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Maine Drug Alcohol Addiction Recovery and Treatment Programs and Centers
In Maine, marijuana is locally-produced and imported from Canada, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York and remains the main drug of abuse in the state. Still, the use and accessibility of cocaine, heroin, and diverted pharmaceuticals remain an issue. Methamphetamine continues to be a minor threat but law enforcement sources in the northeastern part of Aroostook County are still reporting the accessibility and abuse of Canadian-produced “Yaba” pills and “Enhanced Ecstasy” along the Canadian and American border. A substantial potential exists for methamphetamine production and distribution in the state. Interstate 95 provides an important north-south shipment route for smugglers traveling to supply sources in many northeastern Massachusetts cities. Maine’s 228 miles of coastline and 3,478 miles of shoreline provide substantial chances for traffickers.
Cocaine is accessible throughout Maine in fractional-ounce to kilogram amounts. Smugglers generally travel by automobile to meet cocaine suppliers, typically Dominican offenders based in Lawrence, Lowell, and Lynn, MA. Cocaine has been imported from Florida, New Jersey, and New York. The popularity of locally-cooked crack still continues to rise in southern and central Maine communities, with Portland and Lewiston being the major distribution areas for dealers.
Massachusetts-based Dominican smugglers are still the main suppliers of high quality heroin to the distributors in Maine. These distributors, who generally ship heroin in passenger vehicles, allow for a moderately rising accessibility of heroin in Maine. While heroin use is more dominant in southern communities, it is also found in coastal and Canadian-border areas and has expanded into rural and remote regions.
Abuse and accessibility of methamphetamine continues to be consistent in Aroostook County; this is proven by reports of “Yaba” and “Enhanced Ecstasy” apprehensions at the northernmost border points. Low-quality meth is express-mailed into Maine from California and states in the southwestern region. Smuggling groups supplying meth to Maine typically are linked to outlaw motorcycle clubs, and truck drivers are most frequently abusing the substance and apprehended at the borders with personal use amounts to assist them in staying awake on long haul journeys. Maine’s size and dominantly rural population create a perfect setting for meth manufacturing. Still, there have been no clandestine meth labs apprehended by the DEA in all of Maine since December 2005. Law-enforcement officials in South Maine are still encountering Ecstasy use, most frequently related to nightclubs, after-hour raves, private residences, and the student crowd. There has been suspected Canadian-produced “Enhanced Ecstasy”, which has been detected at the northern border. Substantial amounts of Ecstasy are shipped from Canada into New England through Maine, and are transported in automobiles, minivans, pickup trucks, and in some cases in tractor-trailers and commercial buses.
Marijuana, traditionally the illegal drug of choice in Maine, is abundant and easily accessible. Year-round indoor grows are frequent, but high-grade marijuana harvested in Canada is trafficked over the border. Commercial-grade marijuana is frequently attained from middlemen in New York and the southern New England states. Hashish is accessible intermittently in small amounts. However, the accessibility of marijuana by outlaw motorcycle gangs operating across the border in Canada may change Maine’s situation. Traffickers, every now and then, have transited hashish and hash oil through Maine and into Canada.
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