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Missouri Has a Drug Problem During trips through Missouri, visitors are almost never able to see that behind our beautiful lakes, forests and resorts, our people are in the midst of a war that is as deadly as it is almost invisible. To many Missouri residents, the war on methamphetamine is not a distant headline or newscast from elswhere. This "poor man's cocaine" is fueling a deadly trade right here at home. Every Missouri lawman knows this battle is close?in and personal. And deadly. Missouri police officers know that meth damages its users, and the people around them. Meth labs often blow up in ordinary, middle-class neighborhoods, harming children and neighbors who have nothing to do with the drug. Not only are many of our residents using the drug, they are producing it. The number of meth labs in Missouri has skyrocketed in the past few years. In 1992, federal drug agents seized two clandestine meth labs in Missouri. By 1998 the number had grown to over 800. Missouri ranks second in the nation, just behind California, in the number of meth lab seizures. State and local law enforcement agencies, aided by the DEA, are on the front lines of fighting meth abuse and production, and they are working around the clock trying to stay on top of the problem. But our law enforcement officers are trying to fight meth with the equivalent of one hand tied behind their backs. There isn't enough federal money to fight the problem. While meth is common in suburban and rural areas, the DEA has always focused its resources in the historically high-trafficking areas like big cities and at the border. Sheriffs throughout the state have told me they have a tough time fighting the meth plague because they simply do not have the manpower and funding they need. Drug dealers don't discriminate between cities and rural areas. Unfortunately it has hit hard in areas with police forces of limited size and with limited resources. That is why I have worked hard to bring more federal funding to Missouri to fight the problem. I was able to secure $3.1 million in funding for the Missouri Sheriffs Meth-Amphetamine Relief Team (MOSMART) to hire more lawmen to fight the meth problem. The MOSMART program will fund salaries for twenty-five new full-time meth investigative positions across Missouri, four part-time drug intelligence analysts and will help fund overtime requests. Designed to supplement the ongoing efforts in our big cities, St. Louis and Kansas City, this funding is targeted to smaller cities and rural counties throughout the state, where it is desperately needed. The more people our Sheriffs are able to put on the front lines, the more arrests and convictions they will be able to make. Front-line funding is not the only need in the battle against meth. The drug itself is toxic and explosive. Some of the ingredients used to produce it are drain cleaner, battery acid, and ammonia. Once a manufacturing site has been seized, or worse, explodes, what is left is a mini-toxic waste dump that can contaminate the soil and water. The materials must be disposed of by a hazardous-waste facility. Obviously, local law enforcement agencies have neither the funds nor the expertise to clean up these waste dumps. So I have worked for federal funding to help local law enforcement clean up the mess. Last year, I was able to earmark $2.5 million which is now being used by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to pay clean up expenses and to train officers in clean-up procedures. In the long run, nothing should stop Missouri from winning the fight against meth. Federal funds will help, but ultimately the battle will be won by Missouri lawmen who risk their lives every day to save others. |
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