5400 Federal Plaza
Suite 1500
Hammond, IN 46320

219.937.5500

On October 29, 2003, a Methamphetamine Summit, sponsored by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Indiana, and hosted by Miami County Sheriff Kenneth Roland, took place at the Indiana Drug Enforcement Association (IDEA) Training Center at Grissom Air Reserve Base in Peru, IN. The goal of this summit was to identify the extent of the methamphetamine problem throughout Northern Indiana and to receive input on ways to deal with the problem. The alarming increase in methamphetamine lab seizures created a demand for this summit.

During the Methamphetamine Summit it was determined that nationally, Indiana ranks within the top ten states of the country for clandestine lab discovery and clean up. In the year 2000, the Indiana State Police processed and cleaned 497 clandestine labs. In 2004 they are projected to process and clean 1200 labs throughout Indiana. Additionally, large amounts of meth, readily available for distribution, is brought into Indiana from other states.

To assist State and Local law enforcement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the help of the DEA and other agencies plan to have additional meetings, sponsor training sessions, develop a quarterly newsletter identifying new trends and patterns for methamphetamine production and trafficking. The end result is to work collectively with Local, State and Federal agencies and other jurisdictions to implement a Methamphetamine Drug Demand Reduction Initiative “ICE AGE.”

The ICE AGE title is appropriate since it is a street name for crystal methamphetamine and also one may use the analogy that the original Ice Age was responsible for destroying all life in prehistoric time just as the modern ICE AGE has the same potential threat to destroy human life and have a significant negative impact on society.