SAN DIEGO -- New numbers show the San Diego city attorney’s office is handling more methamphetamine related cases.
According to information provided to Team 10 the City Attorney’s Office received approximately 6,319 “Methamphetamine related” cases in 2015-2016.
The city attorney’s office says those are charges that include things like possession of drug paraphernalia, driving under the influence of drugs and under the influence of a controlled substance.
The numbers show the office handled 3,123 cases in 2015 and 3,196 in 2016.
The office says they also issued 3,431 Violations of Health and Safety code 11377(a), which generally involves Methamphetamine possession during this same time period.
The numbers come as San Diego County continues to deal a growing meth problem.
According to SANDAG, in 2015, 49% of adult arrestees –arrested for any charge --tested positive for methamphetamine, an all-time high since SANDAG began tracking this data more than two decades ago.
Deaths linked to meth are also at a record high in San Diego County. From 2008 to 2014, the number of people in the region who died due to meth increased by 90% – from 140 in 2008 to 262 in 2014. Officials say that number jumped to 311 in 2015.
Residents throughout the county are urged to report meth-related crimes or seek information about treatment options by calling 1-877-NO-2-METH (1-877-662-6384). You can also reach out by going online.
