Multimedia Reporting (Bradford-Utsler)

A KU student whom we will call “John,” is a former user of methamphetamines. Despite associating with meth users in the past, John has never known anyone who has been arrested as a result of the drug. Today, this is an increasingly popular account in the world of meth.

In fact, there has been a decline in the seizure of meth equipment made in Douglas County, Kansas, and all of the U.S. in the past year.

According to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation 2004 saw 17,274 seizures, while last year that number decreased to 12,219 nationwide. Douglas County saw only one seizure in all of last year.

This trend appears to be continuing, and there haven’t been any meth seizures in Douglas County so far this year. Kansas is on pace to have it’s smallest number of manufacturing arrests in the past decade. Such reports beg the question, has the usage of meth actually decreased, or have users and manufactures become smarter about the way they conduct business?

With the decrease in meth manufacturing, law operations have turned to the borders, focusing on the increasing number of meth-smuggling undertakings. The drug is now primarily being shipped into the country in the form of crystal meth, a more potent and cheaper form of the drug, popular among club-goers. As the face of meth continues to change, new measures will have to emerge to cope with new dangers, and means of production.

Charles Branson, the Douglas County District Attorney, said that he has seen a smarter, more adapted criminal within the community, but that the percentage is small. He attributes the decline, primarily, to an honest decrease in meth usage, and cited the increase in education as a cause of the decline. “Public education is the most important element, because people can now identify illegal meth-related activites, and report them.”

Treatment for meth addiction is more popular now than ever. In 1993, only 28,000 people in the U.S. sought treatment for methamphetamine addiction, but by 2003 an estimated 136,000 people a year were seeking treatment for meth, according to a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration report.

The Kansas Legislature has created several laws and programs in reaction to the methamphetamine problem. In 2000, the Kansas Meth Watch Program was developed by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation to limit the accessibility to products used in the manufacturing of meth. A similar program put into effect last year is the Matt Samuels Chemical Control Act.

Tom Wilcox, the owner of the Round Corner Drug Store on Massachusetts St. said, “I have heard of a couple of instances where pharmacies have called the police and arrested people who bought large quantities.”

Without question, news of the Control Act has spread amongst many meth users. “I’m sure there has been a decrease (in sales of sudafedren) because of the new law. It is definitely harder to get now,” Wilcox said.

The Samuels Control Act took effect in Kansas on June 1 of last year. Under the law, cold and allergy medications containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine must be kept behind a pharmacy counter, and can be sold only by pharmacists or pharmacy technicians. Customers must be over 18, and have a photo ID. In contrast, Sudafed was available for over-the-counter purchase prior to the implementation of the Samuels Control Act.

John, the University Student, and former user said, “I think it’s good to get things out in the open, and to make sure people are aware of what’s going on. I’ve seen a lot of friends of mine really go down the wrong path, and it sounds like things could be changing.”