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Two South Boston meth dealers nabbed as result of anonymous tips from residents sick of their crap, police say

Boston Police report residents concerned about "heightened" drug activity around 5 Mohawk St. in Andrew Square and 50 West Broadway near the Broadway T stop dropped figurative dimes to the BPD anonymous text tip line, which sparked investigations that led to the arrest of two men on meth-trafficking charges.

Armed with search warrants this week, police arrested a 52-year-old South Boston resident on Mohawk Street and a 37-year-old South Boston resident on Broadway on charges of trafficking in methamphetamine. Police add they also seized drugs, drug paraphernalia and, at the tonier West Broadway address, nearly $48,000 in cash.

Anonymous tips, starting with TIP, can be texted to CRIME (27463).

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Comments

it never really took off here like it did in many other places. meth is BRUTAL. throw away the key on these guys.

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This the second meth bust in Southie this week. They also caught a guy with 702 grams of it in Lawrence last week. Meth hospitalizations have been creeping up in Boston since 2016.

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Unfortunately, there is an increase in use and is going to get worse. It is making it's way to cities.

"There are many paths to meth use. Some drug users say they take it to pick themselves up after taking downers: heroin or fentanyl. Those on the streets say they take it to stay awake at night and avoid rape or robbery. Meth offers a relatively cheap high that can last days. That means fewer injections and less worry about finding money for the next hit. And some drug users pick up meth because they are terrified of fentanyl, the opioid that can shut down breathing in seconds."

"But the rising drug-seizure numbers suggest there's more hell ahead for communities across the country facing a new or renewed wave of meth.."

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/07/29/745061185/seizures-...

Local news:
https://www.wbur.org/commonhealth/2018/11/21/meth-worsening-opioid-epidemic

https://www.patriotledger.com/news/20190108/meth-pops-onto-radar-of-loca...

https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/08/13/really-last-thing-need-righ...

https://www.boston25news.com/news/methamphetamine-use-in-area-presenting...

https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/New-England-Law-Enforcement-Take-Tr...

https://www.necn.com/news/new-england/Maine-Man-Arrested-on-Meth-Charges...

National news:

https://apnews.com/f57bbc469d9f47519f373ee932cfb8a2

https://www.mainepublic.org/post/methamphetamines-alarming-rise-prevalen...

https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/SF-s-meth-epidemic-City-rel...

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When are we getting safe injection sites?

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throw away the key on these guys.

This crime is on the do not prosecute list.

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Nice try though.

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...in other news, just this past weekend a lengthy conversation between Rachel Rollins and Elizabeth Warren occurred in South Carolina discussing criminal justice reform. Although she made no clear statement--she must not have a "plan" for this--Senator Warren made large distinctions between "violent" crime and "nonviolent". She said she found many crimes considered violent that are not really violent. She was strongly indicating that drug crimes are non-violent and should not be remedied through imprisonment.

Hopefully she was being disingenuous and would continue to support strong punishment for crimes such as this which destroy many lives and lead to many succeeding societal problems, but I doubt it. She doesn't really care about the lives people lead. She is an economist and they don't call it the "dismal science" for no reason. Her interest is to be President, peoples lives be damned. Whatever wins votes in the Democratic primary is OK with her.

In the conversation Rollins was clearly pushing toward leniency for these crimes. Maybe not on the no prosecution list, but clearly on the no imprisonment list. These guys won't serve much time.

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We have the highest prison rate in the world. We hardly lack in putting people behind bars.

This is definitely something that destroys families.

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You're talking through it. Please read this Business Insider report to improve your knowledge of the subject. Excerpts:

Here's what the data says about Portugal's decriminalization:

1. Drug-related HIV infections have plummeted by over 90% since 2001, according to the drug-policy think tank Transform.

2. Drug-related deaths in Portugal are the second-lowest in the European Union. Just three in a million people die of overdoses there, compared with the EU average of 17.3 per million.

3. The number of adults who have done drugs in the past year has decreased steadily since 2001.

4. Compared to rest of the EU, young people in Portugal now use the least amount of "legal high" drugs like synthetic marijuana, which are especially dangerous.

5. The percentage of drug-related offenders in Portuguese prisons fell from 44% in 1999 to 21% in 2012.

6. The number of people in drug-treatment increased 60% from 1998 to 2011 from 23,600 to 38,000.

By contrast, our War on Drugs is an utter failure, having no effect on drug use, and benefiting only criminals and the private prison industry.

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Portugal is a largely rural country of 10 million people, so any comparison is suspect. That said, their incarceration rate has increased by 15% over the last 8 years. Maybe things there aren't exactly as you present them.

Still, I did not exactly endorse "the drug war." I am a big supporter of drug treatment for individuals. But I do believe in prison for trafficking hard drugs like meth, heroin and fentanyl.

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Portugal is majority urbanized, 64% and growing.

https://tradingeconomics.com/portugal/urban-population-percent-of-total-...

