FIRST POSTED BY WKTV.COM
UTICA, N.Y. (PART II) – In part two of our look into methamphetamine addiction, we go in-depth into what the state and law enforcement are doing to contain this growing problem, and what happens to Erin Gillespie and her family.
“I’ve always been insecure about everything in my life. So when i would use drugs I didn’t care what people thought. Who wants to feel insecure about themselves? I don’t,” said Gillespie.
Erin has been clean and sober for eight months now, three of those months at Willard Drug Treatment Facility.
“Now that I’m sober, it’s like everything was a joke. And I wish I’d never tried it, I wish I’d never done any of those things,” said Gillespie.
After multiple arrests on charges of dealing meth, one New York State Trooper helped redirect Erin to rehabilitation and not prison. And after nearly five months at the Oneida County Jail, she was sent to the Willard Drug Treatment Facility.
“She wanted help getting better which is rare, very rare. And it’s hard to take at face value. Most meth addicts are extreme. They’ll steal, they’ll lie, they’re very secretive. They’re one with their drug,” said Trooper Chad Chevrier.
Meth cooks recruit others called smurfers, to get their ingredients. The main one, pseudoephedrine, is found in cold medication, and readily available at local pharmacies.
“This isn’t like heroin, this isn’t like coke, this isn’t like marijuana. They have to go out to these stores, and they will go long distances away from their home to try not to be detected. Stores need to let us know so we can try to locate where they’re going, and stop what they’re doing,” said Chevrier.
In 2006 the federal government signed into law The Combat Meth Epidemic Act. It sets a limit of how much pseudo you can legally buy in a 30 day period. You must show state issed photo identification, and the legal limit is up to 9 grams per month.
Depending on the dosage, that’s about two or three retail boxes per month. In addition, the law says pharmacies must track all sales with paper logs.
NPLEX, which stands for National Precursor Log Exchange is a real-time electronic logging and tracking software of over-the-counter medications containing precursors to meth.
The software is paid for by big pharma and already mandatory in 32 states, but not in New York.
“NPLEX is very important. It’s extremely helpful to law enforcement because there is a single database that all law enforcement can refer, to help identify smurfers and cooks. It saves time, and it deters the criminal element,” said Chevrier.
A company based out of Kentucky called APPRISS creates and distributes that sofware.
VP of Government Affairs of APPRISS, Jim Aquisto, was in law enforcement for more than two decades, and explains how it works.
“It doesn’t just flag them(criminals) for later investigation, it actually says you can’t have this, and they don’t take it out the door. When law enforcement wants to see the logs in real time, they simply pull up the database, which is no different than paper logs already mandated by the federal government. For example: this person tried to buy too much and they tried five times, and you might want to know about that,” said Acquisto.
A bill that’s currently in the state legislature would make NPLEX mandatory for all pharmacies. The bill has passed the senate three times, but keeps getting hung up in the assembly.
Lawmakers say it’s because meth use has exploded in just the past five years, and the assembly is typically known for advocating for the rights of the individual. But in light of the increased usage, that could soon change.
Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi (D-119th District), a co-sponsor of the bill said, “This is a case of where the law is trying to catch up with a specific problem. As this becomes more and more of a problem, the legislature is going to have to act to try to address it.”
Chevrier said, beyond the criminal aspect, the toll of this particular drug on family is profound, something he doesn’t always see.
“For me, it was a night and day difference to see her in the midst of her addiction at those labs, and then a few months later, I talked to her again several times, when she was sober. Then I met her mom. You really start to have a connection of the effects that she has had on her family once that happens. And she’s got a little one, and it’s tough to see how that’s effected him,” said Chevrier.
Erin’s mother, Beverly Gillespie said, “Her son, Evan, has been pretty much devastated by all this. It took him forever to understand that it wasn’t anything he did, she was just gone. There really wasn’t anything we didn’t do with our kids… we loved them, we hugged all the time, we went places. And here we are, it happened to us. I don’t think anyone is immune from this disease.”
“This is it for me. I don’t think I will be given another chance. I know that and there’s no getting around it. I know my mother will never speak to me if I blow this,” said Erin.
Erin is out of Willard Rehab now and at a half-way house in Utica. She’s getting outpatient treatment and following the 12 steps, doing everything she is asked. And she knows she’s being watched.
“It’s up to her. I think Erin will get better if Erin wants to get better,” said Chevrier.
“She’s awake now, she’s aware now, she’s sober now. So it might work this time, it just might. Her whole family has all of our fingers crossed that this might be the magic bullet,” said Beverly.