Drug War Follies: Iowa Anti-Meth Pseudoephedrine Law Snags Nasal Congestion Sufferer
As part of its effort to wipe out methamphetamine, and especially home-cooked meth, the state of Iowa enacted a law limiting the amount of pseudoephedrine people could purchase in a 24-hour period or in a month. The idea was to crack down on people who used the ingredient in popular cold and allergy medications to make their own meth.
[inline:sudafed.gif align=right caption="sinus sufferers beware -- of the cops!"]But the law of unintended consequences struck again this month -- or in the case of loal sheriffs, perhaps intended consequences -- this time landing squarely on the head of a Mason City man who knows nothing about meth, but knows a lot about suffering from chronic nasal congestion. Gary Schinagel, 47, a senior investment associate at Principal Financial Group in Mason City, was arrested for the illegal purchase of pseudoephedrine after buying generic cold medicines to treat his condition.
Schinagel told the Mason City Globe Gazette his through-the-looking-glass encounter with the drug war began when his niece called him and told him he had been listed in a newspaper article as one of the uncaught miscreants in a roundup of violators of the cold medicine law. Schinagel went to the sheriff's office thinking he could clear up the "mistake," but was instead arrested.
"It is a sinking feeling to be placed under arrest," said Schinagel. "I'm not a stick-in-the-mud but I've tried all my life to abide by the law and not cross any lines I shouldn't cross. I've tried all my life to avoid situations like I find myself in now. And I still don't know which line I crossed," he said, wondering if he had purchased too many pills in one day or in one month.
He had to call his bank to get the $1,000 bail bond needed to get him out of jail. "It was embarrassing," he said. "The woman at the bank recognized my voice. I sang in the choir with her."
No word yet on apologies from the cops or when his charges will be dropped. In the meantime, Schinagel is taking cold pills that don't contain pseudoephedrine. They don't work as well, he said, and he has to buy more boxes. One more example of collateral damage in the drug war.
But Schinagel is more understanding than the police who arrested him after he came to the station to straighten out the mess. "Laws are made because there are some bad people out there and it's too bad that sometimes innocent victims get caught up in it," he said. "I understand the law -- but I will say there are some quirks in it."
Comments
Schinagel should have called his lawyer, first n/t
n/t
Your first mistake...
Never go to the police station to 'clear up the misunderstanding'. Talk about sticking your head in the lion's mouth.
He should have smelled a
He should have smelled a trap...What Mexicans call a "gringo"...
Huh?
Just how MANY boxes did he buy?? I have to say I'm a little suspicious myself!
This is what made me realize the war on drugs had gone too far
I have chronic sinus problems as well. As far as I know, Washington state hasn't placed limits on how much pseudoephedrine a person can buy, but we have to fill out a form at the pharmacy, and they need to check your drivers licence, in order to buy any. My wife went to buy some for me one time, and having put my name down, then discovered she had to wait until I could get there to actually buy any. It would almost be easier to go to a doctor and get a prescription!
The most rediculous part about this is that restricting access to pseudoephedrine just forces the Meth brewers to use other, more toxic, source ingredients, making the process that much more dangerous to the producers and those around them.
IOWA (living in the stone age)
Iowa has some of the most Red Neck behavior towards anyone, who even remotely thinks about the word Drugs. Guilty until proven innocent, should be Iowa's state motto! If this gentleman gets arrested for having a sinus condition, what comes next? Hauling away people in the middle of the night from their homes, to incarcerate them?
One of my friends is serving time in a Federal Penitentiary on marijuana charges stemming from living in IOWA.(come on folks, wake up!)
I feel bad for this guy, he needs to lawyer up and sue those ass-holes for the embarrassment they've cause him and his family...enough of this behavior!
America is acting like a 3rd world country, not like a proud world leader.
VOTE this November and make these Garbage laws change!!!
In reply to IOWA (living in the stone age) by Anonymous (not verified)
re: Iowa (living in the stone age)
Not quite. I was transplanted there from CA at the age of 8 (long story) and ended up getting my BA from the U of Iowa. There are a lot of progressive people in the state, especially the eastern portion, and there is work underway to change the laws. I worked with Progressive Approach, an attempt to get a ballot initiative that would have legalized med mj. There are actually a lot of Iowans interested in decriminalization, but i think the meth problem is so bad that it tends to direct a lot of negativity toward all "illicit' drugs. That's where the work needs to go in the future, i think.
Going, going, gone
"Laws are made because there are some bad people out there and it's too bad that sometimes innocent victims get caught up in it," he said. "I understand the law -- but I will say there are some quirks in it."
OMG!!! "...its too bad...innocent victims get caught..."
I simply cannot believe the mindset of this kind of a person!! No wonder the government is getting away with slowly but certainly taking our rights away from us.
Slowly we are becoming the Fascist States of America. It's our own fault for not stopping the government. It no longer is a government of the-, by the-, and for the people.
extreme nonsense and/or just plain malice
even if the law is stupid, it could at least be better crafted. I mean, if they decide you can't buy a certain amount of pseudoephedrine in a 24 hour period or a month, why do they let people buy that amount in the first place, then put them in a list of "wanted people", put that list in the newspaper, and in the end arrest people for it? Why should anyone be arrested for it at all, if you could just tell people at the counter "sir, i'm sorry, but we can't sell you this amount of pseudoephedrine today". i smell that the people who wrote the law wanted to let people be able to buy the medicine, and wanted to be able to go after them (for the enjoyment of the cops perhaps?), and be able to arrest them.
In reply to extreme nonsense and/or just plain malice by Anonymous (not verified)
extreme nonsense and/or just plain malice
I absolutely agree with this comment. It all comes back to the old addage, "Give them enough rope to hang themselves". When I consider the 2005 law and its scope and consequences, all I can think is that it is a convenient way for the police to legally practice entrapment.
sniffles
now you really need to worry the police can arest you for having a runny nose and they will say you snotted a bit too much.....what this USA is coming to when the hempen paper of the constitution is being shit on by the day...this is just another sickenning story of our tax dollars hardly at work for us. if i was him i would sue the balls off of them and move to another state . theses stupid little things are why our country is going down the toilet thanks idaho way to waste our tax $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Just how MANY boxes did he
You're also a lot stupid.
In reply to Just how MANY boxes did he by Anonymous (not verified)
how many boxes did he buy??
Well since you can only buy one damn box at a time how many boxes do you figure he bought??
Not even about the amount on an over the counter med
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