Editor’s note: Over the next two weeks, the Gazette launches an in-depth look at the county’s opioid epidemic, what is being done to address it and resources available to those impacted by it. This community health crisis will remain a focus of ongoing coverage.
BELLEFONTE — Sixty-eight people died in Centre County of drug-related causes from 2013 through 2016, Centre County coroner Scott Sayers reported.
Thirteen deaths occurred in 2013 and there were 17 in both 2014 and 2015. Last year, 21 deaths were attributed to the abuse of illegal or controlled substances.
“Those numbers show we are right in the middle of an epidemic,” said Gene Lauri, Centre County’s criminal justice planner.
“And, it doesn’t look like the deaths will slow down any time soon. In fact, I’m thinking things are just going to get worse.”
And, early in 2017, things have gotten worse. According to Sayers, through the first two months of this year, five Centre County deaths were attributed to drug overdoses — setting a grim pace to exceed last year’s count.
“The drugs are getting stronger and more potent, and with that, comes more death,” said the county’s top prosecutor, District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller.
“I’ve seen firsthand how the drugs are changing, and they aren’t changing for the better. Things are getting worse out there, and we’re doing all we can to curb it. It’s just getting way too out of control.”
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FROM ‘BATH SALTS’ TO HEROIN
Although people have been using narcotic-based medicine to treat chronic pain for decades, Parks Miller said she began seeing the devastating effects of addiction to these types of medicines shortly after the Centre Region was able to remove a drug known as “bath salts” from local store shelves.
“Bath salts were really big here in 2011 and 2012,” said Parks Miller. “We had three head shops in town here and people were coming from all over the central part of the state because they knew they could get the drugs here, and it was a cheap high.”
She said bath salts are synthetic recreational designer drugs made from cathinones. Users ingest the white powder, granules or crystals to get a high similar to a stimulant, such as cocaine, mixed with a hallucinogenic, such as LSD. The effects make users very unpredictable and a danger to themselves, as well as those around them.
“At the time, bath salts were our epidemic,” said Parks Miller. “They weren’t regulated at all and were readily available to just about anyone who wanted to get them. And, they did. A lot of packages of bath salts were sold here in Centre County.”
As the problem continued to build, the District Attorney’s Office took action, and secured an injunction from the Centre County Court of Common Pleas stopping the sale of bath salts in local stores. Eventually, the state government followed suit, banning the substances from being sold in the commonwealth.
“But once we got rid of the bath salts, that’s when we started noticing the rise in the use of the pain pills and prescription medication,” said Parks Miller.
“It started slowly, but picked up momentum quick. I don’t think many people realized it at first, but we realized it was going to be a big problem. We knew it was going to turn into an epidemic.”
And, it wasn’t just the “stereotypical” drug users that were getting hooked on the pain killers.
“We had soccer moms who had to go to the dentist for some procedure and they were prescribed these pain medications to help with the discomfort,” said Parks Miller, noting prescription medication such as Oxycontin, hydrocodone, Vicodin and morphine. “Then, they would get addicted. These are powerful drugs and people get hooked rather quickly.”
As the medical community began to realize the dangers associated with the prescription pain medications, measures were put in place to put greater restrictions on just who does get the medicine, and in what quantities. These new regulations forced addicts to look for an alternative, and drug dealers were ready, offering powdered heroin at its cheapest prices ever.
“The prices for heroin dropped dramatically,” said Parks Miller. “Now, addicts had a cheap way to get their high. Unfortunately, that cheap high could also come with a high price.”
‘DANGEROUS GAME OF ROULETTE’
She said dealers began to “cut” their product — adding similar agents in texture and color — to maximize profits. She said dealers would cut everything from baking powder to baby laxatives into the drugs to make the product expand.
“This started causing more problems because people didn’t know what they were buying,” said Parks Miller. “A lot of bad things have been cut into the heroin here in Centre County. It’s a dangerous game of roulette.”
She said the addiction is progressive. Most addicts start by taking pills orally, but when their systems begin to build an immunity to this rather slow way for the body to absorb the drugs, they begin snorting the pills for a quicker rush.
“After a while, they don’t get the same high as when they first used the drug, and that’s how all addicts want to feel again,” said Parks Miller. “They then have to resort to injecting it to get that high.”
Parks Miller said an overdose can happen at any time.
“The thing about it is that you just don’t know when you are going to get a bad hit,” said Parks Miller.
She said users will continue to chase that “ultimate high” and move on to more dangerous drugs.
The current rage in the drug community is Fentanyl, she said, which can be administered through a time-release patch patients adhere to their body.
“We had a case right here in Bellefonte, an armed robbery,” Parks Miller said. “The man was so sick and he needed the Fentanyl so badly that the in-store cameras caught him running out of the store eating the patches.”
She said law enforcement authorities were recently made aware of a new drug that has killed people in Ohio, and late last year, Pennsylvania had its second known and confirmed death from the use of carfentanil.
“Carfentanil, or carfentanyl, is a synthetic opioid that is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl, which itself is 50 times more potent than heroin,” said Parks Miller. “It was developed to be used as a tranquilizer on large animals, such as elephants.”
She said the drug is so potent that even touching a few grains of the substance to the skin could result in death.
“We’re really worried for our emergency responders,” she said. “If they would breathe this stuff in or even just touch it, it could kill them. That’s scary.”
Parks Miller said the drug has not yet made its way into Centre County; however, she said it may just be a matter of time until it does.
“It’s hard to even try to imagine what kind of things will be coming into our community in the future,” she said. “The law enforcement community has its hands full enough already.”
CRIMINAL CASELOAD ON RISE
Since 2013, Parks Miller said the criminal caseload has exploded and illegal substance abuse is to blame.
“Sure, we have a lot of possession and distribution cases go across our desks,” she said. “But, what people aren’t seeing are all the crimes that take place because of drugs. I’m talking about the robberies and burglaries. The assault and harassment cases. I’d say 90 percent of the criminal cases that go through our courtrooms are drug-related in some form or another.”
Lauri and Parks Miller said the county will continue to target drug dealers in an attempt to get as much of the illegal substances off the street as possible. However, both agreed the epidemic has grown beyond the criminal aspect, and, with so many deaths, turned into much more of a social problem.
A SOCIAL PROBLEM
“Yes, we need to get the dealers off the streets,” Lauri said. “And, yes, we need to get the addicts into programs that will get them the help they need. But, we also need to stay vigilant and come up with new and innovative ways to combat this problem.
“It’s already gotten out of hand and now we have to do something about it. We can’t just sit back and watch our people die.”
Lauri said Centre County has an active drug task force that aggressively battles drug distribution and use in the county. He said this dedicated team relies on information received from suspects under arrest, as well as tips from the public.
“(The task force) can’t be everywhere all the time, so it’s important that if you know of any drug activity happening close to you, you need to report it,” said Lauri. “The task force follows up on all tips received, even the anonymous ones.
“To beat this community problem, we need the help of the community. If we all work together, we can save many, many lives. That’s our number one goal.”
Those who may suspect any drug or other criminal activity occurring in their neighborhood are encouraged to contact Centre County Crimestoppers at (877) 99-CRIME.
Drug-related deaths in Centre County
2013: 13
2014: 17
2015: 17
2016: 21
2017: 5 (through February)
Source: Centre County Coroner’s Office
