Section A · Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Tuesday, February 20, 2001
YouthFriends
Volunteer With Kids In Lawrence
Schools
Call 842-5006 or visit our homepage
www.youthfriends.org
Be a part of the 2001-2002 campus tour group! Show prospective students and their families why KU is such a wonderful place.
To learn more about KU Ambassadors, come to one of our information nights at the KU Visitor Center on Thursday, February 22nd or Monday, February 26th at 8:00PM.
Applications are available at the Kansas Union in the O&L Office and at the KU Visitor Center. Applications are due March 22nd at 5:00PM.
Contact Eric Hayes with questions at 864-5420
Clandestine labs yield poison
Continued from page 1B
and Allied forces) to keep soldiers energized and aggressive during combat. Others, such as KBI Narcotics Agent Jeff Brandau, say the method got its name from a cook in southwest Missouri who kept the recipe on a sheet with swastika letterhead. Brandau thinks that while the drug was certainly administered in combat, World War II meth was probably made with an older technique.
The older technique was far more complex and required days to complete. That so-called phenyl-to-propanol method required expensive, regulated chemicals and an intricate network of test tubes, beakers and burners. Without the Internet, recipes were jealously guarded by cooks, so meth production was held in check. Consequently, a gram — which goes for about $100 today — cost $250 or more, further reducing its availability.
The Nazi method overcame all these difficulties. Jim Schieferecke, KBI chemist, said cooking meth is now about as easy as cooking a steak. "If one person has watched another person do it once, they can do it, too," Schieferecke said. "They're the type of people who flunked chemistry, but now they're doing it."
Today, meth thrives in the drug culture, and experts say there's little law enforcement can do to counter the trend.
Without a clue
"All you have to do is make a decision to make the drug, find a recipe — which is fairly simple — get the supplies, and in a couple hours, you've got meth," said KBI Director Welch. "That creates a real enforcement problem for us."
Meth labs are as insidious as rural moonshine once was, and finding them is no easier than shaking down every barn, motel room and apartment in Kansas. Cooks only need a closet's worth of space and a few household items that can fit in a small duffle bag. Many cooks, like Adam, head out into the open air of rural Kansas where the powerful ammonia fumes won't be smelled by others.
Concentrated ammonia fertilizer is commonly kept in unguarded feeder tanks like these for use by farmers. Theft from such feeder tanks is increasing in step with addiction to meth. Ammonia is one of the key ingredients in homemade meth. Photo by Phil Cauthon/KANSAN
Because labs are so easily concealed, law enforcement must look for subtle clues to find lab locations. City cops follow ammonia's stench or look for cars with cups hanging out a window — a common way of letting the ammonia evaporate while cooking meth in automobiles. Sheriffs look for tire tracks on seldom-used dirt roads. A cluster of trash — coffee filters, aerosol cans, medicine boxes — out in the woods can mark a favorite lab site, and the abandoned coolers used to transport anhydrous ammonia often indicate a lab's proximity.
"In some cases we're telling people things they had no idea about. But we're also out there trying to change attitudes," Garman said. "It's like President Bush said September 5, 1989 — Who's responsible for drug use? Well, everyone who uses drugs, everyone who sells drugs, and everyone else who looks the other way."
Many local police and sheriff departments have begun major educational campaigns to increase the number of eyes and ears that might spot meth in the making. Lieutenant Joe Garman of Saline County's Drug Task Force works in the community teaching neighborhood groups, community organizations, county employees, students and businesses what to look for.
Saline County's strategy seems to be
A meth lab using the "P2P" method. This older technique of making meth required an intricate lab set-up, controlled chemicals and some knowledge of chemistry. Photo courtesy of KBI
A so-called "Nazi method" meth lab. This newer method of manufacturing the illegal drug requires little or no knowledge of chemistry, little space and available ingredients.KBI officials say the Nazi method is one of the reasons meth is spreading so fast in Kansas. Photo courtesy of KBI
working. Last year, 38 labs were unvoc
compared to just four in 1999.
Drowning in the problem
But even after they've done the impossible — tracking down a lab — there's only so much Garman and other local law enforcers can do.
ucts capable of dissolving skin or permanently scorching the eyes and lungs. Only a handful of Kansas' law enforcers — most of whom are KBI agents — have the OSHA and EPA certification necessary to enter a lab and collect evidence.
Each lab is literally a toxic waste site strenu了 with hazardous byproduct.
Each training course requires a week of time away from duty. Then, to work a case, each officer needs a minimum of $3,000-worth of safety equipment — breathing apparatus, face protection and chemical-proof clothing. Add to that a minimum $1,300 — and usually $3,500 or more — for cleaning up each lab site.
Kirk Thompson, Kansas' High Density Trafficking Area coordinator, said even if every cop in the state were properly trained, few departments have enough money for the equipment to independently handle meth labs. Consequently, Garman and other local cops are often limited to guarding the site until the KBI shows up, which further reduces their limited time to uncover remaining labs.
But even the KBI doesn't have enough resources to police the state's meth.
"Quite frankly, we're at a saturation point," Thompson said. "There's a lot more meth labs out there, but there's not much more we can do with the resources we have."
METH LAB INDICATORS
A strong urine that might resemble urine, or an unusual chemical smell such as ether, ammonia or acetone.
Edited by Leita Schultes
- Lab materials on the property — lantern fuel or chemical cans, red chemically-stained coffee filters, trunks and chemistry paraphernalia such as glassware and rubber tubing.
Little or no traffic at a house during the day, but a lot of visitors at late hours.
Extra efforts made to cover windows or reinforce doors.
Residents who never put their trash out.
Inhabitants smoking outside because of the flammable fumes.
If you think you've seen evidence of a lab, leave it alone and immediately contact the KBI at 1-800-KS CRIME.
Source: Midwest HIDTA
Meth or Life
- Today is the second day of a five-day series on methamphetamine. The complete version of this project will be available at www.kansan.com as each component is printed in the Kansan.
resterday Life or meth overview
Today Kitchens of meth,
the drug's producers
Tomorrow Faces of meth, users
Thursday All met up the,
drug and the environment
Friday Fight to the meth,
Kansas legislators
and law enforcers
All of the people named in this series are real individuals. However, some sources' last names have been withheld to protect their identity or at the request of prison officials.
This story is part of a joint effort by The Wichita Eagle and students and faculty of the University of Kansas School of Journalism. The project was funded by a grant from the American Society of Newspaper Editors.
Fast Free Delivery
841-5000
1445 W. 23rd St.
Sun. 11am-2am
Mon.-Wed. 11am-2:30am
Thur.-Sat. 11am-3:30am
Value Menu
Any One for only $6.99
(1) 14" 1-Topping Pizza
(2) 12" one-topping Pizza & soda
(3) 10" two-topping Pizza and soda
(4) 10 Wings & soda
(5) 10" Pokey Stix & 5 Wings
(6) 10" Cheese Pizza & 5 Wings
(7) 12 Pokey Stix & soda
(8) 10" Cheese Pizza & 2 Pepperoni Rolls
(9) 5 Pepperoni Rolls & soda
(10) 14" Pokey Stix
(11) Medium 1-Item Calzone & soda