'You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts.' Daniel Patrick Moynihan

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Their incarceration rate is the same as it was in 2000. These things fluctuate. The rate is currently 130/100K. Ours is 6 times as great. Our adult prosecution rate is 5 times Portugal's but we're still not controlling our drug problem as well as they are.

Appealing to American exceptionalism as a reason for not trying things that have succeeded elsewhere doesn't serve us well, and is the reason we have a broken health-care system, a murderous gun culture, and yes, a useless drug policy.

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I made absolutely no reference to American Exceptionalism. I just noted that a poor, rural, homogeneous country roughly 1/40th of the size of the US is not necessarily a model.

Still, you are misrepresenting the entire picture. Portugal decriminalized small amounts for possession, but you can still be imprisoned for 1 to 14 years for trafficking. And trafficking is what my original point was all about.

Keep your hat to put on your next straw man!

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Cessation of subsidies or allowances that a person receives from a public agency.

Point out this penalty

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Please supply statistics showing the percentage of people with serious drug issues who receive public aid.

Show your work.

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regardless of if it's true, advocates for sane drug policy would be wise to jump on that point as a way to sell it to moralistic right wingers convinced everyone receiving benefits is a drugged up welfare junkie. they start supporting good policy, convinced it won't end up happening, because "ghetto projects = druggies", and progress is actually made. let their own ignorance play to the benefit of the public, FOR ONCE.

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the percentage of people with serious drug issues who receive public aid.

ZERO is the dream

everybody can get on board with stripping druggies of welfare

Who cares how many users are on welfare now, make it zero and you will have people cheering the Portugal model of stripping druggies of their welfare.

No wonder it works so well over there

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I'm also against voter fraud, but like meth addicts on welfare it's basically non-existent.

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I still want you to tell me the statistical basis of your assertion that this is even a problem.

Now.

Specifically.

The world does not exist to cater to your data-deficient "beliefs" and "fetishes" (or racism, hatred, or bullshit for that matter).

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What are you going on about? I did not mention a problem, much less *assert* a problem.

I stated that Portugal takes away welfare from druggies.

I like that and if you want to decriminalize drugs, you might want to cheerlead what Portugal has done. They show results. Taking welfare away is a great move. Taking the right to vote away from druggies might be even better.

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Possession with intent to distribute is on the no-prosecute list.

Trafficking is not.

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Do you ever buy beer in a six pack? That could get you PID if we had an equivalent law against alcohol because you were in possession of multiple containers which could be sold individually.

If an addict buys a few bags with each having an individual hit to get them through the day would you call that possession with intent to distribute or just possession of a controlled substance?

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Many factors (should) go into a possession with intent to distribute charge. As you may or may not know most junkies don't plan for they day by buying several small bags and then have them on them when dealing with police. But it could happen. Do they have cash? How many bags? Do they have empty bags with them? Do they have other drug making items with them (often times the lack of personal use paraphernalia indicates an intent to distribute)? How were they encountered? Do they have a history of dealing? Can they tell you where they got them from? Are they high when encountered? Do they have multiple cell phones?

The quantity is almost the biggest factor, not how they are packaged. Also in most cases those who possess for personal use are almost always cooperative with police because they know that when they cooperate (even if they get arrested) they usually get out pretty quick and are rarely imprisoned for the possession.

But you are right, it isn't always black and white and isn't a simple call.

But the six pack analogy doesn't really work because if alcohol was prohibited six packs wouldn't exist (but for the sake of argument it is interesting, a six pack is a symbol of personal use but could also be a tool for a "dealer" to distribute beer to alcoholics that may only have enough money for one beer at time?)

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I was pointing out that PID is a widely abused charge because the threshold is so low. You're absolutely right that there are a lot of other factors that should go into determining if a person is really going to be a "distributor" worthy of criminal charge for that.

However, I've known more than my share of "functioning" heroin addicts in my time. So your image of a junkie on the street struggling to get their next high is an accurate portrayal of one type of addict, but I think you miss the mark by picturing the walking dead on methadone mile as the "typical" user.

There are also those who live in the suburbs and hold down a job full time who cannot run to where their dealer is every few hours so will buy a bundle to get them through a day or even several days. It can also be a situation where there is a group of friends who are all users so one person will make the run to the city score for all of them. So that person is going to distribute it but hardly in a criminal "drug dealer" sort of way. Since their actions when buying in an area known for drug dealing increases their potential to be stopped by police they are more likely to be busted while holding multiple bags. Should that qualify?

During prohibition bottles of beer most certainly existed, as any home-brewer could tell you the equipment to take a larger volume of beer and bottle it individually is very simple so it does work as an analogy. I could buy a keg of beer from a "trafficker" and turn it into individual bottles to sell. If someone bought 2, 4 or 6 bottles from me for themselves they could be arrested and charged with PID if the criminality on alcohol was the same as for drugs.

