Addressing the root cause of the Heroin Epidemic

As I have been knocking on doors and visiting with voters over the past few months the number one question I get is “Why are you running?” I rarely have more than a few minutes to talk about the wide range of issues that I am focused on but during the conversation I always mention that I will be focused on reducing crime, improving education and rebuilding our economy because I believe those three are closely tied together. We must succeed at all three because we are seeing the results of failure of how to successfully address these issues. 

In this message, I wish to focus on Crime and specifically the rise of the Heroin epidemic on the Lower Shore. On a daily basis I see the cost of this epidemic, both monetarily and the human cost. The rise in burglaries, shoplifting, break-ins of personal vehicles and fraud is directly related to the increase of heroin on the Lower Shore. Nearly everyday there is an overdose in Wicomico County and once or twice a week we are seeing deaths as a result of heroine overdose. This is only going to get worse. 

The toll that it takes on families cannot be measured in monetary value alone. Children of addicts often get shuffled from place to place and are at such a disadvantage that invariably their lives often follow those of their parent(s) if they are not saved from the situation in time. This often results in grandparents and other family members raising the children of addicts and in some cases these children end up in foster care. 

So the question then becomes how do we address this issue? As you will notice I mentioned it is a Lower Shore issue. Though many of the crimes are being committed in Wicomico County, criminals and addicts do not know boundaries, neither should our solutions. 

Recently our State’s Attorney Matt Maciarello requested that the County allow him to create an additional position in the State’s Attorneys Office that would focus on addressing this issue with proven strategies taken from the High Point Initiative that were used in reducing violent crime in Wicomico County. The Council did not approve his request. 

We are at a frustrating stand still on addressing this issue. The police simply arrest addicts for stealing. The State’s Attorneys Office is simply prosecuting addicts. Probation and a little jail time is the most any ever see with very few of them receiving any real treatment for their addictions. We are all stuck in the cycle of this addiction because it is taxpayer resources paying for the same group of people to be arrested for petty crimes and the same group arresting the same people who then get prosecuted with judgement dispensed from the same group of people. 

Continually doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result is the definition of insanity. It is time we tried something different and something proven because we must have a different result. 

This problem must be attacked from multiple directions to effectively get results. Understand, this is a long term plan and we must make the commitment to see it through. 

First, implementing investigative strategies from the High Point Initiative to shut down the network of the flow of heroin will require a regional, multi-state task force with Maryland, Delaware and Virginia. I would first focus on a partnership between Wicomico, Worcester and Sussex Counties. 

Second, community partnerships with churches and civic organizations are a necessary part of this plan to implement one of the aspects of addictions treatment. Many of these organizations offer programs such as Celebrate Recovery (for adults), Life Hurts, God Heals (for youth), other family counseling programs and parenting programs. Partnering with the State’s Attorneys Offices, Parole and Probation and the courts, these programs can be much more successful if the individuals in them understand the consequences yet have an established support system such as a church or other civic organization. 

Third, we need to understand that some addictions are so severe that they will require in-patient treatment. The largest obstacle of course is cost and this where we reach out to businesses and other organizations for grants and donations. The Community Foundation has been very successful at raising funds for good causes and would certainly be an organization that we would ask to step up to the plate. 

Fourth, education is our key to prevention. We must work closely with the board of education in finding or developing curriculum that educates our children on the importance of making good life decisions. We should also educate our children on the consequences of a life of bad choices. We spend too much money on education in this county to allow so many children to fall through cracks. Though we can’t control what happens outside the school, we are obligated to do everything we can to give them the tools they need to make good choices in life. 

Fifth, we must focus on pro-growth strategies to retain and build up the business that are the pillar of our community. We must also focus on initiatives that create opportunities to attract manufacturing and technology jobs to our area. Unemployment rates directly affect crime rates, which in turn affect the property values of an area which in turn affect the quality of education in area. We must commit to building a strong and diverse economy. 

I certainly do not have the all the details of everything we need to do. However, all of us together have the knowledge, the ability and the resources to address our problems head on with solutions that require a deep and long term commitment to doing what is right for our county and our children.