Print this story | E-mail story | This story has 23 comments Add your own | iPod friendly
The faces of Meth
Drug abuse still problem in area
Published Friday, July 3, 2009
There is a common denominator in their faces – the hollow cheeks, bruised eyes and lank hair – all telltale signs of a manmade poison concocted of drain cleaner, acetone, iodine and pseudoephedrine.
It is called methamphetamine, a drug that is responsible for countless arrests each year of people accused of possessing it, selling it and even manufacturing it within the borders of Covington County
It is also a drug that local law enforcement and judicial officials are committed to eradicating within this county.
Methamphetamine is not a one-time use drug, and there is no such thing as a recreational meth user.
“The thing about meth is that it’s easy and cheap and the first time high a user gets is unlike anything they have ever experienced before,” said Sgt. Ray Dixon, an agent with the 22nd Circuit Judicial Drug Task Force, a multi-officer law enforcement agency created as a direct response to the county’s meth problem.
“Meth users try the rest of their life to get that same feeling of that first high and never succeed,” he said. “That’s why the addiction rate is so high. Once you try it, you’re hooked. That first time is such a euphoric high, it’s like a sexual climax times 1,000. It releases all those pleasure endorphins in the brain, but the more you try to recreate that feeling, the more meth you use.
“But that euphoric feeling very quickly changes to paranoia, a loss of appetite. You start to experience ‘meth bugs’ — itching and crawling. Your teeth fall out and it eventually can lead to organs shutting down and all sorts of cancers,” he said. “Meth is a poison both literally and figuratively. It robs a user of any sort of life — the people they love, their job, their home — and it can eventually cause death.”
What is meth?
Unlike drugs such as marijuana, cocaine and heroin, which are derived from plants, meth can be manufactured using a variety of store-bought chemicals.
According to The U.S. Department of Justice, the most common ingredient in meth, which is also known as “crank,” is pseudoephedrine or ephedrine, commonly found in cold medicine. Through a cooking process, the pseudoephedrine or ephedrine is chemically changed into meth. The ingredients that are used in the process of making meth can include: ether, paint thinner, Freon, acetone, anhydrous ammonia, iodine crystals, red phosphorus, drain cleaner, battery acid and lithium (taken from inside batteries).
Those ingredients are cooked in “labs” in a simple but highly dangerous and toxic process, often accomplished by using a few small glass dishes and a microwave.
It can be produced in several different forms including powder, rocks and tablets. Users can swallow it, snort it, smoke it or by inject it with a hypodermic needle.
The drug works by attacking the central nervous system. Users generally develop a tolerance to the drug, requiring more and more meth quantities to produce a high.
The results include rapid weight loss, anxiety, paranoia, sores, rotting teeth and a host of other physical and emotional problems.
How it got here
Meth made its emergence locally in the mid-1990s, according to District Attorney Greg Gambril, when out-of-state “cooks” came here to teach locals how to manufacture meth. Local and federal law enforcement investigations into national distributors “somewhat contained” the problem.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, it exploded on the local market.
In response, the DTF was formed and agents were taught how to spot the drug.
“Our agents went to a clandestine lab school in Quantico, Va., and they learned exactly how to spot meth,” he said. “That information we were able to bring back led to scores of arrests. Instead of relying on information from informants, they were able to go out into the community and target how meth was made. They were able to educate the community on what a meth user looked like, what ingredients were being used.”
Gambril said community response was overwhelming.
“We had linemen working on power lines reporting five or six microwaves on a person’s back porch and cashiers at Wal-Mart calling in tips because people were buying all the necessary ingredients,” he said. “And that’s when the DTF began hitting five and six labs a week. Now, we’re down to three to five every six months.”
Where we are now
Pseudoephedrine laws have helped slow the progression of meth labs not only in Covington County, but also statewide.
Signed into effect by Gov. Bob Riley in 2005, the law requires all non-prescription cold tablets that have ephedrine or pseudoephedrine as the sole active ingredient to be put behind the counter or in locked display cabinets at pharmacies. Tablets in which ephedrine or pseudoephedrine is one of several active ingredients will either have to be placed behind the counter, in a locked case, or kept under video surveillance. Purchases also are limited to two packages or six grams at a time.
The name of everyone who purchases those products is placed on the “pill list.”
