Discussion of Hwy 200 role in drug trafficking dominates April Government Day meeting

During the April 2 Lincoln Government Day meeting, Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton provided a stark reminder about Highway 200's role as an east-west drug trafficking route.

Following updates from both Lincoln resident Deputy Sheriff Robert Rivera and Dutton, Jim McCormick referred to Gov. Greg Gianforte's interview with Fox and Friends earlier in the day. In the interview commented on the situation at the southern border and voiced concerns about methamphetamine produced by Mexican cartels making its way to Montana.

"My mind goes straight to Highway 200 and the Lincoln area," McCormick said. "I know it's been an issue in the past, that corridor is watched." He asked Dutton if there were any connection between the drug trade and any break-ins in the area.

The question prompted Dutton to dive a bit deeper into the issue, in light of the spin national media outlets put on similar comments made by Sen. Steve Daines during a visit to the southern border. At a Friday, March 26 press conference, Daines noted the cartels are making and distributing a much higher grade of methamphetamine than the low quality "homegrown" meth Montana saw in the late 90s and early 2000's. National media outlets ridiculed his remarks, implying he was nostalgic for American or Montana-made meth, but Dutton found the mockery perplexing.

"He's right on the money," he said. "I don't know why they're making fun of him. Right now, I'm the vice president of the Western States Sheriff's Association. That's a 17 state membership and we are having sheriffs from the southern border beg and plead with us for help. They're asking for task forces; they're asking for all kinds of help because they're being overrun."

He said a major north-south pipeline for cartel meth is Interstate 15, which runs through Butte, Helena and Great Falls.

Lewis and Clark County has been part of the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area for 20 years. "That allows us to work with some federal agencies. We can get help, we can get intel analysts, we can reach across state borders and sometimes international borders."

"Another major pipeline from east to west is Highway 200," Dutton said. He said they know there are people moving through the area with drugs in their vehicles.

He said they try to have people up here, and have brought in task forces, but he said it's a lot like hunting elk or fishing. "Either they're there or they're not. You can get the best intel in the world, but druggers don't live on a schedule. They live on impulse."

Meth isn't the only drug being trafficked through the area.

"It's a huge amount of meth that comes across the border, and now fentanyl. They are recovering pills...that are laced with other drugs. An overdose of fentanyl will give you immediate respiratory arrest. It's quick to work on the respiratory system. That's why we've had to go with the ... nasal injected Narcan."

In terms of local break ins, Dutton said drug trafficking does lead to some of them.

"Some break-ins are random. They're just moving through, and they'll take a country road. They'll move into an area where, generally, country people have guns and country people work, so they're likely to be gone," he said. "They're just trying to find money, guns or drugs if you have them, pills. And the reverence for life is not there. So, it does have an effect on Lincoln. It does have an effect on the area.

"It's something most deputies do try to focus on in between the normal, regular call volumes," Rivera said. He added that burglaries and thefts in the Lincoln, Augusta and Wolf Creek areas have actually been down in the last year, probably due to quarantines and lockdowns.

Traffic stops, on the other hand, have been increasing. "We're adding 40 plus traffic stops a quarter since 2018. In 2019 we shot up to about 100 each quarter. We're out there, we're trying. We're stopping people. It's like the sheriff said, it's like fishing. You have to be there at the right time, at the tight place, to catch these guys."

Given that Highway 200 is a known trafficking route, Dutton said having a Highway Patrol Trooper stationed full time in Lincoln should be paramount but hasn't yet had the chance yet to discuss it with the new Attorney General Austin Knudsen or MHP Col. Steve Lavin, who took over leadership of the agency in January.

"I know around the state, because I'm a board member of the Montana Sheriff s and Peace Officers Association, a substantial amount of sheriffs ask for a resident highway patrolman," he said. "Sometimes they don't have them."

In addition to the drug trafficking issue, he believes having a local trooper here would not only allow them to respond quickly but would build necessary relationships in the community. "You get to know your deputy, you get to know your highway patrolman, you get to know if you can trust them. That's part of leadership, establishing the trust, (demonstrating) that we are there, that you can believe in the justice system," he said. "Having somebody move in and out who you have very little interaction with doesn't bode well for the community."

For the time being, Rivera's report at the start of the meeting indicated there hasn't been anything too big happening in the Lincoln area, although he said there are going to be changes happening in Helena, with the hiring of several new deputies.

"That's going to be happening over the summer, which means we're going to really need to have reserves up here to help us with all the events going on. As usual we'll take care of that," he said. "There's nothing urgent or anything the public needs to worry about, "It's starting to pick up a little bit now that it's starting to get a little bit nicer out."

Public Works

Apart from law enforcement, Public Works Director Eric Griffin shared updates from Road and Bridge Superintendent Kevin Horne, who said they have been busy thawing culverts and tidying up bridge ends.

They are anticipating repairs due to the high number of frost heave and plan to start grading in Lincoln as soon as conditions allow. Sweeping may begin during the week of 26 April depending on the weather. Dalton Mountain Road Bridge replacement is still on track, in the design phase with MDT, and work on a new Poorman Creek bridge near McClellan G ulch should start in June or July. Horne asked that Lincoln drivers obey the weight restrictions on area roads, so they aren't broken up more than they need be.

Griffin said Public Works plans to schedule the first community discussion on chip sealing the street in the towns two Rural Improvement Districts for the June Government Day meeting.

FAA Cameras

Bob Frank-Plumlee with the Lincoln Airport Foundation also reported that the Lincoln Airport became the first in the state to receive four Aviation weather cameras from the Federal Aviation Administration. He said the only other state in the lower 48 to have such cameras is Colorado. The cameras can be viewed at avcams.faa.gov.

Future meetings

For the past few months, the Lincoln Government Day meetings have been held via Zoom, but this month's April 2 meeting should mark the final virtual meeting as County Commissioners are planning to return to Lincoln in May to resume live monthly meetings.

May's meeting will likely return to Lincoln Fire's Station 4, across Stemple Pass road from Citizens' Alliance bank, to take advantage of the additional space for social distancing. Commission Chair Andy Hunthausen said they "hope to eventually be back in the Library before too long."