MAPP-SD, a project of Prairie View Prevention Services, Inc., is a comprehensive Methamphetamine awareness and prevention project. 
MAPP-SD is dedicated to:
u   Increase awareness of Meth and the problems associated with its use, manufacture and distribution;
u Provide, at no cost, professional Meth awareness and prevention education to groups and organizations on a community, regional and statewide level;
u Be a no-cost, ongoing resource for South Dakota citizens to deal with issues rising from the manufacture, use and distribution of Meth.

Feb. 22-March 1 Snapshot

March 1
In Idaho - ­The Idaho state Senate passed approval on what some call the “Meth moms” bill.  It could lead to pregnant drug users serving jail time to protect their unborn child. The bill's sponsor acknowledged treatment programs would be a preferable alternative to law enforcement intervention, but said under the state's current landscape Meth babies are being born with increasing frequency.   The bill would mean pregnant mothers convicted of doing marijuana, LSD, Meth or other drugs could face up to five years in jail and a $50,000 penalty. If the option is available to them, the guilty mothers could choose to attend drug court instead of going to jail.

In Alaska – A maintenance man discovered telltale signs of a Meth lab and alerted police.  Now authorities are looking for a former hotel van driver who fled the hotel on foot Monday night after investigators confirmed the presence of a small Meth lab he had allegedly set up in a room on the fourth floor.

In Colorado – A 42-year-old man arrested in a Meth sweep received a four-year prison sentence.  He was one of 15 suspects arrested last December.  He was sentenced after pleading guilty to felony possession of Meth. 

In Alabama - A body found in a ravine belonged to an alleged drug trafficker.   Authorities say the 41-year-old man was murdered.  He was out of jail on bond after his arrest in November for allegedly fleeing from police in a car full of Meth and money. An investigator said he did not know whether drugs played a role in the homicide.

In Ohio - Two Indiana men were arrested and accused of trying to buy Sudafed in order to make Meth.  Alert clerks at the store told police that they recognized the men, who had been in the store earlier in the week.  The two suspects admitted to police that they were going to take the Sudafed back to Indiana to sell it to someone who was going to make Meth.  Indiana has laws restricting the sale of Sudafed, but Ohio’s new law regulating sales will not go into effect for another two months.

From Oregon - The International Narcotics Control Board on Tuesday warned that Methamphetamine production is "spreading throughout the world at an alarming rate" as traffickers tap new overseas sources of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, Meth's necessary ingredients.  Controls over the cough and cold remedies must be expanded and strengthened everywhere, the board concluded, citing recent attempts by traffickers to divert ephedrine and pseudoephedrine through nations as diverse as Belize, Greece and the Democratic Republic of Congo.  Board officials also disclosed that traffickers in Mexico may now be trying to obtain Chinese ephedra, a plant from which small quantities of ephedrine can be extracted -- although the board said there is no evidence to indicate whether these efforts have borne fruit. The findings, contained in the drug agency's 2005 annual report, come as the U.S. Senate is poised to vote on sweeping legislation intended to deprive Meth cooks of their necessary ingredients here and abroad.  The annual report from the narcotics board, an independent body based in Vienna, Austria, in which deliberations are secret, offers a rare glimpse at the agency's effort to monitor the global trade in Meth ingredients.  Under an international intelligence-sharing arrangement known as Project Prism, the manufacturing nations of China, Germany and India now notify the board before authorizing exports of bulk ephedrine or pseudoephedrine. The lone Czech manufacturer of ephedrine recently announced on its Web site that it ended production in 2005. READ COMPLETE COVERAGE FROM THE OREGONIAN

February 28
In Texas - A man acquitted of murder was arrested when a search warrant turned up guns and a Meth lab.

In Kentucky - A man accused of shipping high-grade Meth from Mexico to western Kentucky and southern Illinois pled guilty to drug charges.  The 33-year-old was the 10th of 12 defendants to plead guilty in the case.  He told prosecutors that he traveled in January 2005 with a co-defendant to Arizona for the purpose of obtaining Meth from another co-defendant.

February 27
In Tennessee - A Michigan man was arrested for Meth trafficking during a routine traffic stop.  The 48-year-old had marijuana, Meth, $15,000 in cash and several firearms when he was pulled over for failing to stop at an intersection.  An investigation revealed that he had been delivering Meth to the southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee area on a regular basis.

In Arkansas - Suspicions of a Meth lab led to the arrest four suspects on various drug charges and endangering the welfare of a minor.  Officers found four adults and two children in an apartment when they executed a search warrant.  They also found Meth, materials used to make Meth, drug paraphernalia and a small marijuana growing operation.  Two of the adults lived in the apartment.  The children were taken into protective custody.

February 26
In Virginia – State authorities report seeing a decline in Meth labs in southwest Virginia. State police raided six suspected labs in the region between October and January, compared to 28 the same time the previous year.   They say much of the credit for the decline is due to the governor's executive order in October that put ephedrine and pseudoephedrine behind the counter in drugstores.  Unfortunately, while the number of labs in the region is down, trade of Meth itself continues to climb.
 
