last year, our partnership with the Jackson County Sheriff's Office
(Ore.) hit the cartels hard, taking more than $300 million of their
product," he said. "We can do the same with the meth producers and
traffickers."