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| 13 May 2000 - El Informador One-time 'meth capital' now model county in federal 'war on meth' SAN DIEGO – The same county once branded the "Meth Capital of the World" is now receiving Congressional accolades for its fight against the deadly stimulant. San Diego County has gained much ground in its efforts to eradicate methamphetamine and federal leaders are seeking input from the Meth Strike Force as the nation struggles to combat the rapid spread of the drug. At a public forum at the San Diego Police Department Headquarters. House representatives from the Judiciary Committee's Crime Oversight Subcommittee. Including San Diego Congressman Brian Bilbray, heard encouraging testimony from Strike Force officials who highlighted a host of the county's on-going meth abatement strategies. While Deputy District Attorneys discussed the accomplishments of the County's Drug Endangered Children Program which removes children from potentially explosive meth lab sites, criminal justice experts hailed the Strike Force's efforts to provide intensive drug treatment programs for county lawbreakers, the majority of which are meth users. Speakers also touted the success of the county's anonymous meth hotline and the training of school staff in San Diego's north county to recognize the warning signs of drug use on district campuses. "This 80-agency collaborative think-tank has been identified as a model alliance to halt the drain that meth is putting on our public resources," said Congressman Bilbray who has closely monitored the Strike Force since its inception by San Diego County Supervisor Dianne Jacob in 1996. "San Diego has learned how to fight back against the drug," continued Bilbray. "Congress should learn all it can about the unique Strike Force project so we can spread the word to other states who are new to devastating effects of methamphetamine." Federal drug experts warn that meth, once confined to Hawaii and California during the early 1990s, has moved into parts of the Midwest and the South. States such as Idaho, Nebraska, Indiana, Missouri and Kansas have dire meth problems according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. "The brilliance of the Strike Force is that it brings to the table every agency which has anything to do with the cycle of meth addiction," said Strike Force founding member and County Supervisor Dianne Jacob. "Judges, doctors, police, policy makers and treatment providers are meeting regularly to establish initiatives we're certain are going to knock out this drug," she said. "Our multi-disciplinary approach has been groundbreaking," said Dr. Robert K. Ross, director of Health and Human Services and cochair of the Strike Force. "We're doing everything from training pediatricians to recognize meth-exposed infants, to demanding get-tough drug treatment for county lawbreakers," Ross continued. "You can't bring about this level of change unless you've got a whole lot of minds working together and that's what this is," Ross said. In October of 1999, the Strike Force announced that meth-related deaths had declined nearly 30 percent over the last four years, according to county statistics. The availability of Methamphetamine, as reported by those arrested for meth-related crimes had also dipped while the number of adults and juveniles arrested for meth-related crimes continues to decline, according to county statistics. "We have reason to believe that our efforts coupled with the continuing efforts of federal, state and local law enforcement have significantly reduced the availability of meth on our streets," said Jack Drown, Undersheriff of San Diego County and co-chair of the Meth Strike Force. Article Snapshot (22K) |
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