{"id":18006,"date":"2015-12-06T14:38:26","date_gmt":"2015-12-06T22:38:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=18006"},"modified":"2015-12-06T17:02:19","modified_gmt":"2015-12-07T01:02:19","slug":"feds-methamphetamine-continues-wrecking-ball-san-diego-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=18006","title":{"rendered":"Feds: “Methamphetamine Continues to be a Wrecking Ball in San Diego County”"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN DIEGO\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Mexican super labs are flooding San Diego County with the purest and cheapest product ever seen in San Diego, creating the perfect storm of health and public-safety consequences, officials stated last week.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
(Click on Image to Enlarge)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“Methamphetamine continues to be a wrecking ball in San Diego County…” officials stated<\/span><\/p>\n

The latest Methamphetamine Strike Force Report Card,<\/strong> which tracks nine indicators of the meth problem in San Diego County annually, found that the meth epidemic is in full force here, as numbers of meth-related deaths, emergency room visits, arrests and border seizures remain at alarming levels.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe trend lines are deeply troubling and show that we must continue to wage war against a drug that is tearing families apart,\u201d said county Supervisor Dianne Jacob<\/strong>. \u201cMake no mistake:\u00a0 meth is death, meth breaks lives, and we need to continue to do all we can to stem the tide of this terrible drug into our communities.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the report, emergency-room visits throughout San Diego County have increased by thousands of patients \u2013 up 141 percent since 2010.<\/span><\/p>\n

Seizures of methamphetamine at the San Diego-Tijuana border have marked a dramatic 129 percent increase from 2010 to 2014. Forty-five percent of adults arrested in 2014 had meth in their systems, compared to 27 percent in 2010.<\/span><\/p>\n

Adding to law enforcement angst is voter-approved Prop. 47, which last year made meth use and possession a misdemeanor. These offenses used to be felonies, and the courts could require drug treatment for many offenders. That has completely changed. <\/span><\/p>\n

Today, someone can get arrested, released and re-arrested many times for what are considered non-violent meth offenses, according to authorities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Twenty-five years ago meth was cooked up in the U.S., in small-scale labs in motorhomes, trailers or apartments, and it was maybe 50 percent pure.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a perfect storm for meth addicts and those just encountering the drug for the first time,\u201d said Sheriff Bill Gore.<\/strong> \u201cWe can’t incarcerate our way out of this problem \u2013 it will require education at all levels as to the severe consequences of this drug. This is the essence of public safety \u2013 to educate and inform.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Today\u2019s meth is being manufactured in huge quantities in Mexican Super Labs supplied by Asian chemical distributors and staffed by university educated chemists and engineers, according to authorities.<\/span><\/p>\n

The result: U.S. Markets are being flooded with the highest quality and lowest priced meth to date. What was once 50 percent pure is now 95 percent pure. What was $1,800 a kilogram in 2010 is now as low as $400, officials said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMeth is a quadruple threat \u2013 it\u2019s extremely pure, inexpensive, highly addictive and widely available,\u201d said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy.<\/strong> \u201cWe are tackling this monster problem by intensifying efforts to dismantle the cartels, and by offering prevention and education programs targeting young people and medical professionals.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr. Danielle Douglass, an emergency physician at Sharp Grossmont<\/strong> Hospital, said that long term use of meth is related to many cardiovascular problems, including cardiomyopathy. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMeth use results in both chronic and acute heart disease,\u201d Douglass said. \u201cA good percentage of these meth-related deaths are people who die of natural disease, where their meth use contributed to an early death. Half of all meth-detected deaths are persons aged 40 to 60 years old.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Some other trends:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Meth use and crime are linked. Last year 45 percent of adults arrested and taken to county jails tested positive for methamphetamine. That number comes from both jail surveys and confirmed drug tests. This is a 66 percent increase over five years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

Between fiscal years 2009 and 2014, Customs and Border Protection reported<\/strong> a 300 percent increase in the amount of meth seized at all of California\u2019s ports of entry.<\/span><\/p>\n

While this year\u2019s Methamphetamine Strike Force Report Card found meth-related deaths showed a slight 2-percent decrease from 2013 to 2014 \u2013from 267 to 262 \u2013 the 2014 death toll is still two-thirds higher than five years ago, officials stated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meth, in its ever increasing role as \u201cgrim-reaper\u201d doesn\u2019t discriminate<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n