METH RAISING WORRIES IN LODE

Mokelumne Hill Residents Say It's Causing Crime Spike

MOKELUMNE HILL - Many of the buildings here date to the 1850s, '60s
and '70s, but the crime is pure 2007, locals say.

More than 100 residents crowded into the Mokelumne Town Hall (built
in 1875) this week to discuss what they say is a plague of
methamphetamine use and dealing. One after another, neighbors told of
finding homes and cars burglarized.

"There have been lots of minor thefts from my yard," said Pamela
Hill, a well known quilt maker who lives here. "The window of my
Dodge Caravan was shot out."

Hill, like others here, said she was slow to realize the severity of
the problem. At first, she assumed the damage was simply the result
of pranks by children.

But neighbors of the historic Mokelumne Hill Protestant Cemetery say
that drug dealing there is open and blatant.

"I saw a green SUV go to the cemetery. Two minutes later, I saw
Tweaker Joe (someone she suspects of drug dealing) go to the
cemetery," said Melinda Ervin, 53, whose Center Street home is across
the street from the cemetery.

A neighbor of the Ervins who asked that her name not be used said she
was physically assaulted by the same suspected drug dealer.

Ervin and her husband, Ken Ervin, 54, said even worse than the
dealing in the cemetery is when it happens close to their home -
bringing cars, motorcycles, moving vans and other vehicles past their
front window at all hours of the day and night, they said.

The Mokelumne Hill Cemetery District, which with the fire district
makes up the only formal government specifically for this
unincorporated hamlet, recently sent a letter to the Calaveras County
Board of Supervisors asking for help to boot the druggies out of the cemetery.

County authorities are already responding, with the Calaveras County
Sheriff's Department this week installing a phone line so it can
establish a new substation using space in the Mokelumne Hill Fire
Station. Sheriff Dennis Downum told those at the meeting that his
agency recently landed a grant that allowed it to form a unit
dedicated specifically to methamphetamine-related crime.

But everyone involved says that police action alone won't solve the problem.

"Their call volume is massive throughout this county," said Calaveras
County Supervisor Steve Wilensky, who represents Mokelumne Hill.
"There will never be enough sheriffs to do the entire job. It takes
the community."

With that in mind, Wilensky organized the meeting at the Mokelumne
Hill Town Hall to connect residents with code enforcement officers, a
Neighborhood Watch organizer and others who can help residents find
ways to drive meth businesses out of the town.

Todd Barr, Calaveras County's supervising code compliance officer,
told those at the meeting that rules banning everything from illegal
dog kennels and substandard electrical wiring to camping in abandoned
vehicles can and have been used to close down meth houses here.

"We can investigate that and keep your name out of it," Barr said.

It may be more shocking here because of Mokelumne Hill's reputation
as a haven for artists and historic preservation, but the meth plague
rocking this town is the same one infecting other Calaveras
communities, authorities say.

They say ultimately they need to pressure or persuade drug users to
get into rehab and clean up. That's difficult right now because the
county's jail is so small that nonviolent criminals are immediately
released to make room for people awaiting trial on murder, rape and
robbery charges.

If drug users knew they would be locked up if they failed to stick
with their court-ordered rehab programs, more of them would succeed,
said Jeanne Boyce, director of the county's Health Services Agency.
"We need a new jail," Boyce said.

[Sidebar]

Fighting meth

Calaveras County residents can combat methamphetamine use and dealing by:

1) Reporting drug dealing to the Sheriff's Department. Call 911.

2) Making written code compliance complaints about abandoned
vehicles, illegal kennels (four or more dogs) and building code
violations. Find forms and contact numbers online at
www.co.calaveras.ca.us/ departments/compliance.asp

3) Getting treatment help for drug abusers. Call (209) 754-6555 or
online at www.co.calaveras.ca.us/ departments/alcohol.asp

4) Establishing a neighborhood watch group. For assistance from the
sheriff's Crime Prevention Unit, call (209) 772-2919 Tuesday through
Saturday or (209) 754-6500 Monday through Friday.