Rec'd AUG 2 5 2006 Office of the Mendocino Major Crimes Task Force*

Methamphetamine is one of the most powerful and pernicious drugs, potentially addictive from the first use. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

After methamphetamine use is stopped, severe withdrawal symptoms occur, including depression, anxiety, fatigue, paranoia, aggression, and an intense craving for the drug. Psychotic symptoms can persist for months or years after use has ceased. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding. Response to 2005-2006 Grand Jury Report

Methamphetamine use can result in hyperactivity, disturbed sleep patterns, irritability, paranoia, aggressive behavior, shortness of breath, involuntary muscle movements, malnutrition, and severe depression with suicidal tendencies. Chronic users may develop sores on their bodies from scratching at "crank bugs," the term that describes the common delusion that bugs are crawling under the skin. Long-term use may lead to fatal kidney and lung disease, brain damage, liver damage, stroke, lowered resistance to illnesses, tooth decay, and permanent psychological problems such as drug-induced psychosis. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Children who are exposed to methamphetamine via second-hand smoke can have detectable levels of methamphetamine in their urine. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Children who are legally removed from a methamphetamine environment cannot take with them their clothing and toys due to contamination. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Children of methamphetamine-using parents are raised in a highly traumatic environment and often subjected to physical and emotional neglect. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding. Often, sexual abuse follows.

Many Child Protective Service and domestic violence cases in Mendocino County are directly related to the use of methamphetamine by a parent or family member. Response to 2005-2006 Grand Jury Report Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Substance abuse programs in Mendocino County are provided by:

The number of patients needing medical services rises significantly in Mendocino County emergency rooms when there is a rise in the purity of the methamphetamine available on the streets. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Efforts to secure funding for programs to combat methamphetamine use require considerable staff time, though the yield is generally a short-term grant for a long-term need. Task Force Response: Without further information, I can neither agree nor disagree with this finding. Some grants are renewable. I believe the legislature is starting to realize the problem.

Gangs are involved with methamphetamine manufacture and sales in Mendocino County; gang violence can also be attributed to methamphetamine. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Biker gangs are becoming more active in the distribution of methamphetamine. Task Force Response: I agree that biker gangs are active in distribution of methamphetamine, however this is not a new activity for them. In this county, the biker gangs are becoming involved in the growing of marijuana and then trading this for methamphetamine to distribute. Response to 2005-2006 Grand Jury Report

Many individuals and departments funded by Mendocino County taxpayers are involved in the arrest, prosecution and incarceration of methamphetamine users. These include city police, the Sheriff's Department, the Major Crimes Task Force, judges, court staff, probation officers, District Attorney staff, and Public Defender staff. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

Law enforcement personnel express frustration over the lack of meaningful consequences for those enrolled in the Proposition 36 program, which attempts to provide an alternative to confinement for drug abusers. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding as there are not enough consequences built in for repeat offenders. In addition, some dealers are using Prop 36 as a way to get out of jail sentences. They know that if they pled down to simple possession, they will be diverted to Prop 36. I have spoken to one such subject who complained that this was done without his knowledge by his attorney, and he now has to attend user classes, even though he does not use and only sells.

Many of the items required to produce methamphetamine are readily available at local grocery and hardware stores. Because many of the chemicals used to make methamphetamine are explosive, caustic and carcinogenic, they pose serious health hazards if mixed together or stored improperly. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

With a cash outlay of less than one hundred dollars, a batch of methamphetamine can be manufactured (cooked) and sold on the streets for several thousand dollars. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding.

For every pound of methamphetamine manufactured there are six pounds of toxic waste materials that must be disposed of. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding. Response to 2005-2006 Grand Jury Report

Professionals who work to combat drug abuse in the County agree that the problem is intensified because there is in the County both a high level of tolerance for general drug use and a lack of awareness of the dangers of methamphetamine. Task Force Response: I agree with this finding. In addition, there is so much marijuana being grown and traded for methamphetamine that it has magnified the problem.