Press Release


For Immediate Release - June 6, 2003
Contact: Jerry Dowell - (573) 751-6858

State Senator John Cauthorn's Meth Eradication Bill Awaits Governor's Signature

Toughest Anti-Meth Battle Plan in the Nation Just One Step From Being Enacted

JEFFERSON CITY, MO Model legislation sponsored and advanced by Sen. John Cauthorn, R-Mexico, creating a special team to combat the production and distribution of Methamphetamine, and enacting a number of added tools to fight the war on this addictive and dangerous drug, has been passed by the General Assembly and awaits only the governor's signature before going into effect.

"The making, trafficking and abuse of methamphetamine is spreading faster than we can stamp it out," Cauthorn said. "Law enforcement agents, prosecutors and everyone else on the front lines of this war need more tools to battle with, and our law abiding citizens deserve all the reinforcements we can muster. In answer to this, I believe what I've developed here is quite possibly the toughest meth eradication act in the country."

Cauthorn's anti-meth bill, SB 39, brings together a group of five top-level law enforcement officials to create the Missouri Sheriff's Methamphetamine Relief Taskforce (MoSMART). MoSMART members are empowered to coordinate meth lab identification and eradication efforts and review grant applications for programs and projects advancing the mission.

"Who better to make the strategic plans in this ongoing war than our sheriff's?" Cauthorn asked. "They've got firsthand knowledge of the problem and have the experience to turn carefully made plans into decisive and swift action."

Cauthorn's sweeping drug war legislation also prohibits the sale of more than two packages of any over-the-counter drug containing ephedrine, and requires these products be kept behind the counter or within 10 feet and direct sight of an attended checkout counter.

"This new precaution should help cut down on the theft and spurious purchases of these items, which contain base ingredients used in illegal meth production," Cauthorn said.

As further ammunition for Missouri's war on drugs, Cauthorn's bill makes releasing anhydrous ammonia, an agriculture fertilizer also used in illegal meth production, a Class B felony offense. If the unlawful release of anhydrous ammonia causes physical injury or death, charges escalate to a Class A felony.

"This provision allows for stronger prosecution in anhydrous thefts, which typically involve transferring the fertilizer from large farm wagon tanks to portable containers, with some of the chemical escaping into the air in the process," Cauthorn explained.

A provision added to Cauthorn's measure during final debate in the Senate allows courts to impose an added fee of up to $150 fee on all pleas or findings of guilt in criminal cases requiring laboratory testing, a procedure often involved in meth-related cases. Surcharge monies will go to a special crime lab account for use in purchasing needed equipment and securing additional staff.

"Quicker lab turnaround times, faster administration of justice all without added expense to Missouri taxpayers," Cauthorn said. "This is fair to those facing the prospect of having to live behind bars and just for those of us able to live on the outside."

Cauthorn's drug war bill is now on the governor's desk.

"Lawmakers have sped this bill to the executive branch," Cauthorn said. "The quicker the governor pushes his pen across this legislation, the quicker we begin stamping out the fires of meth once and for all."

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