Corvallis PoliceStreet Crimes Unit

Part IIIDrug Use and Drug-Related Crimes In Our Town

What You Can Do To Help PoliceDrug Tip Hotline 541-766-6272

A self-incriminating photo of a Corvallis drug user smoking crack. Street Crimes Detectives took this photo of a photo on the addictʼs computer. The photo was modified for this article to mask identification.

Just about every known illegal drug is available in Corvallis. You name it and somebody, somewhere in Corvallis, has it or can get it for you. The biggest players are marijuana and methamphetamine. By far, marijuana is the most prevalent. But, without doubt, methamphetamine is the worst offender. It is a true scourge.

Person crimes and property crimes weave all around the sale and use of illicit drugs. It is these side effects that bring harm and disrupt the peace of our community.

Each of us can fight back. All of us can help prevent crimes associated with drug trafficking and some of us can even help Corvallis Police identify and apprehend the criminals.

Supply

“The supply and availability of marijuana in Corvallis is so plentiful it is ridiculous.” Detective Lt. Dave Henslee, Corvallis Police.

A Corvallis drug dealerʼs proceeds and residual marijuana stash as found by Street Crimes Detectives.

There is no shortage of marijuana in Corvallis. It comes from a variety of sources including external suppliers, local illegal growers, and local growers licensed by the State of Oregon to legally grow marijuana.

According to Corvallis Police, it is quite common for individuals to grow one or two plants for their own use and to share among friends. Police also routinely find persons licensed to grow marijuana legally who are engaged in dispensing their product unlawfully. They do this by either giving it away, trading it, or selling it to persons other than those listed on their license.

Detectives from the Corvallis Street Crimes Unit have found illegal marijuana grows all across the City. They range in size from a few plants in a closet with a Gro-light to sophisticated operations taking up the entire house. The latter involve complex hydroponic, lighting, ventilation, and temperature control systems, and well-organized harvesting, packaging, and storage operations. For example, a recent case in Corvallis included over 200 plants in various stages of development, considerable dried product, and some $65,000 in cash.

One packet of many seized by Street Crimes Detectives during a raid, this one contains approximately $300 worth of crystal meth (2.99 grams gross weight).

Unlike the marijuana supply, the great majority of the methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, Ecstasy, other hard drugs, prescription pills, and hallucinogens found in Corvallis originate from other locations: heroin mostly from the Portland metro area and the

others from Portland as well as all over Oregon and California. Commonly, drugs get to Corvallis by locals going up to the Portland area to get a supply, sometimes a large quantity, and then sell smaller amounts in Corvallis. This is particularly true for heroin.

The other principal category of illegal drugs found in Corvallis is prescription medication that is possessed and used unlawfully. Though most pills come from around Portland as well as other locations, two significant local sources of these drugs are children pilfering from home and local prescription holders using their prescriptions unlawfully.

Drug Use

“The youngest marijuana user Iʼve encountered in Corvallis was 10, the youngest meth user, 13.” Corvallis Police Street Crimes Detective.

Drug use paraphernalia as found by Street Crimes Detectives during a raid in Corvallis.

There are many paths that lead drug users to their current drug(s) of choice and habits of use. Consequently, what follows in the next three paragraphs is generalized.

A common start to drug use is marijuana, known to law enforcement as the gateway drug. It is typical for people who use marijuana to start at age 15 or 16. Once the barrier is broken and teen experimentation with marijuana lowers inhibition, it is easier to try some other drug. The next step is often prescription medication, commonly Oxycontin. Following that comes Ecstasy, known on the street as Molly. And then itʼs cocaine, methamphetamine, and/or heroin. Some addicts prefer the high of heroin and use it exclusively while others choose the highs of meth, Ecstasy, and cocaine.

The most-used drugs among high school students in Corvallis are marijuana, prescription pills, and Ecstasy. Among OSU students the popular drugs are marijuana, prescription pills, cocaine, hallucinogens, and heroin. Rather than methamphetamine, they use Adderall, the pharmaceutical equivalent at a lower dose and higher purity.

One pathway that has repeated itself many times in Corvallis is the progression from teen use of marijuana to pills to Ecstasy and then either to meth or to heroin. For many teens, the positive aura of being medicine that comes with prescription pills eases the transition from marijuana to pills. “Itʼs clean. Itʼs medicine. It canʼt be that bad for me.”

Once hooked on pills, usually Oxycontin, to get high quicker, the habit turns from oral consumption to crushing and snorting and then to crushing and smoking the pills. But Oxycontin pills are expensive, costing $1.00/mg; an 80mg pill costs $80. And so comes the switch to heroin. It is notably cheaper and it gives a better and longer-lasting high.

Heroin spoon, scales, and paraphernalia found by Street Crimes Detectives during a raid in Corvallis.

