DEA LEADER PRAISES UTAH FOR FIGHT AGAINST METH

The head of the Drug Enforcement Administration praised Utah Tuesday for
taking a leading role in the fight against methamphetamine.

DEA Director Asa Hutchinson made a stop in Salt Lake City Wednesday as part
of his national "Meth in America: Not in Our Town" tour.

Meth remains the top drug threat for local law enforcement officers, he
said. But exhaustive efforts by the DEA and other local agencies are
starting to show results. The number of meth labs seized by the DEA has
decreased two years in a row following nearly a decade of increased production.

"Meth is a battle we have not won yet," Hutchinson said. "Meth is truly the
number one drug problem in rural America and the number one problem in Utah."

Hutchinson pointed out the murders of former Roosevelt police Chief Cecil
Gurr and Lehi police officer Joseph Adams were both tied to meth.

To combat the problem, the DEA has trained 150 officers and spent $300,000
on equipment in Utah. Those efforts, combined with tougher legislation
regulating the distribution of precursor chemicals used in methamphetamine
production, have yielded positive results, Hutchinson said. The black
market prices for precursor chemicals have gone up, and the average amount
of meth being produced by each lab is down.

The greatest percentage of meth being consumed in Utah is being transported
into the state from gang members in California, Hutchinson said.

But methamphetamine produced locally still poses a significant threat.
Those meth labs endanger children, police and the environment. Since 1999,
taxpayers have spent more than $1.2 million for cleaning up meth labs.

Hutchinson also praised Utah's drug court program Wednesday, noting that
treatment with accountability combined with education is what works.
Nationwide, Hutchinson said, overall drug use is down 50 percent, and
cocaine use is down 75 percent.