For law enforcement, that list provided a who’s-who of meth cooks and has been instrumental in the decreased number of meth labs in the county.
“It’s definitely made our job easier,” Dixon said. “It’s a record of who’s buying pills. In the last year, I’d say we’ve made hundreds of cases off those logs. Pseudo is the key ingredient for meth. You’ve got to have it.
“We say just follow the psuedo,” he said. “Follow it and you’ll find the meth.”
Coming Saturday: A woman, whose methamphetamine use has made her a resident of the Covington County Jail, shares her story.
Comments
Posted by AndalusiaWatcher (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 7:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I feel like I have been 'kicked in the stomach' each time I arise and pull up the "Star News" and there is another meth front page story relating Meth to Andalusia. Please
Andalusia leaders and forefront runners, take this reporter
under your for wings for a few moments and try and relate some positive things for the area. The area is already deprived and struggling to just survive, but is on its way with some really good things for the future, but the Meth stories and 'promoting' the tales in the frontpage don't do you any good promoting your area for home sales, retiree relocaters, new buinsess moving in, or anybody wanting to do any business or share their lives and families with the
Andalusia area. Andalusia is not really that bad, but the paper smears the city each time these Meth stories hit the front page and promotes that idea of the city, you don't think 'good press' is worth anything? All succesful big ventures do beleive 'good press' is worth a lot and spend millions promoting such. Please work on this folks for the good of the entire area and begin promoting the area with
good tidings...............I'll Be Watching......
Posted by swswilliam (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 8:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I must agree. I get frustrated when I look into the newspaper stands and see our "dirty laundry" printed on the top fold of the front pages, shining through the plexiglass door. It's a bad reflection on such a great place to live.
Although the stories are news, and are informative to the public, and need to be told, do they need to be the highlight of the edition?
Posted by BamaBrat (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 9:54 a.m. (Suggest removal)
wow i am so sick to read in the paper , on how to cook this mess, people wake up. you print this stuff in the paper an ppl read it geee great (what was in the today's paper well lets see How To Cook an make Meth!!!) this is so not right , an right here the day before the 4th. Dont matter why this was wrote the point is it was done an you dont tell how its done omg what has this Co. turned into. I am so glad that my family dont live here to see an read this....this could have been about having fun on the Fourth of July .
Wake Up
Posted by Blondie (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 10:18 a.m. (Suggest removal)
And they wonder why they are having to cut stuff that was once in our paper, to cut cost!! You cant tell me that there isnt anything positive around here that you cant print about in here!! I know I have submitted several ideas.. that was a lost cause!
Do a human interest story, have a contest, do something that will bring something other than shame to our town. More people read this than what you think, that they dont even live around here. IT can be done.... maybe the reporters you have need to be "evaluated" again.
Posted by justice (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 10:37 a.m. (Suggest removal)
oh well i glad to see other people feel the same about the "star news" maybe we need a new editor??????when was the last time if any you read about the last fishing news where they were catching fish on the river or lake, or went to the nursing home and did a story on someone's life and times ,,,,,, its is all about drama , not about family values and community happens so much ,remember when wing had festival of the forest i was thinking the other day of having one at open pond in the conecuh national forest, have venders for the 4th of july in coming years ,fireworks i bet the campers would love to have that .Bring family and friends together,just a thought maybe the kiwanis can do this like the kids fishing derby we had recently that was real nice to see family doing fun stuff teaching kids nice things. have a safe 4th of july.
Posted by walnutwilly (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 1:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Im thinking that comparing a meth high with a sexual climax times 1000 promotes meth use instead of discouraging it. If they must print these stories about meth, then why not write about the hundreds of people who have beaten their addiction and now live successful lives? Just like another post said, It's all about the drama, the negative and not the positive. Saturdays edition, another poor soul lost in the jail system. Gimme a break! Lets here a more positive story about someone who is contributing to society. There's plenty out there.
Posted by blogwatcher (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 1:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Listen up Star News!!!!!! The people are speaking to you and their requests should be granted.
Posted by AndalusiaWatcher (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 2:57 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Thanks, Star News Readers! My stomach is already feeling better now that the good citizens are standing up for 'positive comments' and 'positive news' for our hometown Front Page of the local (read worldwide) newspaper, I agree with each and every one of you!