The result in Corvallis has been the growth of a subculture of young heroin addicts. They start by smoking their heroin as they did with their pills, but soon realize a lot of their drug is lost in smoke so it isnʼt long before they are injecting themselves. There is also a population of older heroin users in Corvallis, but the two groups do not mix.

Because most users do not start with methamphetamine, meth users tend to be in their 20s or older and have - or soon will - drop out of mainstream society. Along with heroin addicts, these people cannot keep jobs so they turn to crime to support their habits.

Drug-Related Crime

“When we arrest and jail a person who uses drugs or who is involved in dealing drugs, we know we are preventing other crimes from occurring. Unfortunately, there is always someone ready to take their place.” Capt. Jon Sassaman, Corvallis Police.

A fully-loaded semi-automatic assault gun seized by Street Crimes Detectives during a raid in Corvallis.

Where there are drug deals and drug use, there are guns, violence, person crimes, and property crimes. These crimes and the cost of policing, prosecuting, and punishing them

impact all of us whether directly as victims or taxpayers or indirectly as negative factors in our quality of life.

On one hand, drug dealers perpetrate person crimes. They use guns, robberies, assaults, and other forms of violence (rape, forced prostitution) to intimidate, collect debts, keep others from stealing their money and drugs, and to try to avoid arrest.

On the other hand, drug addicts perpetrate property crimes. Because they canʼt hold jobs, they commit burglaries, thefts, and car prowls looking for items they can pawn, sell, or trade for drugs. These are the crimes that affect the most people in a community and have the greatest negative impact on the quality of life. As a group, drug users commit more crimes and occupy more police resources than any other category of criminal.

And then there are the abuse and neglect cases involving children living with addict parents or, more commonly, with a single parent and a live-in addict boyfriend or girlfriend. When meth and heroin addicts need a fix, the need for getting their drugs far exceeds any need for care children may have. And when they are high, child care is beyond their capability. Children in these situations are exposed to the drugs and breathe the smoke or ingest particulates that layer the furniture, dishes, and food. Detectives often find drugs left in the open on tables and night stands in easy reach of little hands. In addition, the houses are usually filthy and unfit for occupation.

What You Can Do

“Many cases have been made because of public involvement with tips and solid information.” Corvallis Police Street Crimes Detective.

One of the best ways to prevent crime is to inform yourself about what is going on in your community and to stay informed. Use that knowledge to stay alert to suspicious activity. Make the effort to build a good relationship with the Corvallis Police and call when you see or hear about something that is not right.

The Corvallis Police would much rather have you call and the situation turn out to be nothing than for you not to call and a crime be committed. Detectives look into all calls made to the drug hotline: 541-766-6272.

The most effective way to call in a tip or make a report is to give your name (at least your first name) and your contact information. You can still remain anonymous - just ask that you name not be used and your name will not be included in any police reports or records. But by giving your name and phone number police can get in touch with you to clarify points or ask questions about things you might not think important but in fact could be very helpful to an investigation.

Detectives clear a lot of big cases that start with something as simple as a marijuana possession charge. It is also common for detectives to solve numerous car prowls and burglaries and to recover stolen property by finding the links between what otherwise seem to have been independent events. So what you saw as one event may provide a crucial link. But if the detectives donʼt know how to get in touch with you, they canʼt ask the questions to uncover that link and the criminal remains at large, free to commit more crimes.

If you call to report a suspected drug house please provide as much specific information as possible. At a minimum, please give the exact street address and why you think it is a drug house. It would be very helpful if you can give license plate numbers of cars that stop by and the times of day when you notice activity.

Please understand that it takes time - sometimes many months - for police to build a case that they can successfully prosecute. Such cases involve more than meets the eye including staying within complex statutes and case law and obtaining direct evidence in the form of an undercover police drug buy.

If you call and give your name and contact information and want to know what ensued as a result of your tip, you can ask the detectives to keep you informed. Please understand, however, that they cannot give you specific details while the case is open.

Another way to keep yourself informed about crime in Corvallis is to monitor the Corvallis Police Departmentʼs CrimeReports website at www.ci.corvallis.or.us/police. The link is toward the bottom of the page. You can even sign up for alerts so that you will be notified automatically of police-related events that occur within an area of the City that you designate on a map.

You can also join or start a Neighborhood Watch group at home or enroll in Business Watch if you own a Corvallis business. Go to www.ci.corvallis.or.us/police > Neighborhood Watch or Business Watch for program information and how to proceed.

To learn all about the Corvallis Police Department and meet the officers and detectives who serve you, you can enroll in the Departmentʼs Cops and Robbers program. It is offered each spring. See www.ci.corvallis.or.us/police > Cops and Robbers. Photo Credits

All photos in the three parts of this article are courtesy of the Corvallis Police Street Crimes Unit.

References

Corvallis Police Department: Captain Jon Sassaman, Lieutenant Dave Henslee, Detective Brett Roach, and Street Crimes Unit Detectives.