New Bedford Councillor Interested in Proposal for Statewide Drug Turn-In Program
Proposed legislation in the Massachusetts House would somewhat expand Gloucester's police department policy of not charging people who willfully turn in their drugs and paraphernalia.
The bill proposed by Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante of Gloucester would protect addicts seeking recovery from prosecution in hopes of encouraging them to get the help they need.
New Bedford City Councillor at Large Debora Coelho chairs the council's Committee on Public Safety. She says if it works for communities like Gloucester, it may work in New Bedford as well. "I don't know how successful they are. But they're having major success in obviously talking about the issue and trying to do something different. And I think New Bedford needs to seriously start talking about this growing issue and also start doing something," says Coelho.
There were at least two heroin overdoses in the city over the weekend, one of them fatal.
Coelho is exploring the possibility of a city ordinance that would force addicts into short-term treatment after so many times of receiving Narcan.