With nearly four opioid-related deaths per week, Washington, D.C. is facing its greatest public health emergency since the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s. I know this to be true because I lived through it as a narcotics detective with the Metropolitan Police Department. I’ve witnessed firsthand the devastating effects that a drug crisis can have on our city. But this round of the epidemic is unlike anything I’ve ever seen.
From New England to the Pacific Northwest, communities across the nation are searching for solutions. Policymakers are racing to pass new legislation. Community health centers are introducing new programs. Schools and churches are investing in tools that can support those in need.
But there’s something critical missing in our response: resources for police and first responders who are, in many ways, on the front lines of the epidemic.
If we want to effectively end this public health emergency, we must invest in first responders and that means increasing resources for local police. We know arrests won’t get us out of the country’s opioid problem, but they are an important and often overlooked part of intervention. Often times, an arrest is the wake-up call an individual needs to seek help. In many cases, families and friends are not even aware there’s a problem until the police show up. And yet, across our region, police chiefs with already tight budgets are finding themselves on the frontlines of a crisis they can’t keep up with.
I launched Code 3 in 2015 with a vision to care for cops and the communities they serve. We work to unite police and citizens in addressing local challenges and in the wake of the national opioid crisis, we’ve become increasingly focused on educating local police and communities about the scope of the problem, equipping them with the resources they need, and empowering them to intervene before it’s too late.
Last month, we hosted our first-ever drug diversion training at the Daniel Morgan Graduate School of National Security to help regional police identify and target illegal prescribers of prescription opioids. We’re also planning educational trainings to teach our communities – including parents and educators – how to identify and address the signs of opioid addiction so they are able to intervene if and when they’re needed most.
Ultimately, we believe the response to the opioid crisis must be multi-faceted and long-term. No single approach will be effective. But we also know that when police and communities work together, positive change can and does happen in our neighborhoods.
We’re doing our part to ensure that police in our region are ready and prepared to be agents of that change, because we simply can’t afford to wait.
Dale Sutherland is the President and Founder of DC-based nonprofit Code 3, and a 25-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department. He is also associate senior pastor at McLean Bible Church in Vienna, Virginia.
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