Pubdate: Wed, 10 Feb 2016 Source: Orange County Register, The (CA) Copyright: 2016 The Orange County Register Contact: http://www.ocregister.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/321 Author: Art Marroquin POLICE WILL HELP ADDICTS RECOVER ANAHEIM Drug addicts who are ready to kick their habit soon will be urged to seek out help from an unconventional new ally: the Police Department. Mayor Tom Tait on Tuesday announced what he calls "Drug Free Anaheim," aimed at encouraging chronic drug users to walk into a police station in Orange County's most populous city and ask for help in exchange for a free ride to a rehabilitation center. Anaheim appears to be the first California city to adopt the tactic, which Tait said puts the city's focus on helping users recover - rather than jailing them - while allowing police to enforce drug laws. "From now on, drug addicts will be encouraged to come in and ask for help," Tait told more than 800 people gathered for his State of the City address at the City National Grove of Anaheim. "We will seek alternatives to prosecution and incarceration first." Police Chief Raul Quezada is working out details on how to implement the plan. Tait said the policy shift dovetails with the "kindness initiative" that he started nearly four years ago and which this past year involved bringing the Dalai Lama to his city. Quezada compared it to how his officers deal with youths who commit minor crimes: by offering them the option of completing community service rather than being hauled away in handcuffs. "It's pretty huge for someone who uses narcotics to come into the Police Department's doors and say that they want help," Quezada said. "We want to help them." The approach, while unique to California, is based on one launched in June by police in Gloucester, Mass. More than 400 addicts have taken part in that city's Angel Program, which promises no charges or jail time if they seek help from police. Since Gloucester's program launched, more than 50 police departments in 19 states have adopted similar programs, helping more than 500 additional people, said John Guilfoil, a spokesman for the Gloucester Police Department. The program's success rate is still being studied. "This focuses on turning a drug addiction into a health care issue," Guilfoil said. "Police are not responding with handcuffs, but by getting people the help that they need." Anaheim City Councilwoman Kris Murray said Drug Free Anaheim could lead to a decrease in petty theft, vehicle break-ins and other crimes that some addicts commit as a way to pay for drugs. "It's far less costly to the community and taxpayers if we can help people recover from their addictions than to deal with the petty crimes that support their addiction," Murray said. Anaheim has more than 10 times the population of Gloucester, so the program will be adjusted, Quezada said. Addicts wanted for other crimes, or those who show up at the police station intoxicated , will be arrested. Otherwise, people who want to get sober will be assisted by officers and representatives from CityNet, a Long Beach organization that connects homeless people to social services. The agency plans to renegotiate its $12,500 monthly contract with Anaheim, allowing it to link addicts with treatment centers in Orange County, said Gigi Zanganeh, CityNet's director of residential and outreach services. Assistance from a community organization like CityNet would help allay an addict's distrust of police, said Elliott Currie, a professor at UC Irvine's Department of Criminology, Law and Society. "Getting them to think the police is potentially their helper rather than their punisher will take some work," Currie said. "You want to make sure they trust the process and that they won't get busted." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom