Amphetamines/Methamphetamine

Amphetamine, dextroamphetamine, methamphetamine, and their various salts, are collectively referred to as amphetamines. In fact, their chemical properties and actions are so similar that even experienced users have difficulty knowing which drug they have taken.

Amphetamine was first marketed in the 1930s as Benzedrine® in an over-the-counter inhaler to treat nasal congestion. By 1937, amphetamine was available by prescription in tablet form and was used in the treatment of the sleeping disorder narcolepsy and the behavioral syndrome called minimal brain dysfunction, which today is called attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). During World War II, amphetamine was widely used to keep the fighting men going; both dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine®) and methamphetamine (Methedrine®) became readily available.

As use of amphetamines spread, so did their abuse. In the 1960s, amphetamines became a cure-all for helping truckers to complete their long routes without falling asleep, for weight control, for helping athletes to perform better and train longer; and for treating mild depression. Intravenous amphetamines, primarily methamphetamine, were abused by a subculture known as "speed freaks." With experience, it became evident that the dangers of abuse of these drugs outweighed most of their therapeutic uses.

Increased control measures were initiated in 1965 with amendments to the federal food and drug laws to curb the black market in amphetamines. Many pharmaceutical amphetamine products were removed from the market including all injectable formulations, and doctors prescribed those that remained less freely. Recent increases in medical use of these drugs can be attributed to their use in the treatment of ADHD. Amphetamine products presently marketed include generic and brand name amphetamine (Adderall®, Dexedrine®, Dextrostat®) and brand name methamphetamine (Desoxyn®). Amphetamines are all controlled in Schedule II of the CSA.

To meet the ever-increasing black market demand for amphetamines, clandestine laboratory production has mushroomed. Today, most amphetamines distributed to the black market are produced in clandestine laboratories. Methamphetamine laboratories are, by far; the most frequently encountered clandestine laboratories in the United States. Law enforcement personnel routinely raid both large and small ("mom and pop") laboratories. The ease of clandestine synthesis, combined with tremendous profits, has resulted in significant availability of illicit methamphetamine, especially on the West Coast where abuse of this drug has increased dramatically in recent years. Large amounts of methamphetamine are also illicitly smuggled into the United States from Mexico.

Amphetamines are generally taken orally or injected. However, the addition of "ice," the slang name for crystallized methamphetamine hydrochloride, has promoted smoking as another mode of administration. Just as "crack" is smokable cocaine, "ice" is smokable methamphetamine. Methamphetamine, in all its forms, is highly addictive and toxic.

The effects of amphetamines, especially methamphetamine, are similar to cocaine, but their onset is slower and their duration is longer. In contrast to cocaine, which is quickly removed from the brain and is almost completely metabolized, methamphetamine remains in the central nervous system longer, and a larger percentage of the drug remains unchanged in the body, producing prolonged stimulant effects. Chronic abuse produces a psychosis that resembles schizophrenia and is characterized by paranoia, picking at the skin, preoccupation with one's own thoughts, and auditory and visual hallucinations. These psychotic symptoms can persist for months and even years after use of these drugs has ceased and may be related to the neurotoxic effects of these drugs. Violent and erratic behavior is frequently seen among chronic abusers of amphetamines, especially methamphetamine.

METHAMPHETAMINE TRAFFICKING

Domestic methamphetamine production, trafficking, and abuse are concentrated in the western, southwestern, and midwestern United States. Methamphetamine is also increasingly available in portions of the South and eastern United States, especially Georgia and Florida. Clandestine laboratories in California and Mexico are the primary sources of supply for methamphetamine available in the United States.

Over the last decade, the methamphetamine trafficking and abuse situation in the United States changed dramatically. In 1994, ethnic Mexican drug trafficking organizations operating "super labs" (laboratories capable of producing in excess of 10 pounds of methamphetamine in one 24-hour production cycle) based in Mexico and in California began to take control of the production and distribution of methamphetamine domestically. Independent laboratory operators, including outlaw motorcycle gangs, previously maintained control of methamphetamine production and distribution within the United States, and continue to operate today on a lesser scale. The entry of ethnic Mexican traffickers into the methamphetamine trade in the mid-1990s resulted in a significant increase in the supply of the drug. Mexican criminal organizations, based in Mexico and California, provided high-purity, low-cost methamphetamine originally to cities in the Midwest and West with Mexican populations.

In 2001, approximately 8,000 clandestine methamphetamine laboratories were seized and reported to the National Clandestine Laboratory Database at the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC). In 2001, 298 seized super labs were reported to EPIC. This represents a rise in the number of superlabs from 2000, in which the total number of superlabs totaled 168. Further, for all of calendar year 2000, the Tijuana Residence Office (TJRO) reported only two seized methamphetamine laboratories. During calendar year 2001, the number of clandestine laboratories seized in Baja California Norte increased substantially, with 24 clandestine laboratories seized as of December 2001. The majority of these laboratories have been seized in the cities of Tijuana and Mexicali. Due to the proximity of these laboratories to the United States, it is believed that the majority of the methamphetamine was bound for the United States.

