Stopping the Methamphetamine Epidemic: Lessons from Oregon’S Experience
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STOPPING THE METHAMPHETAMINE EPIDEMIC: LESSONS FROM OREGON’S EXPERIENCE HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE, DRUG POLICY, AND HUMAN RESOURCES OF THE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT REFORM HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED NINTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION OCTOBER 14, 2005 Serial No. 109–144 Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Reform ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/index.html http://www.house.gov/reform U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 27–723 PDF WASHINGTON : 2006 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 11:49 Dec 14, 2006 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 D:\DOCS\27723.TXT HGOVREF1 PsN: HGOVREF1 COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT REFORM TOM DAVIS, Virginia, Chairman CHRISTOPHER SHAYS, Connecticut HENRY A. WAXMAN, California DAN BURTON, Indiana TOM LANTOS, California ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida MAJOR R. OWENS, New York JOHN M. MCHUGH, New York EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York JOHN L. MICA, Florida PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania GIL GUTKNECHT, Minnesota CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland STEVEN C. LATOURETTE, Ohio DENNIS J. KUCINICH, Ohio TODD RUSSELL PLATTS, Pennsylvania DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois CHRIS CANNON, Utah WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR., Tennessee DIANE E. WATSON, California CANDICE S. MILLER, Michigan STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland DARRELL E. ISSA, California LINDA T. SANCHEZ, California GINNY BROWN-WAITE, Florida C.A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER, Maryland JON C. PORTER, Nevada BRIAN HIGGINS, New York KENNY MARCHANT, Texas ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of LYNN A. WESTMORELAND, Georgia Columbia PATRICK T. MCHENRY, North Carolina ——— CHARLES W. DENT, Pennsylvania BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont VIRGINIA FOXX, North Carolina (Independent) ——— ——— MELISSA WOJCIAK, Staff Director DAVID MARIN, Deputy Staff Director/Communications Director ROB BORDEN, Parliamentarian/Senior Counsel TERESA AUSTIN, Chief Clerk PHIL BARNETT, Minority Chief of Staff/Chief Counsel SUBCOMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE, DRUG POLICY, AND HUMAN RESOURCES MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana, Chairman PATRICK T. MCHENRY, North Carolina ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland DAN BURTON, Indiana BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont JOHN L. MICA, Florida DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois GIL GUTKNECHT, Minnesota DIANE E. WATSON, California STEVEN C. LATOURETTE, Ohio LINDA T. SANCHEZ, California CHRIS CANNON, Utah C.A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER, Maryland CANDICE S. MILLER, Michigan MAJOR R. OWENS, New York GINNY BROWN-WAITE, Florida ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of VIRGINIA FOXX, North Carolina Columbia EX OFFICIO TOM DAVIS, Virginia HENRY A. WAXMAN, California MARC WHEAT, Staff Director NICK COLEMAN, Professional Staff Member MARK PFUNDSTEIN, Professional Staff Member MALIA HOLST, Clerk (II) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 11:49 Dec 14, 2006 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 D:\DOCS\27723.TXT HGOVREF1 PsN: HGOVREF1 C O N T E N T S Page Hearing held on October 14, 2005 .......................................................................... 1 Statement of: Benson, Rodney, Special Agent in Charge, Seattle Field Division, Drug Enforcement Administration; Chuck Karl, Oregon HIDTA; and Dave Rodriguez, Northwest HIDTA ...................................................................... 11 Benson, Rodney ......................................................................................... 11 Karl, Chuck ................................................................................................ 21 Rodriguez, Dave ......................................................................................... 41 Evinger, Tim, sheriff, Klamath County; Karen Ashbeck, mother and grandmother; John Trumbo, sheriff, Umatilla County; Rick Jones, Choices Counseling Center; Kathleen Deatherage, director of public policy, Oregon Partnership, Governor’s Meth Task Force; Tammy Baney, Chair, Deschutes County Commission on Children and Fami- lies; and Shawn Miller, Oregon Grocery Association ................................. 74 Ashbeck, Karen .......................................................................................... 116 Baney, Tammy ........................................................................................... 135 Deatherage, Kathleen ............................................................................... 