Meth War in Northwest Georgia

Lookout Mountain Drug Task Force commander Larry Black said meth users describe the high as better than any other drug.

They continue smoking or injecting methamphetamine to get that initial high back that they experienced the first time. They can never get back to that point again, so they continue to smoke to reach that, he said.

Black said meth users will stay up for days at a time, and when they crash they may sleep for two to three days, unable to care for their children.


The long-term studies are probably going to be astonishing when we see what methamphetamine does to the human body, he said. It is a really tough drug on the physical makeup of the human body.


The body cannot synthesize methamphetamine, he said.


Black said it is eye-opening to compare a meth users drivers license photo to the users arrest photo. It is shocking what some of these people that we take to jail have done to themselves by smoking or shooting methamphetamine, he said.


While the task forces investigations generally land users in jail, Black definitely supports rehabilitation programs.

The illegal drug will continue to be a challenge, in part, because it is so easy to make.

Adding to the challenge is the fact that meth is highly addictive. From the way they (users) describe it, it is so addictive and such an intense high, that once they experiment with it, none of the other drugs compare, Black said.

He estimated that of the 200 inmates in the Walker County jail, 40-50 came from drug task force cases. He foresees those numbers growing, he said.

Children among meths victims


In many cases, people start using meth because of the company they keep, Lookout Mountain Drug Task Force commander Larry Black says.


It is not uncommon for someone to tell us that they were introduced to meth by someone that they knew to be suspected in drug use, and once they started associating with that person, then they introduced them to meth, he said.


Children of meth users are victims, he said.


Where the danger is for the children is they are playing with their toys, they are down on the carpet in the floor the carpet is contaminated with methamphetamine, he said. So therefore the children get it on their hands, they lick their hands and they ingest the meth.


Black said most meth-makers and users live in low-rent houses and trailers, where ventilation is poor and children are more likely to inhale meth fumes in the air.


He said flash fires are a danger. Vapors created by meth-making are flammable, like fumes from gasoline, Black said.


The drug of choice for the upper-class is powdered cocaine.


The middle and lower class cant afford the powdered cocaine, so they go to the alternatives — crack-cocaine or methamphetamine, he said.


Black said the Department of Family & Children Services works well with the drug task force and law enforcement on meth cases.
Help fight battle against meth


Those who suspect meth manufacturing or meth use can call the Lookout Mountain Drug Task Force at 706-638-5570, or call any of the 911 centers in the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, which includes Walker, Catoosa, Dade and Chattooga counties. Information remains confidential.
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1. By: onejosho
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4. Added :03-Mar-10
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