According to EPIC, the methamphetamine seized annually in transit from Mexico to the United States has increased dramatically since 1992. Authorities seized 1,370 kilograms of methamphetamine along the border in 2001, compared with only 6.5 kilograms in 1992. The primary points of entry into the United States for methamphetamine produced in Mexico have traditionally been California ports of entry, particularly San Ysidro. Although a great amount of methamphetamine still transits this area, ports of entry in South Texas have experienced increases in smuggling activity, although this activity appears to be stabilizing. The most common method of transporting methamphetamine is within concealed compartments in passenger vehicles.

The supply of methamphetamine in the United States also stems from multiple small-scale laboratories, often operated by independent cooks who obtain the ingredients necessary for manufacture from retail and convenience stores. Methamphetamine produced in these "mom-and-pop" laboratories is generally for personal use or limited distribution. A clandestine laboratory operator can use relatively common items, such as mason jars, coffee filters, hot plates, pressure cookers, pillowcases, plastic tubing, and gas cans to substitute for sophisticated laboratory equipment. The growing use of the Internet, which provides access to methamphetamine "recipes," coupled with increased demand for high-purity product, has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of mom-and-pop laboratories throughout the United States. In 2001, the number of labs with capacities under ten pounds totaled over 7,700.

Methamphetamine precursor chemicals diverted to large clandestine laboratories in the United States are usually dosage-form pseudoephedrine or ephedrine drug products. Because of law enforcement attention and strong state precursor control laws in California, traffickers have now diversified to pseudoephedrine suppliers nationwide, buying at relatively lower prices in other parts of the country and trafficking the product to California, where the black market price can bring up to $5,000 per pound of product.

Nationwide networks of suppliers, working together, now provide ton quantities of pseudoephedrine tablet products to the market in California and to distributors in other states. The latter divert the product to local methamphetamine laboratories. Small-scale lab operators commonly buy over-the-counter pseudoephedrine products in small amounts from legitimate retailers. Recent reporting indicates that Canadian companies are a major source of supply for pseudoephedrine destined for U.S. laboratories because of minimal chemical controls in Canada. On March 7, 2002, search warrants were served on two residences, one in Paramount and the other in Lynwood, California. Four hundred containers of 25,000 count pseudoephedrine jars, or "pickle jars," (approximately 10,000,000 tablets) and $1,502,000 USC were seized. The pseudoephedrine is believed to have originated in Canada.

Pseudoephedrine and ephedrine are also purchased from unscrupulous U.S. distributors who sell case quantities of the tablets. Ultimately, the tablets are destined for California where they are manufactured into multiple pounds of methamphetamine. The finished methamphetamine is then distributed throughout the United States through preexisting smuggling methods to the traffickers.

In addition, the use of methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) has been encountered as a "cut" in methamphetamine produced primarily by Mexican organizations. Legitimately used as a dietary supplement for horses and humans, MSM is readily available at feed and livestock stores, as well as health and nutrition stores. The addition of MSM can be used to add volume to the finished methamphetamine, thus increasing the profit. Increases in the use of MSM may be a signal of difficulty in obtaining precursors, or a simple marketing method to meet demand while increasing profit.

The crystalline form of methamphetamine, known as "ice," "glass," or "crystal," is gaining popularity. Converted from powder by criminal elements in Southeast Asia, Mexico, and the United States, ice traditionally was used in Hawaii and southern California. More recently, its use has spread along the West Coast and Southwest border areas.

The importation of methamphetamine tablets from Southeast Asia, primarily via the mail system, remains a potential threat. Produced mainly by the United Wa State Army, the largest heroin and methamphetamine trafficking group in Burma, the tablets, which weigh approximately 90 milligrams (mg), typically contain 25 to 30 mg of methamphetamine, and 45 to 65 mg of caffeine. Although it is believed that the tablets are trafficked primarily by ethnic Thais or Laotians for use in the Asian community, it is possible that larger amounts will be smuggled into the United States if demand increases outside that community.

Purity

Until 1999, the methamphetamine problem was increasing at an alarming rate. International chemical control efforts reduced the supply of those chemicals needed to produce high-quality methamphetamine. As a result, the national purity level for methamphetamine has decreased dramatically. The average purity of methamphetamine exhibits seized by DEA dropped from 71.9 percent in 1994 to 30.7 percent in 1999. The average purity of methamphetamine exhibits seized by DEA in 2000 rose slightly to 35.3 percent and 40.1 in 2001.

Prices

Methamphetamine prices vary throughout different regions of the United States. At the distribution level, prices range from $3,500 per pound in parts of California and Texas to $21,000 per pound in southeastern and northeastern regions of the country. Retail prices range from $400 to $3,000 per ounce.

Seizures

According to the FDSS, U.S. federal authorities seized a total of 2,807 kilograms of methamphetamine in 2001 compared to 3,373 kilograms in 2000.

In 2000, authorities seized 301,697 SEA methamphetamine tablets in U.S. Postal Service facilities in Oakland, Los Angeles, and Honolulu. This represents an 656-percent increase from the 1999 seizure total of 39,917.