COURT SETS UP NEW RULES FOR 'METH' CASES

FRANKFORT -- A defendant charged with manufacturing methamphetamine must
have all the necessary equipment or ingredients, the Kentucky Supreme Court
said in a split decision Thursday, in a decision that "causes great
concern" for one top Northern Kentucky law enforcement official. A
defendant who possessed some but not all the equipment or chemicals used in
making the illegal drug could be prosecuted for criminal attempt, provided
there was evidence of his intent, the court said.

In a dissenting opinion, Chief Justice Joseph Lambert said offenders would
have to be caught "red-handed" under the majority interpretation, which he
called "excessively technical."

The court ordered a new trial for Ronald Kotila, who was convicted in
Pulaski County on a "meth" manufacturing charge in 1999. Because he also
had a gun when arrested, his sentence was enhanced to 25 years.

Kotila had possession of many of the items needed for a "meth" lab, all of
which are legal by themselves and commonly available: antihistamine
tablets, lithium batteries, cans of starting fluid, glass jars, rock salt,
a cooking pot and a wooden stirring spoon, among other things.

However, Kotila did not have two essential ingredients -- anhydrous ammonia
and muriatic acid.

And the pertinent Kentucky statute specifies that a suspect must possess
"the chemicals or equipment for the manufacture of methamphetamine."

Jim Paine, executive director of the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force,
said he had not seen the court's opinion and therefore would not comment on
its specifics.

However, meth labs have been on the rise in the past three years inside the
strike force's four-county jurisdiction of Kenton, Boone, Campbell and
Grant counties, he said, adding he planned to locate and read the ruling
because of the significance it can have.

"The presence of the article 'the' is significant because, grammatically
speaking, possession of some but not all of the chemicals or equipment does
not satisfy the statutory language," the court said in an unsigned opinion.

In a partial dissent, Lambert said prosecuting meth cases will become
nearly impossible.

A suspect "will be able to prevent his conviction by merely omitting from
his cache of tools and ingredients one or two of the more common, and
bringing in the missing components only at the last moment," Lambert wrote.

. The number of methamphetamine labs seized in Kentucky increased from 18
statewide in 1998 to 262 statewide in 2001.

. 13.1 percent of Kentucky high school students in 2001 reported using
methamphetamine at least once.

. In 1998, 442 people in Kentucky were admitted to drug treatment for
methamphetamine use. In 2000, 631 were admitted.

From Post staff and wire