128 Evinger, Tim .............................................................................................. 74 Jones, Rick ................................................................................................. 124 Miller, Shawn ............................................................................................ 139 Trumbo, John ............................................................................................. 118 Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by: Baney, Tammy, Chair, Deschutes County Commission on Children and Families, prepared statement of .................................................................. 137 Benson, Rodney, Special Agent in Charge, Seattle Field Division, Drug Enforcement Administration, prepared statement of ................................ 14 Deatherage, Kathleen, director of public policy, Oregon Partnership, Gov- ernor’s Meth Task Force, prepared statement of ....................................... 131 Evinger, Tim, sheriff, Klamath County, prepared statement of ................... 78 Jones, Rick, Choices Counseling Center, prepared statement of ................. 127 Karl, Chuck, Oregon HIDTA, prepared statement of .................................... 24 Miller, Shawn, Oregon Grocery Association, prepared statement of ........... 141 Rodriguez, Dave, Northwest HIDTA, prepared statement of ....................... 43 Souder, Hon. Mark E., a Representative in Congress from the State of Indiana, prepared statement of ............................................................... 6 Trumbo, John, sheriff, Umatilla County, prepared statement of ................. 121 (III) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 11:49 Dec 14, 2006 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 D:\DOCS\27723.TXT HGOVREF1 PsN: HGOVREF1 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 11:49 Dec 14, 2006 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 D:\DOCS\27723.TXT HGOVREF1 PsN: HGOVREF1 STOPPING THE METHAMPHETAMINE EPI- DEMIC: LESSONS FROM OREGON’S EXPERI- ENCE FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2005 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE, DRUG POLICY, AND HUMAN RESOURCES, COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT REFORM, Pendleton, OR. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:20 p.m., at the Pendleton City Council Chambers, 500 S.W. Dorion Avenue, Pen- dleton, OR, Hon. Mark E. Souder (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Souder and Walden. Staff present: Nick Coleman and Mark Pfundstein, professional staff members; and Malia Holst, clerk. Mr. SOUDER. Before we formally start the hearing, I’m going to yield to Congressman Walden to make some opening comments. Mr. WALDEN. Thank you very much, Chairman Souder. We ap- preciate you being here. I want to, first of all, welcome you and your staff, and let you know that we’re sitting in the same room where on March 4th I hosted nearly a 3-hour methamphetamine town hall summit with a crowd about this big or a little larger. It was our seventh in a series. And it took place on a Friday night. And we had a big turnout, which I think showed the level of concern in this region and this community about the problems of methamphetamine. I’d certainly like to recognize and thank a number of dignitaries who are in the audience today, and start with State representative Bob Jensen who is here. Bob, we welcome you and the work that you’ve done back there in the legislature along with your colleagues to really put Oregon out in the forefront in the battle on meth- amphetamine. I’d like to welcome our Umatilla County commissioners; Dennis Doherty, Emile Holeman, and Bill Hansell. And, as you know, Bill is chairman of the National Association of Counties and has made the fight on methamphetamine his signature issue as head of this national organization. I know he’s going to be in your State tomorrow as part of the In- diana Counties Association meeting and will be speaking there. I believe Congressman Lamoreau—or, excuse me—Commissioner Lamoreau and Commissioner McClure are both here from Union County. We welcome them as well. (1) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 11:49 Dec 14, 2006 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 D:\DOCS\27723.TXT HGOVREF1 PsN: HGOVREF1 2 I think Judge Tallman from Morrow County will be joining us soon, if he’s not arrived already. And, obviously, we have a lot of local law enforcement officials. I won’t go through and introduce them all, Mr. Chairman, but you met with most of them in our meeting prior to this one. And I want to tell you it’s this law enforcement community—and I’ve said it before private and public—that really put this issue on my agenda because of the passion they felt about the problem they faced. And it is from that that’s led all the way to here and the hearing that you’re hosting. I’d also like to welcome representatives from my friend and col- league Senator Gordon Smith’s office, Larry Garthy and Rich Cricket I believe are both here, along with the U.S. Attorney’s Of- fice, U.S. Attorney Karin Immergut. And so I’d like