CARNAHAN SEEKS $3.4 MILLION TO FIGHT METH LABS

Missouri must spend millions of dollars and toughen penalties against methamphetamine trafficking to battle an "epidemic of evil," Gov. Mel Carnahan said Tuesday.

Carnahan said he will ask the Legislature to earmark $3.4 million in the fiscal 1999 budget to help state agencies and law enforcement battle the drug problem.

"Here in our state the alarm is particularly great because Missouri is becoming known as a meth mecca," Carnahan told reporters during a stop at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

Carnahan said Missouri ranked first in the nation in the number of meth labs it busted last year.

Authorities uncovered 500 meth labs, resulting in more than 4,000 meth-related criminal cases.

The Cape Girardeau press conference was one of several the governor held around the state Tuesday to push proposals for combating the drug problem.

The governor's pitch came as lawmakers geared up for today's start of the 1998 legislative session.

Carnahan flew to Cape Girardeau Tuesday afternoon from Springfield. He was accompanied by Rep. Craig Hosmer, D-Springfield; Gary Kempker, public safety director; and Col. Weldon Wilhoit, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Carnahan endorsed legislation sponsored by Hosmer and Sen. Harry Wiggins, D-Kansas City, that would reduce the amount of methamphetamine needed to gain a felony conviction.

The legislation also would impose tougher penalties for those who manufacture the drug and expand the list of meth-producing chemicals that must be registered with the Missouri Department of Health.

Hosmer predicted the Legislature would pass anti-meth measures.

Carnahan said, "Our comprehensive crackdown on crank will unleash an unparalleled arsenal of resources in our state to deal with the problem," Carnahan said.

He said the money would be used to purchase new investigative, crime lab and safety equipment, and provide more training for law enforcement officers.

Carnahan also wants to spend some $600,000 for prevention and early intervention services for at-risk youth and their families.

The governor said methamphetamine has become a widespread problem in Missouri because it is easy and inexpensive to make.

He cited a number of examples of the meth epidemic. They included: a 19-year-old girl who died after injecting meth in a motel room; the discovery of a meth lab and two pipe bombs in a vehicle at the scene of a multi-car accident; and the explosion of a meth lab in a trailer in rural Missouri, which killed one man and severely burned another.

Carnahan said meth is often a contributing factor to other crimes, car crashes and fires due to explosions.

"Many of these clandestine labs explode, endangering the lives of innocent family members, neighbors and children," he said.

The illegal drug also produces a trail of contamination that can last for years, Carnahan said.

"Each pound of meth produced creates five to six pounds of hazardous waste," the governor said. "The toxic chemicals used to cook it pollute the air, water, land and livestock."

Carnahan wants to give the Natural Resources Department the authority to provide the resources and personnel to help dispose of meth lab chemicals and recover cleanup costs from those who manufacture the illegal drug.

The governor said Missourians should report any suspicious activities that may suggest someone is manufacturing the drug.

AT A GLANCE

Budget initiatives proposed by Gov. Mel Carnahan to help fight methamphetamine:

- $1.5 million for state and local law enforcement.

- $200,000 to buy surplus Department of Defense equipment for law enforcement.

- $179,000 for additional investigators and equipment to help meth investigations.

- $323,000 to replace federal funds no longer available to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program.

- $45,000 for an additional narcotics investigator plus overtime pay to fight meth production in northeast Missouri.

- $33,000 for an additional criminalist and crime lab supplies for Missouri State Patrol Troop G.

- $86,000 to replace and train drug dogs used by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

- $43,000 for an investigator to register and audit distributors of chemicals used in manufacturing controlled substances.

- $381,000 for the Missouri Attorney General's Drug Task Force to pay for staff and additional expenses of providing legal counsel for regional drug task forces that do not receive assistance from federal prosecutors.