CULLMAN — A solemn expression on his face, District Judge Kim Chaney told a story.

There were no hypotheticals in this tale. No fiction, either.

These characters were real — all residents of Cullman County — and the tragic story that changed this family’s life took place recently.

Imagine a grieving mother who had just buried her 31-year old son. The cause of his untimely death?

Methamphetamine.

This particular young man had been warned of the lethal consequences of meth by several people, including Chaney.

“I had told him that if he didn’t change his lifestyle that it was going to kill him,” Chaney said. “Then a few weeks ago, I got a visit from his mother, who was extremely upset, and she told me that she wished that her son had listened to my advice, because that’s what happened.”

That’s one of many stories Chaney has about the horrors of meth. He sees the dire effects of this deadly drug through the cases that pass through his office on a daily basis.

According to Chaney, more than 75 percent of his case load is typically connected to meth use.

That’s a stat he wants to see change — immediately.

But how can you rapidly wipe out a drug that has become so widespread?

Chaney said the answer is simple.

“You cut the problem off at the spigot,” he said.

That spicket would be the primary ingredient used to make methamphetamine: pseudoephedrine.

Chaney, along with some other local judges and law enforcement officials, are requesting that state legislators beef up the regulations on pseudoephedrine by making the drug only available by a doctor’s prescription.

Mississippi and Oregon recently imposed similar regulations on the distribution of pseudoephedrine, and according to multiple reports, meth-related arrests have drastically decreased.

Statistics provided by the Oregon Narcotics Enforcement Association showed that meth-lab seizures decreased by almost 90 percent from 2004-2010 since pseudoephedrine was made a prescription-only drug. The state did not have a single meth-lab incident to report through March of 2011.

Mississippi passed similar legislation in 2010, with the number of meth-lab seizures decreasing by 65 percent within the year.

“To me, it appears to be a no-brainer,” Chaney said. “Methamphetamine is a serious problem here. It’s a serious problem nationwide. I’ve seen it’s effects first-hand. What it does to families, children, the entire community; it’s frightening.

“And the scary part is we don’t know what the long-term effects will be. We’re catching people who are cooking meth in hotel rooms, places where families and children may be staying the next night. Then there’s all the toxic chemicals that are being dumped into the ground, leaving toxins that could easily make their way into our drinking water. This is a serious concern for everyone.”

The methamphetamine issue isn’t lost on Cullman County Sheriff Mike Rainey.

With the Cullman County Narcotics Enforcement Team (CNET) making meth-related arrests at an alarming rate, Rainey admitted that law enforcement’s fight against meth manufacturing feels like an uphill battle.

“It’s alarming,” Rainey said. “It’s way too easy for people to get everything they need to make this stuff, and because of that, it’s almost feels as if we’re spinning our wheels.

“That’s why I’ve said all along that we’ve got to change the way we fight this stuff. This is a widespread problem, and the best way to make a dent in it is to stop it at the source. The states who have done this have seen positive results, so why aren’t we doing the same thing here?”



Controversial topic

Tighter regulations on pseudoephedrine may seem like an obvious solution, but this type of legislation won’t come without resistance.

Most of the resistance has come from drug-company lobbyists in states like Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky and West Virginia where similar legislation was defeated.

“And that’s going to be the biggest hurdle,” Chaney said. “This is a multi-million dollar industry for the drug companies that sell these over-the-counter drugs, and they don’t want to risk losing any of that money.”

The argument from lobbyists like the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, which has led the charge in a fight against similar legislation in Missouri, Nevada, Oklahoma and Tennessee, is that law-abiding citizens shouldn’t have to pay for a doctor’s visit because of a stuffy nose.

Chaney doesn’t buy that argument.

“It’s all about money,” he said. “But are their profits worth the damage that’s being done in our communities?

“This is a touchy issue, and change won’t come without a fight. That’s why I’m contacting our legislators and asking them to support this, and I recommend that everyone else who is concerned about our meth issue do the same.”

Like Chaney, District Judge Rusty Turner has seen a high volume of meth-related cases since taking office earlier this year. He also understands the value of pseudoephedrine as a drug used to treat sinus colds.

But when it comes weighing the problems caused by meth use and manufacturing against a little more hassle at the pharmacy, Turner said solving the illegal drug issue should take precedent.

“I’m sympathetic with people who use (pseuodoephedrine) for sinus problems because the stuff works,” Turner said. “But I also see the harm that meth is causing in our communities. I’d say that 80-90 percent of the cases where I’ve had to take children from parents are directly related to methamphetamine.

“This drug knows no limits, and we’ve got to find a way to rid our communities of it. If that means tighter regulations on pseudoephedrine, then I’ll support it.”



Inefficiencies in current monitoring system

There are already regulations on the sale of pseudoephedrine in Alabama.

Over-the-counter medicines that contain the drug — such as Sudafed and Claritin-D — cannot be purchased in stores without a photo identification, which is then scanned into a monitoring system known as the National Precursor Log Exchange.

With this monitoring system, pharmacies are notified when a consumer has reached their limit of nine grams in a 30-day period. Exceeding that limit is punishable by law.

But as Rainey pointed out, meth makers have found a way to beat the current monitoring system.

It’s also created a budding market for another illegal drug.

According to Rainey, meth makers use networks of people to purchase pseudoephedrine from different pharmacies. Those people then trade the pseudoephedrine to meth makers for either cash or drugs.

“It’s called smurfing,” Rainey said. “The dealers use people to go around to pharmacies and buy just enough to not get flagged, and then they’ll send someone else out to buy more. It’s a problem our drug agents deal with on a daily basis.

“This just goes to show the current monitoring system if flawed. It’s not working here, and it’s not working anywhere in the state. That’s why we need tougher restrictions.”



Finding a solution

This type of legislation has been proposed in Alabama before.

Earlier this year to be exact.

Sen. Roger Bedford, D-Russellville, and Rep. Mike Millican, R-Hamilton, both sponsored bills that would have required a prescription to purchase over-the-counter medicines that contain pseudoephedrine.

Neither made it to the floor for a vote during the legislative session that ended in June.

Both Millican and Bedford have said they plan to try again in the future.

Chaney hopes those future attempts are more successful.

“This is something that needs to happen,” he said. “This is an ugly drug, and our country has never seen another one like it. What damage it’s causing in our communities is unprecedented.

“The only way we’re going to beat this is by attacking it from the source, and if we can get our legislators behind this, then we can make it happen.”



* Justin Graves can be reached by phone at 734-2131, ext. 225 or by email at justing@cullmantimes.com.