Missoula law enforcement has had to deal with a number of high-speed chases recently, each of which involved a number of felony charges. Missoula County Deputy Attorney Jason Marks says that it appears meth use may be a common theme.

"It's actually been a fairly bad, I would say, two weeks really," Marks said. "In the last two weeks we've filed 27 new felony cases and have, counting what were going to be charging, we've had a total of four high-speed pursuits all involving drivers involved with, to one degree or another, methamphetamine."

Marks says the county attorney’s office is filing meth distribution charges against 25-year-old Amy Johnson, who was caught by police after she spun-out on I-90 after going up to 110 miles per hour and driving against the flow of traffic. When she was taken out of her vehicle, Marks says she still had a drug needle in her arm. Though the meth may end up in Missoula, Marks says it usually doesn’t begin here.

"I think the ultimate source, you know, its being is that it's largely being produced in Mexico because its so hard to get the ingredients necessary to produce it in such large quantities here in the U.S.," Marks said. "Then, it comes into Missoula from the west, through Spokane or the Tri-Cities or Seattle."

Other Montana cities are facing similar problems with meth. In late November, 33-year-old Lester Oxendine pled guilty to meth distribution, it is believed he sold over 40 pounds of meth in the Butte and Anaconda area.

More From KMPT-AM