Editorial:Innocent children being exposed to P

The case in today's edition about two young children contaminated with methamphetamine through the actions of their P-dealing mother is appalling.

The mother, Yasmin Rose Patten, 25, appeared in Tauranga District Court this week and was jailed for two-and-half years on a raft of drug offences.

These types of cases are, unfortunately, all too common.

But what sets this one apart from the pack is scientific testing done on a hair sample from one child revealed he had traces of methamphetamine in his system.

Police believe the other child, a baby girl unable to be tested because her hair was not long enough, would be contaminated even more because she would have been with Patten almost round the clock.

A baby? A 5-year-old? Is anyone else as outraged as I am?

This is child abuse.

I wonder if Patten has always been so useless and selfish that she doesn't give a toss about her own kids, or was once a decent person now caught in the destructive grip of methamphetamine.

It is unclear exactly how her children became contaminated, but the drug can taint household items it comes into contact with and youngsters can ingest it as a result.

Children can also inhale P smoke if around adults smoking it.

The result? Health problems, including learning and brain function problems, and behavioural issues. Most children removed from P labs show evidence of exposure.

The Western Bay's methamphetamine problem doesn't stop with Patten.

Our special report on the drug in today's paper shows P use is rife in Tauranga.

One former user says it is passed around at parties like cigarettes, with white-collar workers among the offenders.

It is well documented that P is horrifically addictive and can consume people's lives. It can quickly turn normal, hard-working people who love their families into financially ruined animals.

I remember when the scourge of P first started gaining notoriety and publicity in this country.

A journalist I was working with at the New Zealand Herald told me he had come from talking with police experts who told him it was going to be the next big thing on the country's drug scene, and it was going to be bad.

That was over a decade ago and they were right. Today, this insidious drug is embedded in our society, with accusations authorities have been slow to act in previous years.

This makes me fear for the future of our children.

When I was at high school there was alcohol. But addictive class-A drugs? Never.

P is a potential risk every parent faces these days. The line between a son or daughter steering clear of it and getting hooked is paper thin. It may be as simple as who they are friends with.

Education, in the home and at school, is important, as are robust court sentences that reflect society's distaste for the drug.

Adults, even teenagers, get to choose whether they will try P. They get to make an informed choice most likely knowing they are opening a door to a dark, evil place.

Patten's kids didn't have a choice.

It is important this sorry excuse for a mother does not gain custody unless it is supervised and she has proved beyond doubt she has turned her back on drugs.