Meth-makers sidestepping new state law

Two men have been charged in connection with a meth lab uncovered on Bratten Street, one for cooking the illegal substance and the other for allegedly smuggling meth-making materials into the county.

Suspect Robert Dale Hale, 25, is charged with initiating the process to manufacture meth, while Jason Ryan Walker, 25, is charged with promoting the manufacture of meth.

The charges show how meth-makers are circumventing a year-old state law that requires cold medicine with ephedrine to be sold in limited quantities from behind pharmacy counters. Lawmen contend Walker traveled to several stores in a neighboring town to accumulate enough cold medicine to make a batch of meth.

The arrests come after deputies received information Hale was cooking meth at a house owned by his father on Bratten Street, located near the fairgrounds. Lawmen were granted permission to search the grounds by Hale’s father, a search in which several items commonly used in the manufacture of meth were found.

These items included propane tanks, beakers, Coleman fuel, and bottles of Heet.

Along with those items, deputies also found several receipts for purchases of psuedoephedrine, allegedly bearing the name of Walker.

Ephedrine is a key ingredient in making meth and is found in several types of cold medicines.

The change in state law initially led to a massive reduction in the number of meth labs found across Tennessee ‘ and in Warren County. However, the illegal enterprise has seen a surge in recent months as meth-makers have devised new ways to get ephedrine. As a result a number of meth labs have been found in the county.

In the case of Walker, lawmen say receipts show he went out of town to Manchester to make purchases of psuedoephedrine. The receipts show Walker allegedly bought the items from Eckerd, Walgreen’s and Wal-Mart two days prior to the raid, hitting the separate stores in hopes of not arousing suspicion.