With deaths from drug overdoses surpassing traffic accidents as the No. 1 accidental killer of Americans, a group of community stakeholders Wednesday stressed that a different approach to fighting the problem has to be taken.
Springfield Police Chief Kenny Winslow said that the approach needs to be multi-faceted in dealing with the abuse of heroin and other opiates to focus on ensuring that nonviolent offenders get access to the care they need while keeping violent drug offenders behind bars.
From the law enforcement perspective, usually the only options for dealing with nonviolent addicts are emergency care or jail, Winslow said.
Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser said criminal justice reform with regards to opioid abuse should focus on identifying offenders within the system because of drug addiction and determining what resources can be used to ensure these individuals get adequate treatment, which will reduce recidivism rates.
The two were part of a forum at the Sangamon County Complex in Springfield hosted by U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Peoria, who summoned together law enforcement officers, medical professionals, treatment providers and local government officials to discuss efforts to stop addictions and deaths from these powerful drugs.
“Eighty people a day die from drug overdoses," LaHood said, "and there is a direct correlation between overprescribing of opioids and the addiction to heroin.”
The central Illinois congressman noted that legislation has been passed in the U.S. Senate to target opioid and heroin abuse and will be debated in the House for the next two weeks, along with about eight other related bills.
“Too many times, the federal government has a one-size-fits-all approach, and I think the good thing about having an open, transparent process with these eight different bills is we’re going to try to get a consensus.” LaHood said. “My district is much different than the district in inner-city New York or San Francisco, and so hearing from rural and urban folks in my district this week was very helpful to me to look at what we can do in central Illinois to stem this epidemic.”
The Senate legislation that passed would allocate roughly $600 million for addiction services, which LaHood said could be used to fund efforts such as broader distribution of Narcan, a drug that can be administered by emergency personnel to reverse the effects of a drug overdose.
LaHood, a former prosecutor, said that drug courts can be a successful method to treat nonviolent offenders so long there is adequate funding for counseling, treatment and other resources.
Drug courts are specialized, problem-solving courts that help non-violent abusers complete treatment programs and become productive citizens.
“Where resources are spent in the proper way for counseling and rehabilitation, there is a direct correlation to successfully having people complete drug court and having those resources to get them the help they need,” LaHood said. “With addiction services, from my perspective, it’s money well spent that is going save taxpayer money in the long run if we’re not using police officers or the court system to take that up.”
