This document summarizes the issues surrounding methamphetamine contamination in homes in Indiana. It discusses a family who bought a home that had been used as a meth lab and how they and their children became sick after moving in. A new Indiana law now requires real estate agents to disclose if a home was previously used as a meth lab, to protect buyers. Cleaning up contamination can cost $5,000-$20,000, but some homeowners attempt to clean it themselves to save money. Indiana has ranked #1 for meth incidents reported to the FBI.

1. Meth?
features | biohazard remediation
Did a previous resident operate a meth-
amphetamine lab in your house, like some
would-be Walter White, the chemistry
teacher turned meth cook from the hit
TV show,“Breaking Bad”? Your immediate
answer might be“No!”But don’t discount
the possibility quite so fast.
DidYour Home have
Indiana Meth Law
Gives Homeowners,
Realtors New Tools
■ by James Figy
Photo by Eldon Lindsay

2. Mooresville homeowner Jennifer Nugent says she
and her husband, Chris, had no clue that the home
they bought in 2013 was contaminated by meth. She
says their first red flag came about two months later
while trying to apply sticky strips to the walls. “The
meth makes walls really mushy and so nothing will
stick to them,” she says.
Within about five months of moving in, the couple
and their three children started getting sick. “It started
off with like colds and digestive issues — diarrhea with
the baby — and stuff like that,” Jennifer says. “But then
it just got to a point where we couldn’t stay well.”
After tests confirmed high levels in the home, the
Nugents moved out in March 2014 and sued the seller,
Carpenter Realtors, and the home’s listing agent for
damages.That lawsuit remains
pending.The realty company
issued a statement to local media
that identified the listing agent
as the home seller’s mother, but
denied any knowledge of meth
contamination in the home.
Nugent says her family has
lost tens of thousands of dollars
as a result of the contamination,
and she’s not sure if they’ll ever
return to the house. “We wanted
[our children] to have a safe home.
Now, I feel like I put them in
harm’s way more so than I ever
could have just staying where we
were,” she says. “I regret moving
so bad.”
Through September 2014, Indiana
ranked first in an FBI report
of meth incidents, including
discovered laboratories, seizure
of materials and dumpsites.The
report lists 1,121 documented
incidents in
the state, which
amounts to 14.9
percent of inci-
dents nationwide.
A new state
law that went into
effect July 1, 2014,
requires real estate
professionals to
disclose to potential homebuyers
whether a meth lab was found in
the home, since exposure to the
contaminants can cause serious
respiratory and other health issues.
The law also requires Indiana
State Police to maintain a public
list of clandestine lab addresses at
meth.in.gov. Without remediation,
toxic residue and volatile organic
compounds can contaminate the
walls, air ducts and flooring years
after the cooks are gone.
The law benefits both potential
homebuyers and real estate agents,
says Claire Belby, communica-
tions director of the Metropolitan
Indianapolis Board of Realtors,
Signs of meth in a house
James
figy
“A million-
dollar home,
a cheap hotel
room, a shed
or the back
seat of a car —
meth contami-
nation could
be lurking
anywhere.”
Cleaning professionals often find scenes like this during meth lab and biohazard decontamination.
(Photos courtesy of Crisis Cleaning)
Indiana ranked
No. 1 in the
most recent FBI
report of meth-
amphetamine
incidents.
1#
1 2 3
New Law Brings
New Help
Look for exces-
sive garbage with
meth ingredients: cold
medicines (pseudo-
ephedrine), fertilizer and
industrial refrigerant
(anhydrous ammonia),
and matches (red
phosphorous).
If the home
is inhabited,
it may have boarded
up, blacked out or
constantly shuttered
windows. You may also
see excessive fencing
and exterior video
survelliance.
Technically,
according to
Indiana state law,
the amount of meth-
amphetamine or
pseudoephedrine
can’t exceed 0.5
micrograms in 100
square centimeters.@JAFigy

3. which helped state legislators
draft the bill.
Indiana law already requires
the seller to list meth contamina-
tion on the disclosure form, but
sometimes they don’t or don’t know
they need to, Belby says. “Realtors
are appreciative of the law and of
the registry because it gives them a
tool that they didn’t have,” she says.
When police raid a meth lab,
they notify the proper agencies,
including the Indiana Department
of Environmental Management, state
and local health departments and, if
necessary, the Department of Child
Services, according to Lori Kyle
more, and about 60 percent of her
company’s cleanups are in rental
homes, but not always. “We’ve had
meth in million-dollar homes,” she
says. “So it’s not a stereotype.”
Steven Mwaniki, sales associate
and remediation specialist at highly
rated Paul Davis Restoration &
Remodeling in Indianapolis and
Fort Wayne, says some companies
charge up to $20,000, depending
on the size of the house and
whether one cleaning takes care
of the problem.
Property owners who can’t
afford a remediation company
often want advice on how to do
the work themselves, Mwaniki
says. “These people are desperate
because they don’t have a lot of
money,” he says. “So I get a lot of
calls, asking, ‘How can I do this?’”
IDEM regulations allow prop-
erty owners to clean up, Endris
says, as long as a certified inspector
oversees the process. “Some of the
companies out there will not do
that because it’s still
their liability on the
line,” she says.
According to 1st
Sgt. Niki Crawford,
commander of the
ISP Meth Suppression
Section, in addition to
homes, meth cooks set
up in boats, cars, mobile homes,
campsites and motel rooms.
As for the Walter White
wannabes who cook meth to
support their families but person-
ally abstain from the substance,
Crawford says they don’t exist.
“The meth cooks that we have
in Indiana are not in it for the
money,” she says. “They’re in it
for the addiction.”B
Additional reporting by Jodie Kehoe
Rick Held of Crisis Cleaning shows how to
test and clean a Moorseville home previ-
ously used as a meth lab. (Photos by Eldon
Lindsay) These items are used to make meth.
(Photo courtesy of Indiana State Police)
“I regret moving
so bad.”
Endris, director of IDEM’s Drug
Lab Inspector Program.The property
owner then has 180 days to reme-
diate and test the property before
ISP adds it to the clandestine lab
list. Endris says the property owner
must hire an IDEM-certified service
provider to validate the property
as clean.
Donetta Held, certified inspector
and president of highly rated Crisis
Cleaning in Bloomfield, says her
company cleans at least one property
each week. Employees throw away all
possessions left behind and remove
carpet or other floor coverings, as
well as porous surfaces, such as
ceiling tiles. Next, they use a vacuum
with a HEPA filter, then clean all
surfaces with solvents. Lastly, the
Crisis Cleaning crew tests multiple
areas throughout the property.
Held says most of her jobs cost
about $5,000, but sometimes
Busting a meth lab
High cost of meth
contamination
Percent of
U.S. meth
incidents
that occur
in Indiana.
14.9%
Jennifer Nugent