DA pursues zero meth campaign

By Staff
Melissa Cason
The Franklin County District Attorney's Office is dedicated to stopping methamphetamine usage before it starts by targeting teens for education on the dangers of meth use.
"We have seen that the late teen and year twenties are when meth addicts first get started using meth so we are trying to educate junior high and high school students about the dangers before they start," District Attorney Joey Rushing said.
Rushing said meth is by far the drug of choice in Franklin County surpassing cocaine, prescription drugs, marijuana and alcohol.
"Meth use is more common in rural communities than in larger cities," Rushing said. "This is because of the smells associated with the production of meth. It's easier to hide a meth lab in a rural, sparsely populated area."
Rushing said new ways of manufacturing meth will cause the problem to grow in cities as well.
Rushing said his office is doing all they can to educate students about the dangers of meth use. One program is the Zero Meth campaign.
"This is a state-wide campaign funded by the Alabama District Attorney's Association and Gov. Riley's office," Rushing said. "District Attorneys are allowed to use the at their descretion to combat the meth problem."
Rushing said he is focusing on promoting the dangers of meth to educate students before they try meth, and to bring more awareness to the Zero Meth website.
"We hope students will go to the website to learn just how dangerous meth is," Rushing said. "We hope students will get the needed information so they will decide not to try meth even once."
Rushing said meth is so addictive that it can cause instant death or addition on the first time.
As part of the Zero Meth campaign, t-shirts were distributed to high school students to be warn at sporting events and to be given away at area games.
For more information on the dangers of meth use, log onto www.zerometh.com