Two crimes, many victims, one drug: The Faces of Meth

It’s no surprise that drugs can be linked to some of the most recent high-
profile gunfire in Washington. A boy, whose mother was a known user of
methamphetamine, sneaks away his mother’s gun and brings it school.
That gun went off and accidentally shot a girl.

The next day, a man and a women were drunk and high on
methamphetamine when they were pulled over by a state trooper. The
man, Joshua Blake, shot the trooper because he didn’t want to go back
to jail.

“This drug damages the brain in the same way Parkinson’s and
Alzheimer’s damages the brain,” said Deputy Bret King of the
Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office. The drug keeps dopamine from the
brain and prevents its ability to produce it. “[Dopamine] is a chemical that
motivates every human being to function, to do everything they can.”

The drug affected these Blake’s mood and drastically changed what he
was capable of.

King started the Faces of Meth program in Multnomah County. The
program, he said, plays on the vanity of youth, by showing before and
after photos of methamphetamine addicts.

“You made the decision to get into that behavior on your own, but that’s
the big trap – you can’t get out on your own. [Meth] has taken over your
brain.”

King said that one way or another, meth users find their way out of the
pattern of addiction. “The end of the road is death or jail or recovery.

“I can’t count the number of people I’ve come into contact with, through
the jail system who have gotten clean and made something of
themselves and have become reunited with their families and feel really
good about themselves.”

Recovery is a continuing struggle according to King – an ensuing
depression occurs after meth use and addiction that is difficult to
overcome. “It can take months and even years – and that can hold
people back.”

For some making headlines because of meth use, the future remains
unclear. But Joshua Blake chose his road out of meth addiction: Death.