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doesn't always act like a zombie on the streets, but you must admit there is usually a profile that would determine the "typical" user.

I do know a lot of construction workers who use but are also able to get up at 5am and work 60 hours a week. Would be interesting to know exactly how many people are able to use this drug and "function" though.

My point about the six pack was more about me being able to drink that in a few hours and still be sober. Maybe a case of beer would be a better analogy. That would be tough.

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That's how some of the junkies I knew phrased it. One was the office manager of a small law firm so we're not talking about some mindless job. Her routine was to inject just enough in the morning so that she would avoid getting withdrawal sickness. Then she'd do the same at lunchtime to make it through the rest of the day. Depending on what she was doing there might be another one late in the day to get through after work errands or working late. In the evenings at home she would up the amount to "get high" since she didn't have to worry about her co-workers noticing.

So just like you could drink that six pack over the course of an eight hour day and remain sober a junkie could be doing the same thing with a few bags of dope. Also, analogous to current law you could be busted just as easily for the six pack as a case which was my original point with the threshold for PID being too low.

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Its definitely not on the do not prosecute list..
Complete idiot....lol

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Trafficking IS NOT on that list.

Stupidity is.

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We just hear about the opioid issues a lot more but meth is here.

It's been heavily used in the Boston gay community for well over 15 years now. I know far too many people who are now in recovery because of meth use. I can log on to certain "hook up" apps on my phone and within 10 minutes I can either 1) find meth or 2) get offered meth

I also think meth users tend to be a bit more functional vs opioid users who tend to nod off. Meth makes you active, opioids.. not so much. So you tend to over look the meth users (at least the ones who haven't gone off the deep end) because of that.

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They are in recovery, and not unground, which is often the case with fent.

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Meth has had many lives. In an earlier incarnation - like late 70s early 80s west coast - it got mixed into drinks to both hide it from parents and because that worked.

It doesn't likely ever go away, but it is subject to supply/demand cycles and wide variations in the strength/purity of the product.

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Yes, it was known as crank in the 80s, but yeah very west coast. It migrated east

In the early 90s, it hadnt crested the rockies. By the time I was living in Atlanta in the late 90s, it was just starting to creep in there.

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There were amphetamine junkies in Boston at least as far back as the 1960s. You can't rely on the news media to accurately report when something like that appears. Also, what happened in Atlanta in the 90s is pretty irrelevant to what had been going on here for decades.

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Listen to what Cybah has to say. This is a person who has direct knowledge of what's going on out there.

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uh no.

First off, you're right. Amphetamine junkies have been around forever.

METHamphetamine has not. Big difference there. Same class of drugs (stimulants) but chemically are different. amphetamine junkies have been around since the 1950s everywhere, but METHamphetamine is a relatively new thing. (if you think the 1980s is 'new')

As far as my experience in Atlanta, my point was less about Atlanta but more than METHamphetamine usage hadn't really gotten that far east yet.

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Diet pills made from the same active ingredient as meth were very widely prescribed, leading to a situation similar to what we now see that started with prescription opiates.

Completely legal, completely abused. Mother's little helper, indeed. Most of us knew "that mom" who was not only fucking crazy on the things, she had so many that you could sneak them (and sell or use them). My aunt had a script for a time - most "overweight" women could just ask for them from as many doctors as they cared to.

Better living through chemistry!

The Nazis gave them to soldiers and pilots and ended up having to cut back because of the predictable results of methed up aggro warriors with reduced inhibitions turning on their command officers.

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Not amphetamines of any kind.

But, yeah, housewives were all hopped up on speed too.

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I lived in San Diego in the 90's, where it was rampant. Meth is brutal and devastating. And if the addicts turn to crime they're like thieving zombies.

We need more compassion and treatment for the addicts and a true war on drugs against the dealers and suppliers.

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Having seen the impact on the gay community over 10+ years here in Boston, I can tell you that meth rehab is a rough road. As the drug becomes inextricably linked to sex, for treatment, users often have to connect drug cessation with celibacy. With the clandestine sub-group of users in the community, it also means that many, if not all. of your social circle is connected via the drug. You basically have to abandon all of your "friends" and at the same time, put a hard stop to the insatiable sexual appetite meth helps fuel. As one friend said to me "It's been 5 years clean and there are still many days that I wake up and think that I'd really like to be able to do a little, feel that edge it brought me in the past...". Terrifying.

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Meth is bad in rural areas where heroin doesn’t get to. Although I understand both ends of that are changing. Never needed to hunt for Sudafed here, Gloucester keeps us well supplied.

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Transit orientated drug dealers.

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But Quincy station is an open drug market.

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?

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Why do we have drug prohibition. It doesn’t work and is a massive waste of resources.

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Aren’t these The minor drug crimes tha DA Rachel Rollins is refusing to prosecute?

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but thanks for trying.

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