In California - A 46-year-old man was arrested on Meth-related charges at his home, less than 100 yards from a school.  The suspect was arrested on suspicion of possession of Meth for sales, being a felon in possession of a firearm, maintaining a residence for sales and being in close proximity to a school. After officers searched the home, they said they may also add charges of operating a Meth lab.

In Ohio - Three Indiana men were arrested in Ohio on Meth charges.  Police say they found Meth and ingredients to make more, thousands of dollars in cash, a loaded gun, and marijuana inside their vehicle.  A customer who noticed the suspects buying a large amount of Sudafed alerted police to the case.

February 25
In California - An investigation into Meth dealing led to the arrest of four men.  They range in age from 19 to 56.  They all face various counts ranging from possession of Meth for sale to possession of a loaded firearm to outstanding warrants.  The investigation began in January.  A police sergeant reports that officers deal with Meth related incidents on a daily basis, and that "It's a problem all over. It's the most prevalent drug out there right now."

February 23
In California – An investigation into a stolen car report led investigators to three stolen vehicles, a suspected Meth lab and the arrests of five suspects.  A vehicle locator system was activated when an owner reported the SUV stolen.  The Ventura County Sheriff’s office was notified of the theft and the location of the vehicle.  When deputies investigated, they found evidence of a Meth lab on the property.

In Tennessee – A call to a drug hotline tipped off law enforcement to a Meth lab.  Five people were arrested and charged in the case.

In Washington – The Washington State Supreme Court ruled that a man who cooked Meth around his girlfriend's children is criminally responsible for endangering the youngsters, even though they weren't his dependents.  Sheriff’s deputies had found the suspect in his girlfriend’s home back in 2003; he was cooking Meth while the girlfriend’s children (ages 2 & 4) were in the home.  The suspect was convicted of a variety of drug charges, including child endangerment.

In Georgia - The fugitive father of a 13-month-old baby found living in what sheriff deputies believe is the largest Meth lab they have seen in Walker County has been captured.  Investigators removed 50 cases of matches, 200 empty packs of pseudoephedrine, 20-gallon containers of Coleman fuel, and, underneath a crawl space of the home, 20 large garbage bags of discarded Meth byproducts.  They found the infant in a crib just feet away from the lab.  The child’s 18-year-old mother turned herself in; the 33-year-old father was on the run until Thursday.

In Indiana - A domestic dispute led officers to a Meth lab and landed a man in jail on six felony charges.  The case began with an argument between the 38-year-old suspect and his wife.  She and the children left the home; the suspect followed them to another residence to continue the fight.  When officers were called to the scene, the suspect refused to leave and was arrested.  During the officers’ investigation into the domestic dispute, allegations of drug activity were made.  They alerted state police, who went to the suspect’s home.  The suspect, who was already home after posting bond, was arrested again after investigators found evidence that Meth had been cooked in the residence.  The man now faces six felonies in connection to the Meth.

In Alabama - A 40-year-old man was arrested Monday for Meth manufacturing and possession.  He was the sole caregiver of his 84-year-old father, who is bedridden with cancer.  Jackson County Sheriff's deputies found a small Meth lab in their home.  While the suspect went to jail, his father was taken to the hospital.  Authorities are trying to find somewhere for him to live.

February 22
In Tennessee – A hotline tip led to an active Meth lab at a home and six arrests.  The suspects were all charged with promotion of Meth manufacturing.  One man was also charged with possession of firearm with intent to go armed. Deputies, along with the Meth response truck, were on the scene processing hazardous materials for about 12 hours.

In Kentucky - Three people were arrested early Wednesday morning and charged with manufacturing Meth. Police received many complaints from people in the area, and that led them to begin surveillance on the home.  The break in the case came when a male suspect was pulled over for a minor traffic violation.  The officer who made the stop found Meth, which served as the basis for a search warrant on the home.  They found a Meth lab in the basement and a shed in the backyard.

In Alabama – A fatal head-on collision may have stopped a mobile Meth lab.  Drug agents suspect the ingredients they found at the scene were used to make Meth.  Investigators feel sure they stumbled across a rolling lab.  The driver of a van died at the scene, and it was in the back of that van that officers found a boxed Meth lab.

In Indiana - A 53-year-old man covered his eyes and cried as he admitted in court to causing his younger sister’s death in October while trying to cook Meth.  He pled guilty to felony murder under a plea agreement recommending he receive a 45-year prison sentence; three drug-related charges were dropped.  The suspect said another man had been demonstrating how to cook Meth in the home when a plastic bag containing chemicals broke over the stove, and it ignited immediately. The fire killed his 46-year-old sister. She died of asphyxia because of smoke inhalation, and her death was ruled a homicide.

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