CITY, COUNTY POLICE BATTLING METH PROBLEM

Residents Urge Drug Task Force

During five years as the Daviess County Sheriff's Department's lone
narcotics investigator, Detective Sgt. Jim Acquisto has had a front row
seat as the county's methamphetamine presence has escalated from a growing
problem into a widespread epidemic.

Acquisto has seen children inside a home filled with meth fumes, men
arrested up to three times for making meth, a pregnant woman using the drug
and another woman, in the grip of a powerful addiction, who opted to put
her child up for adoption rather than try to rehabilitate, he said.

Countless of police work, surveillance and federal grants have helped
provide police with increased tools to fight the problem. But there is
simply not the time nor resources to track all of the tips about suspected
meth activity, which average from five to 10 tips each day, Acquisto said.

"At any given time there are at least 12 to 15 active meth labs in one
stage of production or another going on in Daviess County," Acquisto said.
"If we really knew the numbers it would really scare us."

The sheriff's department has made a dent in the problem. Since 1998, the
department has found at least 162 meth labs throughout all segments of the
county, which does not include the labs found by city police. The labs may
range from fully operational to lacking one or two components.

>From the time police arrive at a meth lab until the work is completed may
be about six hours, Acquisto said. The time includes interviews, paperwork,
waiting for a hazardous materials crew to arrive from Newburgh, Ind., and
cleaning up the site.

Many of the labs found in the city lead police to additional locations in
the county, said Lt. David Thompson, who supervises the city's criminal
investigation division.

>From 2000 to 2003, city police recorded at least 70 meth labs, and 14 of
those were found in vehicles. City police have found 17 labs this year,
Thompson said.

Acquisto said he fears that some residents have heard so much about meth
that they have become numb to the problem.

Acquisto was a part of the study circle effort, "Citizens and Law
Enforcement, Partnering for a Stronger Community." Acquisto and other
police continue to meet with residents to foster communication and increase
cooperation.

In June, a group of residents, led by Debra Kolar, expressed their support
for a city-county drug task force to Daviess Fiscal Court. If established,
the agency would focus exclusively on drugs throughout Daviess County and
combine the efforts of city and county agencies to form a united front.

To explain the need for such an agency, the residents showed a map of
Daviess County with colored markers indicating the locations of meth labs
since 1998.

Supreme Court Ruling

A Kentucky Supreme Court ruling in June dealt police and prosecutors a
setback in the fight against meth. The conviction of Ronald Kotila, who was
prosecuted in Pulaski County, was overturned because of wording in the law
regarding manufacturing meth.

The law did not specify whether someone must possess all or some of the
ingredients to make meth. The court ruled that someone must possess all the
ingredients in order to be charged.

Daviess County Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Ken Nall, who prosecutes
drug offenses, said the ruling has made the work tougher for police and
prosecutors but has not handicapped them. "They shortened a big stick, but
(it's) still a pretty powerful stick," Nall said.

People can still be charged with a variety of felony crimes with stiff
penalties.

Nall said he plans to hold a meeting this week with all countywide law
enforcement officers to speak about how the legal changes might impact them.

The rate of meth use has increased during the past five years, he said.
Now, it is common for people being charged with driving under the influence
or writing cold checks to be found with meth. A lot of meth charges stem
from people being booked into the jail who are found with small amounts of
meth, Nall said.

"I think it has grown by leaps and bounds over what it was the last few
years," Nall said.