Andrew V. McNeill
Andrew V. McNeill first discovered the unusual nature and tragic consequences of the methamphetamine scourge and its impact on rural America while serving as Senior Policy Advisor to Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher. While researching criminal justice issues, he came across news stories of criminals stealing fertilizer from rural farmers in western Kentucky for use in cooking meth. Stealing fertilizer to make drugs? Now that's odd.
His curiosity piqued, he continued to research the issue and paid close attention to the emergence of meth as a widespread drug in the eastern United States. Digging into the "who, what, when, where & why" opened up the broader issues of the role of the Mexican drug cartels, border smuggling, meth’s tragic impact on families and children, rural decline and local criminal syndicates and corruption. All of these elements find a home in the story of Breckenridge County.
Anyone paying attention knows this drug scourge is unlike anything the United States has faced before. The ingredients to make methamphetamine can be found around the house or purchased over the counter: starter fluid, paint thinner, freon, iodine, brake cleaner, drain opener, fertilizer, battery acid and cold tablets containing pseudoephedrine. Whereas other major narcotics are being grown and processed in isolated areas, meth producers and abusers are capable of cooking the drug in homes, garages, motel rooms, even while riding around on a bike. A small lab can produce up to five pounds of toxic waste, presenting a serious threat to the law enforcement officers who discover them and clean them up.
Andrew McNeill has extensively researched the vast assortment of issues surrounding the meth epidemic. He has spoken with narcotics officers and drug policy officials to get an up close perspective on the front lines of this slice of the "War on Drugs."
In his professional life, Andrew V. McNeill is a public policy and research services consultant in Louisville, KY. He was born and raised in Maysville, KY, a town of 8,000 located along the Ohio River.
