|
Meth not common in Taylor 
DESTRUCTION: Orange cones and netting still flank the entrance to the closed Gourmet Country Cafe on East Third Street. Owner Lisa Parcher, who has owned the business for three years, said she was unable to keep the restaurant running after three months of construction right outside her doors.
staff photo by TESSA MOLL |
By Tessa Moll About two years ago, the covers of both Time and Newsweek magazines were screaming about the epidemic of methamphetamine use in the United States. Called “meth,” “crystal,” “glass,” “chalk” or “ice,” among other street names, users become addicted quickly, needing higher doses more often, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Meth makes users gain a feeling of euphoria, or high, and increased wakefulness, sometimes referred to as being “wired.” “It can be made in small, illegal laboratories, where its production endangers the people in the labs, neighbors and the environment,” the NIDA reported. In Taylor last week, local police discovered a residence with several of the components used to make methamphetamine - matchbook strikers, over-the-counter medications containing pseudoephedrine and beakers in which to mix the chemicals. Although a bane to all communities where it is present, meth is not a large problem for Taylor. According to Chief Jeff Straub, police have only eight incidences this year involving meth possession; more often officers encounter marijuana or cocaine. Meth production labs are more often found in rural areas, compared to the more suburban environment of Taylor, Straub said. He thinks there are two reasons the drug is produced more frequently in rural areas - the creation of meth releases a powerful and distinctive odor that would be easily noticed by neighbors, and users often become so extremely paranoid that they remove themselves from society. Taylor police last raided a meth lab in January 2005 that was only a day or two away from having illegal drugs on the streets. The home in the 1200 block of Vance Street discovered last week was not cooking anything yet, Straub said. They simply had several of the household chemicals used to make meth, so he would hardly call it a lab. Police arrested Dennis David, 26, of Georgetown on a county warrant they were attempting to serve when they arrived at the residence. Jason Kelley, 26, of Taylor refused to open the door for officers, so they entered the apartment. Kelley was subsequently arrested and charged with theft of a firearm discovered in his possession and hindering apprehension. Taylor resident Ashlie Woods, 18, was also in the home and she was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia. Although the NIDA reports that about 12 million Americans have tried meth, statistics indicate the prevalence of use has decreased. Among 10th-graders, 1.8 percent reported use in 2006 compared with 2.9 percent in 2005. But for the few meth users, the “tweaked-out” sessions of drug abuse can cause irregular heartbeats, anxiety, insomnia, confusion, tremors and death. The effects of long-term use include paranoia, extreme anorexia, memory loss, visual and auditory hallucinations and severe dental problems. When meth abuse came to the national limelight just a few years ago and legislators realized just how easy the drug was to make, many states increased regulation of the ingredients, such as pseudoephedrine in over-the-counter medications. Sudafed, Tylenol Flu and other allergy and cold medications have moved behind the counter, where customers must ask for the product and produce identification before purchasing them. “It definitely makes it easier to track,” Straub said. Methamphetamine production and use comes in cycles, like most other drugs, he said, and taking steps such as removing access to ingredients helps.
|
