HAINE SEEKS STIFFER PENALTIES FOR PRODUCERS OF METH WHO ENDANGER KIDS

State Sen. William R. Haine, D-Alton, said Monday that he would propose
legislation this week to double prison sentences and fines for
methamphetamine manufacturers whose operations endanger children.

Flanked by Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Madison County Sheriff Robert
Hertz at the Madison County Sheriff's Department, Haine said such meth
producers are guilty not only of making drugs but also of ignoring the
damage to a child's health caused by the chemicals involved in the process.

"It's greed run amok, and greed that preempts any concern for children,"
said Haine, who served as the county's state's attorney until November.

Haine said he would get help from Madigan and Sen. John Sullivan, D-Quincy,
in drafting the bill.

Missouri legislators also are discussing ideas to protect children from
meth labs, but no legislation has been officially proposed.

In 2001, Missouri led the nation in meth busts, with 2,130 raids on
clandestine meth labs or discoveries of related ingredients, according to
the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Illinois had about 320 raids
that year, nearly triple the number in the year before.

Madigan said most of the state's meth production takes place in central,
western and Southern Illinois.

Meth production is an extremely volatile process that produces toxic fumes
and can cause explosions. In addition, the chemicals used in the process
would be "a parent's nightmare" for most people because they pose severe
health hazards to children, she said.

She recounted several tales of children who had been exposed to meth
production. In one case, the bedroom of a 5-year-old boy was used as a meth
lab, she said. In another case, Madigan said, police found a mobile meth
lab in the trunk of a car; in the back seat, an 8-year-old child was
vomiting violently.

"Criminals who cook drugs next to where they cook dinner simply do not care
about the welfare of children," she said.

Madigan estimated the minimum cost of cleanup for a small lab at $1,000 and
said the cost can easily reach $5,000 for cleaning up a medium-sized lab.

"We want to make sure these people are paying for the cleanup, and not the
citizens of the area," Madigan said.