Meth Lab Homes

Couple sues Utah health department over meth lab home

mamasmad — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 01:23:36 +0000

If you’re buying or thinking of buying a home in Utah, talk to the neighbors BEFORE you sign any purchase agreement.

The couple in this video bought a home, only to find out later from neighbors that it had been used as a meth lab by its previous owner. They later sued the health department over the $40,000 that it will cost them to decontaminate the home.

Wife of Alabama soldier indicted on meth manufacturing charges

mamasmad — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:52:26 +0000

Cortney Rae Wilson, 28 and Dennis Raymond Griffith have been indicted by a federal grand jury for conspiracy to manufacture and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Cortney and Griffith had been arrested earlier this month when police discovered a fire at Cortney Wilson’s apartment located at 541C Willow Circle, was the result of a meth lab explosion. According to the complaint, numerous items used in the manufacture of methamphetamine were discovered in the apartment, the carport, and in Wilson’s automobile.

Wilson and Griffith face up to 20 years in prison, a fine up to $1 million dollars and a supervised release of 3 or more years after they have served their prison sentence.

Source: Northern District of Alabama Press Release

Senator Joe Biden has an opinion about meth labs that may surprise you

mamasmad — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:44:16 +0000

If Senator Joe Biden and Senator Obama win the presidential election in January, the citizens of the U.S. will have someone on their side in the White House. Biden has a long history of standing behind legislation to combat drugs in the U.S. and he is keenly aware of the crime and health dangers that clandestine meth labs present to first responders and to America’s citizens.

He cosponsored the Combat Meth Act of 2005, which regulates cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, the active ingredients in methamphetamine.

He founded the Senate Anti-Meth Caucus, a group focused on devising a comprehensive, nationwide strategy to combat methamphetamine addiction. Senator Biden is currently the Co-Chairman of the Senate Anti-Meth Caucus.

Senator Biden joined Sens. Max Baucus (D-MT), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and other Senators in cosponsoring a resolution designating November as National Methamphetamine Awareness Month (S.Res.366). The Senate unanimously passed the resolution.

Sen. Biden has been at the forefront of national policy on methamphetamine for over 15 years, issuing reports in the early 1990s warning that meth would make its way across the country and negatively impact rural America; writing major meth legislation in 1996 and 2000.

Senator Biden chairs both the Caucus on International Narcotics Control and the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs. In addition, he worked to create the position of the nation’s Drug Czar and has fought hard to support the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign and other prevention and treatment efforts.

“While our efforts in Congress have helped reduce the number of homegrown meth labs, these labs still present an incredible danger to law enforcement officers who raid them; they are an environmental nightmare; and most importantly, they’re an unbelievable hazard to kids,” said Sen. Biden. “We’ve got to help state and local authorities by providing them with the necessary training, education, and resources to deal with this disturbing and destructive trend. Meth production and use is like a balloon: clamp down on one side and the other side swells. We need to meet this challenge with an approach that addresses both the supply and the demand.”

Sen. Biden has been at the forefront of national policy on methamphetamine for over 15 years, issuing reports in the early 1990s warning that meth would make its way across the country and negatively impact rural America; writing major meth legislation in 1996 and 2000; and cosponsoring the Combat Meth Act of 2005, which regulates cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, the active ingredients in methamphetamine. He is also a founding member of the Senate Anti-Meth Caucus, a group focused on devising a comprehensive, nationwide strategy to combat methamphetamine addiction.

2002

Opening Statement by Senator Biden at Hearing on : Enforcing America’s Drug Laws: Is Small Town America Adequately Prepared for the Challenge? - While small town America has long been familiar with the scourge of alcohol abuse, widespread illicit drug use and trafficking is a relatively new phenomenon. As a report from The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) revealed, availability of drugs is now essentially the same in big cities, small towns and rural areas. The same report gave us these grim statistics:

Eighth graders in rural America are:

104 percent more likely than kids in cities to use amphetamine.
83 percent more likely to use crack cocaine.
50 percent more likely to use powder cocaine.
34 percent more likely to smoke marijuana.

