Pubdate: Thu, 19 Aug 2004 Source: Albany Herald, The (GA) Copyright: 2004 The Albany Herald Publishing Company, Inc. Contact: http://www.albanyherald.net/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1747 Author: Dave Williams Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/meth+kids METH SUMMIT CONCLUDES WITH RESULTS ATLANTA - Gov. Sonny Perdue's summit on methamphetamine abuse in Georgia hadn't even ended Wednesday when the governor announced its first concrete result. During his speech closing the two-day gathering, Perdue unveiled the signing of an agreement outlining how the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the state Division of Family and Children Services will work together to help children caught up in busts involving meth labs. "That's the kind of collaborative spirit we want to encourage," he said. The summit brought together more than 200 professionals from across Georgia from fields including criminal justice, substance abuse prevention and treatment and child welfare. Attendees broke into small groups to address the statewide problem. James Copple, a consultant with the National Crime Prevention Council who facilitated the summit, said the groups came to similar conclusions about what needs to be done in Georgia. He said the recommendations common among the attendees included the need to improve coordination among the state agencies involved in various aspects of combating methamphetamines and improve cross-training of those professionals. At the local level, the groups talked about increasing public awareness in each community of the extent of the meth problem. "As I look at some of the solutions, I'm very impressed with where you're going as a state," Copple, who has served in a similar role at a dozen other state summits, told the attendees. While no specific legislative proposals emerged from the Georgia summit, Perdue suggested that lawmakers take a close look at Oklahoma's experience with making it harder for would-be meth lab operators to buy large quantities of the precursor drugs and chemicals used to make methamphetamines. Meth seizures in that state dropped dramatically this year after the legislature there passed a law limiting the amount of certain cold medicines consumers could buy at one time and requiring buyers to show identification and sign for those purchases. Under the agreement between the GBI and DFCS announced by Perdue, the GBI will notify the child-protection agency when it is about to bust a meth lab, dress any child in a home containing a lab in protective clothing and determine whether the child has been exposed to hazardous chemicals. It will be a DFCS caseworker's job to make sure the child receives proper medical care, interview the child and obtain an emergency-custody order to place the child in foster care. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin