Bluff council considers putting cold pills behind counter

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- The Poplar Bluff City Council Monday night considered an ordinance that would put cold medicine and other products containing ephedrine and pseudoephedrine behind the counter.

Ephedrine is a major essential component of methamphetamine and is, according to police chief Danny Whiteley, regularly shoplifted. He said 1,000 to 2,000 cold pills translates into $2,800 worth of methamphetamine.

City attorney Wally Duncan said he would look into the legality of how far the city can go with limiting the products' access before the Dec. 16 meeting, when the council is expected to vote on the ordinance.

Area residents voiced their opinions at the meeting.

Curtis Stewart of Campbell, Mo., said he believes putting the pills behind the counter will only punish the people who legitimately buy it. Campbell said he comes to Poplar Bluff regularly to buy over-the-counter sinus and cold medicines in quantity because his children have asthma and he has sinus problems.

"The ordinance would not keep anyone from purchasing," countered Mayor Scott Faughn. "It would place them behind the counter so it would be harder to get them. Any law-abiding citizen would not care to ask for the medicine and be on their way to better health."

Russell Soames of Poplar Bluff, whose two stepsons have been involved with methamphetamine, suggested keeping a computer registry of people who buy ephedrine and make them sign for it when they buy it, an idea some city councilmen seemed to like, although it may not be constitutional.

Danny Eubanks of Poplar Bluff said, "We are a country of freedom of choice. You are restricting taking something off the shelf next to another product that does the same thing. If you pass this ordinance what are you going to do next? Will I have to get my D-cell batteries from behind the counter?"

Other products, such as battery acid, Liquid Fire and anhydrous ammonia go into making meth, Whiteley said, but there are substitutes for those products. But the one ingredient meth makers cannot do without is ephedrine, and that, he said, can be restricted enough to send them to another community.