This is a 'start' of Citizens pulling together for the common good of everyone, their families, homes, school children,
elderly citizens, and the entire community. My 'hats off' to you good citizens. Thanks.
Posted by outlaw11 (anonymous) on July 3, 2009 at 7:46 p.m. (Suggest removal)
In my opinion, and, my opinion alone, this is a well written article, investigated and verified, very informative, but, not "time placed" with the new announcement of the possibility of a new car company coming to AL. The meth problem is here, but, we do not need to project it...it is also prevailant in other parts of the US bidding on these jobs. So, yes, we should not project it on front page news...but, it should be shown somewhere in the paper, maybe below the police report...for those of you who don't know, Meth was invented by a US Dr in the late 20's-early 30's, kicked out of the US to Germany who kicked him out,too...Japan offered him a place, he profected Meth thru the use of 3,4,5,and 6 year olds, who all turned out to be suicide bombers or KAMIKAZI leading into WWII...check on it if you don't believe it. Now, it has taken many,many years for this recipe to surface and make its way to Covington Count, so we have to deal with it...the faces of the users and the dealers look one way on paper and a different way in person, so, a name w/alias' would better serve, as would a last address, but, I don't run the paper or the CCSO, or the APD, so let's deal with what Stephanie printed. We can go from there.
Posted by Kathy052 (anonymous) on July 5, 2009 at 9:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Everyone are you are so right. Editor can you not find better stories to write about. It is like the Editor that we have for the Opp News and I don't mean to sound ugly. But when you turn to the page with her picture on it she looks like a mad bulldog. Can't smile makes all the decisions on what is to be written about and I know there has to be better stories out there. Then the paper tells everyone one what is in the meth. why don't they just give out the recipe they might as well they tell them everyting about what is in it. What about the little boy that went to Texas for heart surgery. I don't see an update on him?
Posted by Evil_Meanie (anonymous) on July 6, 2009 at 7:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Oh boo-hoo. It is just utterly ridiculous to see you people complaining that the news isn't "positive" enough. Deal with it. The meth problem is a reality, and far more important than someone catching a fish.
Posted by gpert (anonymous) on July 6, 2009 at 8:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The problem is when the DTF catches someone, they get them to tell on other people and then turn them out. The next day they are out cooking meth again. This is what happened to the Pert lady,her boyfriend was turned out and is now cooking again.
Posted by gladtobefromandy (anonymous) on July 6, 2009 at 8:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Evil.. Whats really "utterly ridiculous" is that the Andalusia star news is basically telling folks how to make it! And comparing it to what they compared it too! We're all adults and its "obvious" that we all know its a problem.. but i would rather read about someone catching a fish then giving some drug addict attention.
Posted by Evil_Meanie (anonymous) on July 6, 2009 at 8:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)
"Telling folks how to make it." The article seeks to inform people of exactly what meth is, and the dangerous process that is involved with making it. Since so many meth labs are known to blow up, the process involved with making it is relevant to the top being discussed.
The topic being discussed happens to be a huge problem in this area, and most of you people are suggesting that the paper just simply sweep it under the rug, in light of the "new car company." I mean come on, it's not like this "new car company" is stupid. The meth problem is already well publicized.
It's not like it's a big secret on how to cook meth, either. You can look that up on the internet with little more than a Google search.
I'm sorry, but I just cannot grasp how someone actually said that they'd prefer an article on someone catching a fish to an article addressing the very real meth problem in this area. You'd rather have a puff piece than actual news? So I guess we should just start ignoring actual occurences that matter and just talk about trivial things in our newspaper?
Posted by Alexia (anonymous) on July 6, 2009 at 11:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
For some reason I was compelled to make a post after reading what others had to say about the paper writing on the drug problem in the county and it making the county look so bad. I don't think it makes Andalusia look any worse then any other place in the United States for it is a Reality it's everywhere. Its in the big cities and the small country towns. The fact is we need to help and get rid of the problem. Dont Just sit back and complain about the problem , do something about it.. Help your neighbors watch out for there houses and property when you know they are not at home, report suspicious activity you notice, if its a friend that needs help getting off drugs do what you can to help them to see they are not going to survive living the life they are choosing. There are many things we as citizens can do to help on this war. As far as this article making Andulusia look bad, I dont think so, I dont live in Andalusia at the moment ,but I am really looking forward to the day I get moved there because I have bought some property and I am hoping to get moved soon because I think Andalusia area was a really nice area after looking and studying alot of other places before I made my choice of where I wanted to retire.So don't be so harsh on this reporter, they are just informing people of the problems of the drug war like all other cities do, Maybe one day people can see they can be a part of the WAR on drugs and help stop it...