2006

Fighting Crime at Home and Abroad - “The women and men fighting this war on terror overseas should not have to return to find their neighborhoods overrun with criminals and meth labs. We must be able to protect our citizens at home while also protecting our nation overseas. Our service people and our nation deserve better. As we combat terrorism around the world, fighting crime in our own backyards should not take a back seat. But a report recently released by the FBI shows it has.”

2007

Biden introduces most comprehensive anti-crime legislation in over a decade (pdf) - Senator Biden knows why so many people convicted on drug charges go back to doing what they did before they left prison. For meth cooks, getting out of jail, typically means going back to manufacturing meth as a way to put a roof over their head. In his report he says:

There are over 2,000,000 individuals in our Federal and State prisons
and millions more in local jails, and every year, 650,000 ex-offenders
are released from Federal and State prison.
Two-thirds of released State prisoners will be rearrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within three years of release.
The unemployment rate among former inmates is as high as 60 percent.
15-27 percent of prisoners expect to go to homeless shelters upon release.
57 percent of federal and 70 percent of state inmates used drugs regularly before prison.
Nearly 20% of prison inmates reportedly committed their crimes to obtain money for drugs.
Two-thirds of former prisoners who lacked adequate housing committed crimes within 1 year of their release, compared to 1/4 of those with housing.

2008

National Drug Prevention and Education Week - Joe Biden (Delaware Democrat)and Chuck Grassley (Iowa Republican) introduced a resolution designating the week of February 10-16, 2008 as National Drug Prevention and Education Week. The resolution encourages communities to carry out programs and activities to educate parents and youth about the dangers of drug use.

Drug Trafficking Interdiction Assistance Act of 2008 - U.S. Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr, (D-DE) Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs and the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, introduced the Drug Trafficking Interdiction Assistance Act of 2008 (S.3351), legislation designed to help disrupt drug trafficking by criminalizing the use of unregistered, un-flagged submersible or semi-submersible vessels in international waters whose operators intend to evade detection. Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) joined Sen. Biden in introducing this bill, which will give authorities a new tool to go after the drug lords who have been using this technology to avoid prosecution.

Summit County Ohio agrees to set up an online meth lab database

mamasmad — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 12:59:41 +0000

Akron - The Methamphetamine Property Awareness Task Force and the Summit County Council have joined hands to help combat methamphetamine. On August 11, 2008, the Council agreed to adopt the recommendations made by the Meth Task Force to a county-wide system of identifying meth labs.

Law enforcement agencies will now submit a nationally recognized form from the El Paso Intelligence Center to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office when they discover a meth lab. The information on those forms will then be entered in to a county-wide online database by the Sheriff’s office. The website will list property that has been used to make methamphetamine as well as property that has been used to store or dispose of meth components, by-products, or meth lab waste products. The web site will also contain other resources and information that will be maintained by task force members and members of the Council.

The Council will also ask the state and federal governments to establish meth lab cleanup guidelines so they can establish policies involving meth lab cleanup and public health issues.

Source: Folkerth, Kathleen, “Meth task force recommendations adopted”, 8/14/08, accessed 8/25/08, http://www.akron.com/akron-ohio-community-news.asp?aID=3173

How to find a meth lab in Jefferson County Missouri

mamasmad — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 01:22:34 +0000

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office has posted a listing a meth lab busts that includes meth labs busts from 2007 and 2008. Note that the postings say it contains “some” of the meth lab busts. If you don’t see an address on the list, it does not mean that the home is safe. If you moved in to or moved to a home in Jefferson County in 2007 or 2008, you can check the list to make sure that the home you’re currently living in isn’t contaminated. Sellers and landlords should disclose that to anyone who is buying or renting from them, but that doesn’t mean that always happens. Some will avoid disclosing that fact because the cost of decontaminating the property is very costly. Always, call the police department or the local health department and ask them if the property has even been used as a meth lab, if you plan on renting or buying a home or business. As added insurance, speak to the neighbors who live near the property you’re interested in. Neighbors are a good source of information about activities that have occurred in the neighborhood. If neighbors say someone was making meth and you don’t find the house on the list, don’t discount what they’ve told you. Play it safe and get the facts before you rent or buy!

