RALEIGH PROSECUTOR, OTHERS SEEK SEPARATE METHAMPHETAMINE LAW

CHARLESTON - Raleigh County's Larry Frail is joining fellow
prosecutors across West Virginia in seeking a new law to punish
operators of illegal methamphetamine labs threatening to become "an
epidemic." Of prime concern are the inherent dangers narcotics
officers and fire officials face in trying to deal with such labs,
Frail said.

Existing law is too broad and makes no distinction between growing a
controlled substance such as marijuana, Frail said.

"There seems to be nothing that exactly fits this crime," the Raleigh
County prosecutor said.

Typically, "meth" producers are classified with marijuana growers, but
cultivating weed on a secluded hillside is a far cry from cooking the
other, more potent drug in a kitchen, Frail said.

"You have these houses where they're making this toxic stuff, it's
explosive, and officers are asked to go into these places," he said.

"The stuff combines with every little additional oxygen or anything,
and it's very combustible. You put a lot of officers' lives in
dangers. The reckless practices of the untrained people who
manufacture it in clandestine labs result in explosions and fires that
injure or kill not only the people and families involved but also law
enforcement or firemen who respond."

The current penalty of 1 to 5 years for cultivating marijuana is the
only penalty statute that covers methamphetamine.

Frail and fellow members of the West Virginia Prosecuting Attorneys
Association haven't agreed on how stiff a penalty they prefer, but
want methamphetamine manufacture treated as a distinct drug crime.

Already, illegal production has begun to surface in northern cities.
With basic chemistry knowledge and Internet access, getting into the
business is not that difficult, prosecutors said.

"It's huge around Parkersburg and places where it's starting to come
into West Virginia," Frail said.

"We're seeing more and more of it."

While it hasn't emerged as a "tremendous" problem in southern West
Virginia yet, Frail said he wants the Legislature to equip prosecutors
with a separate and tough law to deal with it in advance.

"I want something on the books before it becomes an epidemic here," he
said.

"It seems to be the new wave of drug problem, especially in the
northern part of the state and the western part. It's becoming an
epidemic, seemingly. Meth trafficking and production are different
from other drugs because they are dangerous from start to finish."

Prosecutors are putting in another request to the Legislature - deal
with a recent state Supreme Court edict allowing suspected drunken
drivers the option of providing a blood sample.

What's more, the high court interpreted Chapter 17C, Article 5,
Section 7 as barring police from getting a search warrant to test a
motorist's blood.

"That's going to be a problem everywhere," Frail said.

"It hasn't created any major problems locally, but it's just a matter
of time. It obviously needs to be addressed."

Boone County Prosecutor Sam Hall said the court's decision has left
West Virginia's drunken driving statute "more of a hindrance than an
aid to law enforcement in combating drunken driving."

"As a result of this decision, West Virginia's drunken drivers are
provided with a higher degree of protection than other criminal
suspects. People can get a search warrant for blood for any crime
except DUI? That's ridiculous."

Lawmakers are also being asked to provide a law clarifying that felony
and misdemeanor cases stemming from the same incident be tried together.

According to another Supreme Court ruling, a defendant may go to a
magistrate court for the misdemeanor offense and be tried for the more
serious offense in circuit court.

As a result, the prosecutors complained, multiple trials are possible
at both levels for the same defendant charged in the same incident.

And, the association is seeking a bill stipulating part of any money
collected by a prosecutor on a bond forfeiture remain in his county,
similar to civil drug forfeiture laws.