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.

July 10, 2007

In South Dakota - A 14-year-old babysitter is in the Juvenile Detention Center in Sioux Falls after being accused of assaulting his two-year-old nephew.  The younger boy’s face and neck had red and purple marks that were beginning to swell when police first saw him. The teen was watching the little boy and the boy’s 5-year-old sister and apparently whipped the toddler with a belt after becoming angry with him.  When police searched the teen, they allegedly found a pipe with Meth and marijuana residue in his pocket.  The teen faces juvenile drug charges and a charge of cruelty to a minor under seven.

In Missouri - Drug agents discovered a significant amount of Meth, weapons and cash during a search of a hotel.  They also found a possible Meth lab in a Jacuzzi room.  Officers seized nearly a pound of Meth, chemicals to make it and three weapons in the room, along with more than $10,000.  Two men and a woman were arrested.  Reportedly, one of the people arrested had checked into the hotel last Friday and was planning to stay until the end of this week.

In Florida - Deputies discovered a mobile Meth lab after pulling over a man driving a rental truck and towing a pickup.  The officers received a tip that someone towing a pickup might be carrying illegal drugs; they then saw the suspect, who had improper lights on his truck.  The officers say the 34-year-old man “was very nonchalant. He stood there waiting for us to write him a written warning".  The deputies brought in a K9 unit to check the vehicles after the driver refused to let them look inside.  The dog alerted them to drugs, which was enough probable cause for a search.  They found more than $15,000 worth of Meth and ephedrine, gas masks, and several pieces of equipment and chemicals used to manufacture the drugs inside the larger truck. They also found two handguns, a shotgun, drug paraphernalia and a book about the hazardous materials. The suspect faces several drug and weapons charges, including armed trafficking in Meth and possession of firearms by a convicted felon.
 
In Missouri – Police were finally able to raid a home they had been watching for a year after neighbors filed a complaint about chemical odors.  Officers found 12 adults inside the home, as well as a 14-month old child.  They reportedly found a small amount of finished Meth, a large amount of liquid Meth and drug paraphernalia. The 37-year-old man who lived in the home has previous convictions for possessing Meth, cocaine and marijuana. The other suspects range in age from 19- to 41-years-old.

In Missouri - A 33-year-old man was found guilty of a felony charge of Meth possession.  He had been arrested in 2005.  His sentencing is set for the middle of September.

In California - Investigators found four Meth lab dumps within two days. They believe all four dump sites may be linked to the same group producing the Meth.  Farmers noticed buckets by the side of the road but didn't know how serious the problem was until Meth agents showed up.  In one cotton field, agents found a grey plastic tote leaking about 50-pounds of sodium hydroxide or caustic soda.

In Arkansas - A 42-year-old woman pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a fire at a Meth lab that seriously burned another person.  She pled guilty to two counts of Meth possession and one count of drug paraphernalia possession.  In return for her guilty plea, she received a 10-year suspended sentence on each charge, fined $1,500 and ordered to pay $170 court costs, $125 drug task force fees and $250 for DNA testing.  She was arrested in 2006 after she took a man injured in a Meth lab to a hospital for treatment.  A second defendant pleaded guilty to manufacturing Meth and was sentenced to 30 years, with 15 years suspended. In a different case, a 25-year-old woman pleaded guilty to delivery of Meth and received a 20-year prison sentence, with 10-years suspended.  And a 25-year-old man was sentenced to three, 30-year terms in prison, with 18 years suspended on each, for three separate counts of delivery of Meth.  He will serve the terms concurrently.

In Michigan - The parents of the toddler found dead in a home suspected of doubling as a Meth lab face drug charges, and authorities said child abuse charges could follow.  The 28-year-old woman and 26-year-old man were arraigned on charges of operating a drug lab in the presence of minors and near a school.  Both charges are 20-year felonies.  But because the man has a previous drug possession conviction, he faces a doubling of the sentence if convicted.   The 20-months old boy was found dead by police after his mother called 911 for help, saying her son wasn't breathing.  The responding officers spotted signs that the couple was cooking Meth in the home. Authorities are waiting for toxicology results to determine if the toddler’s death is related to the Meth operation.

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