Blunt credits new law for meth bust decline

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Methamphetamine busts in Missouri are down following the enactment of a new anti-meth law that restricts the sale of some cold and allergy medicines.

The law took effect in mid-July. Medicines containing pseudoephedrine and ephedrine, ingredients used to make meth, were removed from gas stations and convenience stores and placed behind the pharmacy counter. The law also requires customers to be at least 18 years old, to show a valid I.D. and to sign a pharmacy log.

Law enforcement agencies use the logs to track trends and repeat offenders, which has led to several arrests, said Sgt. Jason Clark, public information officer for the Missouri Highway Patrol in Jefferson City.

During the first full month that the law was in effect, meth busts were down 55 percent, to 116 in August compared with 255 in August 2004. In part, the decline in percentage appears large because the number of incidents spiked in August last year. The numbers were based on reports from each of the state's 21 clandestine drug lab collection sites. The sites remove active and abandoned meth labs that are discovered by law enforcement agencies.

The collection site in Jackson reported one lab bust in August compared to 19 in August 2004, while another site in Kennett went from one last August to none this August.

Preventing production

Blunt declared that the new anti-meth law was having an immediate impact.

"Curtailing meth activity and closing the source of ingredients are the first serious steps in preventing meth production, and today's numbers mark the most progress made to date in fighting Missouri's meth epidemic," Blunt said in a written statement.

More steps are in progress, said Sgt. Kevin Glaser, coordinator of the SEMO Drug Task Force.

"People get their hopes up about the meth problem when they see that the number of labs are down. They think, 'Boy, we got this thing licked,' but we don't," he said.

A central database of pharmacy logs will be developed so that officers can track statewide purchasing trends of prerequisite chemicals, Glaser said, but that will happen months down the road. With the number of in-state meth labs declining, importing meth from other states will become the focus over time.

Missouri has led the nation in meth-lab busts in recent years. But that number had been declining this year, even before the new law took effect. From January through August, Missouri reported 1,513 meth busts, down 22 percent from the same period last year.

For Cape Girardeau County, the steady decline can be attributed to community oriented policing grants that U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson and U.S Sen. Kit Bond had pushed for, Glaser said. The grants enabled rural law enforcement offices to allow more overtime, resulting in more officers on the field and leading to more arrests.

Staff writer Julia Metelski contributed to this report.