Local sheriff raises concerns over possible bill to meth possession
WEBSTER COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – A bill making its way through the Mississippi Legislature would change the law and penalties for possession of Methamphetamine.
Senate Bill 2347 would change the amount of the drug considered a felony and would focus on treatment rather than jail time for first-time offenders.
They passed the State Senate earlier in February.
It would revise the laws and penalties regarding the simple possession of Methamphetamine.
Under the proposed law, possession of one gram or less or five dosage units or less would be considered a misdemeanor.
A first offense carries a maximum $250 fine or 30 days in the county jail or both.
The offender would also have to be assessed for the possibility of drug treatment.
With a second offense, those penalties increase to a maximum fine of $1,000 and 6 months in jail.
The offender would be required to participate in a drug treatment program.
Possession of the smaller amount would not be considered a felony until the third offense.
The proposed changes aren’t sitting well with some in law enforcement, including Webster County Sheriff David Gore.
“When it takes away tools that we have in law enforcement to enforce the law,” Gore said. “Then I think it’s time for me to step in and say something.”
Sergeant Andrew Rogers has seen the effects the drug has, not only on the users but also on those around them.
“One of my main concerns is dealing with this personally and trafficking and things like that, I notice a lot of these individuals will have kids in the car from time to time and they are not really taking care of these kids,” Rogers said. “So, with an uptick in this methamphetamine and less consequence being held on it and there’s always a concern that some of these kids might be getting a hold of it, and that’s going to become a more common problem.”
Gore doesn’t rule out the benefits of treatment, but said dealing with meth requires a stronger approach.
“You can’t deal with methamphetamine like we deal with those other drugs,” Gore said. “It’s just a different drug, there’s different things to the human body and brain and you have to deal with it differently. Finally, my final statement would be with methamphetamine, there is no way that we are going to battle this problem without dealing with it through law enforcement.”
The bill has moved on to the State House of Representatives where it has been referred to a Committee.
