Where has Burkhalter’s promise to rid our hometown of this poison gone? I once had great admiration and respect for him, but the plague is still running rampant through the streets of Rome. When is he going to follow through with his campaign promise and rid the town of it? More than one of my loved ones are sitting in jail right now due to this drug that is still rampaging through the lives of so many who are still so very young and so naive to the dangers it brings with it. Responses are most anticipated.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Sheriff must keep his meth pledge
Jun 01, 2012 | 4709 views | 35 
| 7 
| 
| 
| 7 | | Where has Burkhalter’s promise to rid our hometown of this poison gone? I once had great admiration and respect for him, but the plague is still running rampant through the streets of Rome. When is he going to follow through with his campaign promise and rid the town of it? More than one of my loved ones are sitting in jail right now due to this drug that is still rampaging through the lives of so many who are still so very young and so naive to the dangers it brings with it. Responses are most anticipated.
Postings are not edited and are the responsibility of the author. You agree not to post comments that are abusive, threatening or obscene. Postings may be removed at our discretion.
Careful. Your ignorance is showing. You want something said publicly, loudly, and honestly? Here you go:
You would be correct about judges placing more people on probation than in prison. Where you are wrong is that probation fines and fees go to the state on all felony cases. Meth is a felony.
The county's budget has been slashed to include: not hiring officers, not buying police cars, yet you propose creating a "Meth Posse."
You also propose giving the maximum penalties possible, while these maximum possibilities have just been drastically reduced by Georgia's legislature via sentencing reform, which limits the judges and ties their hands. Apparently, in the short term, it is cheaper to put somebody on probation than send them to prison.
Until the global and national economy, unemployment, and overall moral fiber of this state and country improve, you should not get your hopes up too high. It is absolutely impossible to fight a war on drugs with no manpower, tools, or teeth in the law.
In addition, it has been my experience that people of this community speak out of both sides of their mouth. On one side, you speak "get tough on crime, increase enforcement and police presence"; yet, when this happens, from the other side of your mouth, you murmur and cry foul about increased traffic enforcement, over-zealous practices, and whine like a scalded dog when YOUR requested increased enforcement hits too close to home.
In your previous post, you blame local police "storm trooper tactics" and "bully tactics."
If you ever truly decide which side of your mouth you truly side with, and are brave enough to step outside your veil of protection, you can hold the proper people accountable by contacting your elected representatives in the Georgia legislature.
Until you take the time to educate yourself on the issues, consider all of your credibility to have just been revoked.
surely you understand that they are responsible for their own actions! the sheriff has nothing to do with these meth heads going somewhere getting this crap and bringing it to rome to snork and smoke.
this is absurd.
i have heard it all now.....
In 2011 CHAMPS did 56 classes in this community. Thats just shy of 5 per month and a little more than once per week. The sherriffs department also conducting 12 drug awareness classes in 2011 independent of the CHAMPS program.
Burkhalter has said many times that incarceration is not the cure for the meth problem, and that education is. He has been working dilligently to educate the community on the dangers of meth.
Everyone in this community knows what meth will do and how awful it is. Many of these people know because of Burkhalter's education programs.
Unfortunately with all of the information available about how horrible the drug is, people still use. You can't put that on the sherriff.
I have witnessed this first hand
I have seen the "real life" of a "meth head". My wife and I, at age 18/20, adopted our 3 year old neice. My wife's oldest sister was on the Jenny Crack Diet and left the child to whomever would take her. 26 months of DFCS court dates, home visits and intrusion into our lives to make it final. It took 7 years, probation for meth charges in Floyd, Bartow, Gordon and Whitfield counties multiple failed drug tests while on probation before she finally had to do time. She's been in for 2.5 years now....and cries that she wished she could have spent 2 years in prison, 9 years ago. First offender charges only enabled her to keep going. We need to BUST their $_*()$%_)&%$ on the first charge, so hard they won't even THINK about trying that crap again.
GROW A SPINE PEOPLE..we have to get tough on this issue. I don't want to hear this "addiction" crap. You weren't addicted to meth the first time you tried it! What's your excuse for that one?
I'm going to go take a BP pill now!
Sheriff Burkhalter, look at Arpaio's margin of victory in the last election. Follow his lead, and you'll follow his success.
The above statement and comments below stand in stark contrast to the ACTUAL government philosophy held by the courts, the state and law enforcement concerning drug control policies. In fact, all of those policies and strategies hinge on the idea that it IS up to them to control and stop the production, distribution and use of illegal substances.
Do I agree that it is the government's job to keep people clean? Absolutely NOT. I think it's a colossal waste of money. I believe in being held accountable for your own actions. But this is not about what I BELIEVE or THINK to be true, it's about the REALITY of drug control policy in the U.S.
The government MAKES it their responsibility when they declare a War on Drugs, and local officials like Sheriff Burkhalter MAKE it their problem when they involve themselves by making pledges to our community, and creating programs with our money.
A simple google search for "Sheriff Tim Burkhalter meth," reading RNT archived articles, or researching his policies and programs (GANG/METH Awareness, C.H.A.M.P.S, Parent/Teacher Methamphetamine Education Program) shows that Sheriff Burkhalter has obviously made the subject of meth use, prevention, education and family support groups an active priority not only during his campaigning, but during his time serving as sheriff, as well.
http://romenews-tribune.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Floyd County agencies work with families to fight meth- &id=3268617-Floyd County agencies work with families to fight meth-&instance=lead_story_left_column
http://www.floydsheriff.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/2011-ANNUAL-REPORT.pdf
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/ondcp/2012_ndcs.pdf -Educate yourselves on the reality of our country's drug control policy.
I was by no means saying that his efforts and programs have been effective or successful, just presenting proof that he has made it a priority, if not the focus, of his time as Sheriff.
Of course if you can show me where Tim Burkhalter, or any other elected official or politician in Floyd County, has promised to rid Floyd County of the meth problem......I will issue you a public apology in a venue of your choosing.
In addition, I blame Sheriff Burkhalter for not doing anything about all the fast food resturaunts in Floyd County. He is the reason for the obesity problem in Floyd County as well.
I hope the more sane citizens of this county, unlike the author of this editorial, find the humor in my post.
I wish your daughter the best of luck in fignting her addiction, and you the best of luck in making through all ten steps of the program. Thequicker you move out of the first stage (denial) the quicker you can move on to step 2 (the acceptance stage. Good luck with that process.
None of your family is being "swept up" in the meth problem. They choose to join voluntarily. Surely none of them started using meth thinking it was a reasonable decision that would make their life better.