Tuesday, May 01, 2001

It’s the first time someone in Minnesota has been charged with murder in connection with a meth lab incident.

An Austin man, Troy Alan Meyer, now faces murder charges in connection with the death of a man who was burned in a flash fire at an Austin home and subsequently died. Police say that the suspects saw a police car in the alley behind their home and panicked, pouring flammable liquids down a basement drain. The action resulted in a blast of fire that caused the injuries. James Erick Chilson died at Regions Hospital in St. Paul as a result of burns.

Never before has someone been charged in Minnesota courts with murder in connection with a meth lab incident. The only such incident in memory occurred four years ago in Missouri.

The Minnesota attorney general’s office is lending a hand to the Mower County attorney’s office in connection with the case. The state office keeps an eye on meth cases in Minnesota and lends a hand to local prosecutors in an attempt to get convictions. The state’s aggressiveness with such cases is a good thing.

Eyes will be on the Mower County Courthouse when this case comes to trial. Surely, it will set the precedent across the state should similar incidents occur.

Meth is a bad drug and it kills in more ways than one. Aggressive prosecution is needed to tackle this menace.