The street drug called crystal meth or “ice” has been sweeping the nation; from Hawaii to the west coast through the southwest to Georgia. It is commonly found in big cities like Atlanta as well as small towns like Blairsville, Moultrie and beyond. It is the common link between housewives, business executives, students, and organized crime. It affects all individuals across the demographic board. Police in a North Georgia town admitted that a local judge quietly stepped down after a DUI crystal meth bust. A man in Kingston, GA was arrested by law enforcement when they discovered a working crystal meth lab in a K-Mart box store bathroom. Women often use the drug to lose weight. And honor roll students as young as 14 years old have been caught by law enforcement. Addiction to crystal meth can come very quickly, sometimes as fast as a single use.
Crystal meth destroys the health and lives of anyone it touches. Often the lucky individuals are the ones that get caught and are able to seek treatment for their addiction. However the manufacturing and selling of crystal meth can get you up to 15 years in prison as well as fines of up to $100,000.
Methamphetamine is commonly known on the streets as meth, speed, crank, ice or glass which is the most popular clear and chunky form. Ice and glass have become the drug of choice for speed freaks in the past five years, cutting across all lines of class, race, and economic background. Addiction has a way to not discriminate.
Today, the majority of drug cases and arrests run as high as 85 percent in some areas of Georgia and they’re all directly linked to crystal meth. Up until 2001 to 2002, crystal meth labs were being manufactured out of mom and pop labs. These mobile labs were commonly found in trailers, backyards, and basements. The purity of this crystal meth ranged between 30 to 40 percent. It’s often referred to as crank which is a less pure form of the drug.
Recently, law enforcement have been alarmed with how the drug is entering the communities. Instead of small time dealers, cooks, and operators making batches for friends and families, organized crime families and cartels began flooding the market with high grade crystal meth. This clear and chunky crystal form of the drug, also known as ice or glass, began flooding Georgia the last five years. This form of the drug is produced mostly in very sophisticated super labs in Mexico and South America where law enforcement is typically very relaxed or even nonexistent. Users who try this form of the drug typically don’t go back to the locally produced stuff due to the lesser effects of the drug.
Although crystal meth use is still lower than other drugs like cocaine and crack cocaine, the rapid rise of the use of the drug demonstrates the importance of Atlanta as a drug-transit crossroad and drug hub. According to a Douglas County Sheriff, Atlanta is the hottest place for crystal meth right now. He also states that the rate of crystal meth use is almost four times what the national average is. Some of the largest crystal meth seizures are happening in the Atlanta metro area. Local law makers have compiled an extensive and impressive list of busts including local makers and drug pushers. A couple years ago, federal agents were instrumental in taking down the first meth super lab in Georgia where three men were arrested and over fifty pounds of high grade meth was seized in the city of Smyrna. A short time afterwards, federal agents seized 174 pounds of meth in Lawrenceville. Police have also busted large labs in Gwinnet County and several in Northwest Georgia. In places like Floyd County, marijuana and cocaine arrests have lessened while crystal meth has become an epidemic. In Southeast Georgia, an Effingham County Sheriff refers to his jail as “Methingham” since his jail is now running at full capacity due to crystal meth arrests.
The rise in meth use has become alarming in recent years. Methamphetamines can be taken orally, snorted, smoked, and injected. The drug causes the user to experience a euphoric feeling and pleasurable sensations. Crystal meth users experience long periods without sleep, appetite decreases and weight loss becomes apparent. The withdrawals from crystal meth use involve lethargy, paranoia, depression, and violent behaviors. One’s ability to experience pleasure and happiness from daily life become more and more difficult to achieve. Recovering addicts report the lack of emotion on all facets of life.
Research has shown that crystal meth use at high doses actually damage neuron cell endings in the brain. Long term use also has devastating physical effects like skin lesions, hepatitis, and HIV/AIDS through sharing needles and having unprotected sex. As a result of this, county medical costs have skyrocketed as more addicts are being treated in jail.
Meth is comprised of common cold medicines like pseudoephedrine and ephedrine. By combining these medications with other chemicals, the cooker can create meth very easily. It’s like following a recipe. A solvent is added to the chemical mixture to extract the meth from the waste byproduct. By bubbling an acidic gas through the dissolved meth, it forms meth crystals. Other products used to make meth include iodine crystals, denatured alcohol, Red Devil Lye, Coleman’s Fuel, muriatic acid, acetone, and methanol. There have been attempts to make these products more difficult to obtain but a year ago, DEA agents arrested more than fifty convenience store clerks and shop owners in Northwest Georgia for knowingly selling these items to drug manufacturers.
The only common theme between the community, medical experts, and law enforcement is that the war against crystal meth must be won through community awareness and involvement. Only then will the popularity in crystal meth diminish and the community saved. Addiction does not discriminate and can grab a hold of anyone’s life. The key is to never start using the drug and be aware of those around you that could be a potential addict.
