A bill introduced in the Indiana General Assembly, House Bill 1626, would criminalize the possession of otherwise legal substances in certain circumstances as part of an effort to crackdown on so-called methamphetamine precursors. The bill as written would "establish a rebuttable presumption" that a person in possession of 24 grams of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine, or unspecified quantities of such items as hydrogen peroxide, paint thinner and lithium batteries, is engaged in the manufacture of methamphetamine. Under current Indiana law, it is already a crime to possess any two listed precursors.
Under the bill, a person who purchased 18 boxes of Sudafed Maximum Strength Sinus and Allergy pills would be guilty of a crime. The bill also would make it a crime for store clerks to sell any of the listed substances if they knew they were to be used for cooking speed. And it would add an additional five-year prison sentence for anyone convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine in the presence of a child.
The bill's provisions have
drawn the ire of at least one Indiana newspaper, the Richmond Palladium-Item,
which called editorially last week for the bill to be amended. "Police
should not have the authority to arrest or search a person just because
he possesses a few gallons of paint thinner or several lithium batteries,"
wrote the Palladium-Item. "It'd be like arresting a person for possessing
A bill introduced in the
Indiana General Assembly, House Bill 1626, would criminalize the possession
of otherwise legal substances in certain circumstances as part of an effort
to crackdown on so-called methamphetamine precursors. The bill as
written would "establish a rebuttable presumption" that a person in possession
of 24 grams of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine, or unspecified
quantities of such items as hydrogen peroxide, paint thinner and lithium
batteries, is engaged in the manufacture of methamphetamine. Under
current Indiana law, it is already a crime to possess any two listed precursors.
Under the bill, a person
who purchased 18 boxes of Sudafed Maximum Strength Sinus and Allergy pills
would be guilty of a crime. The bill also would make it a crime for
store clerks to sell any of the listed substances if they knew they were
to be used for cooking speed. And it would add an additional five-year
prison sentence for anyone convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine in
the presence of a child.
The bill's provisions have
drawn the ire of at least one Indiana newspaper, the Richmond Palladium-Item,
which called editorially last week for the bill to be amended. "Police
should not have the authority to arrest or search a person just because
he possesses a few gallons of paint thinner or several lithium batteries,"
wrote the Palladium-Item. "It'd be like arresting a person for possessing
a can of spray paint on the assumption that he plans to inhale fumes to
get high." The paper was also leery of the provisions on sales of
alleged precursors. "It could put store clerks in the position of
feeling they need to report anyone who purchases strange amounts of the
legal substances, so they won't be accused of being co-conspirators."
Cosponsored by two Democrats,
Rep. Ed Mahern (Indianapolis) and Rep. Allan Chowning (Sullivan), the bill
is under consideration by the House Committee on Courts and Criminal Code.
To read the bill online, visit:
http://www.in.gov/serv/lsa_billinfo?year=2003&session=1&request=getBill&docno=1626
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