Get creative to solve drug epidemic
That the heroin epidemic has reached dramatic proportions and is responsible for a number of crimes in our area is not new information. However, a bank robbery last week in Peters Township led to the arrest of a man who told police that his 30-75-bag-per-day heroin habit led him to not only rob the cfsbank branch on E. McMurray Road, but the First Commonwealth Bank in Castle Shannon and the Tylerdale branch of Washington Financial bank.
According to police, John Davis Manning said that he never threatened violence during the robberies, and that he knew what he was doing was wrong, but was spurred on by his addiction.
With a habit that serious, petty theft crimes wouldn’t have given Manning enough cash to purchase the amount of drugs that he needed.
Yes, we all know that heroin is a problem, and that those in its grip often turn to crime to support their habit. But what is the answer here? Recently, Canonsburg police underwent training to use Narcan, an opiate overdose antidote. Canonsburg police Chief Alex Coghill noted that arrest and prosecution doesn’t help someone get clean.
If you pay close attention, you will notice sometimes that the same names that you see in the police beat for narcotics possession or theft will later show up in the obituaries. It’s a violent, horrible cycle that doesn’t seem to be getting better in our communities. In fact, it might even be getting worse.
While Manning serves his jail time, we can only hope that he will rehabilitate from his drug problem, so that, when he gets out of jail, he doesn’t go back to the same life and repeat the cycle.
In Massachusetts, a police chief has begun an initiative that allows addicts to walk into the police station – with or without drugs on them – and be assigned an “angel” to walk them through the recovery process. No arrests, no questions asked. The plan is only weeks old, so it is too soon to tell if it will be successful.
But, more police departments and communities should take note, and get creative in the war on drugs if they want to win it.