Posted by Mr_Logic (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 6:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The drug court will help some of these individuals - after they become convicted criminals. It would be nice to have an "amnesty" program where individuals in trouble with drugs could get a drug court treatment without ever being busted.
Who employs anyone with a meth conviction on their record? If one can get through a program without a drug conviction, it would help them become productive citizens.
Posted by justice (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 6:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)
well evil you must be a drug user so why don't they print for you on how to be a loser in life i bet you would fine that interesting.
Posted by Evil_Meanie (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 8:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Oh that's nice, justice. Personal attacks? Really? Just because you're angry that I have no problem with a newspaper that prints um...news?
If the only thing that you have to bring to the table is playground tactics, then how about you just not bother to post anything at all? All I have done is point out how ridiculous it is for people to complain that a newspaper doesn't give them enough "good news." You think that makes me a drug user? Yeah, you've just got so much evidence to back that up, don't you?
Posted by bubba (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 8:41 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Justice,
Woman, have got to be from Florala. Where else could one find an idiot with an IQ equivalent to a good bean fart that posts the "look how stupid I am" comments that you post.
Take your teeth out, put them in the glass to soak, get a plastic cup of decaf coffee, and don't worry about what's going on in the real world. There's much more important things for you to do like:
1. Air out your moo-moo.
2. Trim your mustache.
3. Milk the cat.
4. Empty the spittoons.
5. And for God's sake, take a long stick with a sponge on one end, dip it in a bucket with some cleaner/degreaser in it and wipe the floor with it. ("it" being the sponge and not the bucket, idiot)
Posted by bubba (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 9:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Whoaaa!!!!
Stop the presses!!!! I'm so sorry I stated that Justice had to be a woman from Florala. Now that I know who justice is, I owe women of the world an apology. This guy isn't good enough to be called a "woman". He wasn't able man-up and keep a wife. He's like his nephew. A loud mouth who lies about everything in a feeble attempt to make himself look good because that is the only way to do so.
By the way, the "more important things" list still applies to you, though. Get busy.
Posted by Estragon (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 11:27 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This article (The Faces of Meth) was well-written and researched. People who want to read only happy news usually live in a world of make-believe and/or denial. As one commentator stated, meth is a serious problem and the Star-News is to be commended for tackling this issue. Ignorance (which is in abundance in Covington County) never solved a single problem and ignoring problems never made them go away. The Star-News should be congratulated, not condemned, for using the power of journalism to educate its readership.
Posted by galatians5_6bniv (anonymous) on July 7, 2009 at 7:10 p.m. (Suggest removal)
For everyone's information, they did not tell how to make meth, they just gave a list of ingredients commonly used to make meth. You see there are several formulas used to make meth and each uses different ingredients. They even tried using cattle wormer and rat poison to replace Pseudoephedrine in the formulas.
The list the paper gives contains chemicals from different formulas, so fair warning to anyone stupid enough to try to make meth from that list; it will kill you on the first try.
Now to answer the question grinding away in your heads, I know so much about it because I helped make the arrests on the first lab found here. Back then we had to learn all about it and learn quick.
Best news of all is that years later the man we arrested hugged me and thanked me with tears in his eyes and said that if we had not arrested him he would have been dead. Instead of being dead he preaches in prisons now, and no he finished his time before he was released so finding the Lord did not help him in jail, other than making that time bearable and useful. In all my years in law enforcement we were always questioned about why we did not do more about drugs, and I am glad you seem to now be satisfied that something is being done. BUT, you have over and over demanded more emphasis on education to go with more arrests.
These articles are an attempt at educating the public, in response to rather vocal public demands made by readers. So now we don't want to hear anymore about it? OLD PROVERB: Be careful what you wish for because you might get it.
Posted by Anne (anonymous) on July 8, 2009 at 5:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Thank you very much Gal 5 for your explanation. Those who have become slaves to this Diabolical Concoction need compassionate spiritual direction and the grace from God to free them from this curse.
God bless your work.
Post a comment (Terms of Use Policy)
(Requires free registration.)