You can view the list from Jefferson County by clicking on this link.

Kentucky meth lab explodes killing 29 year old meth cook

mamasmad — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 02:48:01 +0000

Tragically, Joseph Lewis, lost the battle for his life on Wednesday at the burn center at University hospital. Joseph had been rushed to the hospital, on Tuesday, after his meth lab exploded in his Okolona, Park Lake Apartment in Jefferson County. He was just 29 years old.

Firefighters discovered the remnants of his meth lab after extinguishing the fire. Joseph had been using the one-pot method, according to reports about the incident. One-pot meth manufacturing, a method popular among meth cooks, doesn’t require a heat source. It can also be done anywhere that you could take a two-liter bottle, a two-liter bottle that contains highly volatile chemicals.

Residents of the apartment complex say this complex had been condemned by the health department years earlier, but it was bought by an out-of-state company. A company that will now have to contend with tenants moving out of the comples in fear that another meth lab (s) may be found there. Understandably, they fear for their health and safety and that of their families.

Two liter bottles, used to make meth, typically contain a muddy residue when the process has been completed, according to my research. Popular two liter bottles with meth cooks are used to hold soft drinks, like soda. Suspicious looking trash should be reported to police. Never open trash bags found by the side of the road or otherwise, as they may contain hazardous and / or explosive materials.

Read the full story including comments by residents of the complex at the Courier-Journal. Com

Meth labs in Louisville Kentucky on pace to set record high

mamasmad — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 13:32:16 +0000

Meth labs in Louisville Kentucky are on the rise. Anyone living or traveling to Louisville, KY should be cautious and alert for signs of a meth lab.

If you suspect that someone is making meth, please call the police department. The longer a meth lab exists, the greater the chances are that an innocent person(s) will be hurt by them.

Contact Information: Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) Headquarters, 633 W. Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, Phone 502-574-7660

Did CA Shafter High School teacher Jeff Ryan intend to make meth ?

mamasmad — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:13:12 +0000

Jeff Ryan, a high school teacher in Shafter, CA bought matches and pseudoephedrine. He also downloaded a recipe to make meth from the Internet. Prosecutors say that’s because he intended to make methamphetamine. Ryan says he bought the ingredients for a class project, one he says would attempt to make matches that could be struck anywhere. His lawyer says he is telling the truth, touting his record as a good teacher and his lack of a motive to make methamphetamine.

To his lawyer, I can come up with at least one motivating factor. It is spelled M-O-N-E-Y . Meth is selling for record prices, since the the U.S. and Mexico began putting the clamps on meth distribution and manufacturing.

3 active meth labs found in basement of home in Paw Paw Michigan

mamasmad — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:14:09 +0000

When police arrived to talk to a person who was wanted for questioning by the Van Buren County Sheriff’s department, they smelled odors that led them to the rear of the home, where several people fled out the back door. Three active meth labs were found inside the basement of the home. Five people were arrested at the scene on drug related charges and resisting and obstructing police. Two of those that were arrested were wanted on outstanding drug warrants.

Source: Acosta, Roberto, “Five arrested in meth lab bust”, 8/8/08, http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1218207030236610.xml&coll=7&thispage=1

FL Backpack Meth Lab with TN ID inside falls down from hotel ceiling

mamasmad — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:30:36 +0000

A woman and her fiancee, who had been staying at a Budget Inn in Pensacola, FL discovered a black backpack on Monday that drug investigators have identified as a mobile meth lab. The woman reported that the backpack fell out of the ceiling on to her head, as she exited the bathroom in her rented hotel room. Curious about what might be inside of it, she opened it and discovered that the contents of the bag included a probation ID from Tennessee. She admits that she probably shouldn’t have done that.

The hotel keeps records of its guests and also have surveillance cameras on-site which may help drug enforcement agents to find out which person(s) are tied to the mobile meth lab.

Source: Dugas, Sean, “Mobile meth lab falls on guest’s head” 8/18/08 http://www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080818/NEWS01/80818018