Clandestine
methamphetamine
manufacturing
and distribution
has created a
public health
and safety
crisis in many
communities.
Small, toxic
labs, which are
often located in
houses,
apartments,
hotel rooms, or
even
automobiles,
pose a
particular risk.
Anyone and
anything in
close proximity
could be
endangered.
Chemicals used
in the
manufacture of
meth and other
illegal drugs
can be
poisonous,
corrosive,
carcinogenic,
flammable, or
explosive. The
drugs and
chemicals
present in meth
labs are easily
absorbed by the
body and
breathed in as
vapors. These
chemicals often
contaminate
items in their
vicinity, which
results in the
need for
disposal of
contaminated
items such as
carpeting,
furniture and
wallpaper to
ensure the
remediation of a
hazardous
environment. The
risk to children
at these
locations is
extremely high.
A
drug-endangered
child (DEC) is a
child who has
been exposed to
an environment
with conditions
of contamination
or hazardous
life style as a
result of
illicit drug
use, sales, or
manufacturing.
Law enforcement
agrees that
there is
generally no
limit to the
degree of
neglect for
these children.
Commonly
identified
hazards include
exposed razor
blades, often
used to cut the
finished
product, as well
as “modified”
electrical
systems with
exposed wires
running
throughout the
home. The
neglected
children are
often dirty, and
have not bathed
for days. These
children educate
the worker on
the production
of meth, as many
of them have
often assisted
in the cooking,
sales and
distribution of
methamphetamine.
The mission of
many of the DEC
programs is to
identify and
protect the
children, and to
identify,
provide and
improve services
utilizing the
criminal justice
system, law
enforcement,
child welfare
and other
community
agencies with
the goal of
improving
outcomes for
these children.
Helpful links:
United States
Department of
Justice National
Drug
Intelligence
Center
Arizona DEC
Program
Washington DEC
Program
Children's
Environmental
Health Network
Riverside
County,
California Drug
Endangered
Children Program
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