PORT CLINTON - Many sheriffs throughout the area recently signed their names in opposition to Issue 3, a proposed amendment that would legalize marijuana and allow for 10 growing facilities within Ohio. The Buckeye State Sheriffs' Association's board of directors announced its opposition to the proposed amendment to the state's constitution and included the signatures of 21 sheriffs from counties throughout northwestern Ohio. Among those who signed was Ottawa County Sheriff Steve Levorchick, who has spent his entire life in or around law enforcement and said he considers the issue of marijuana to be tied in with drug use as a whole. [continues 484 words]
PORT CLINTON - Many have seen it, heard about it, or binge-watched it: "Breaking Bad," the ratings juggernaut of a TV show, tells tales of a chemistry teacher who teams with a former student to make and sell crystal meth. The popular show, whose final episode in 2013 drew 10.3 million viewers, is fiction, but the real world demand for meth is growing - and the number of arrests for meth-related crimes is on the rise in Sandusky County and Ohio. [continues 1587 words]
OTTAWA COUNTY - Ottawa County first responders have a new weapon in the war on drugs and combating drug-related deaths from opiates, and it comes in a tiny class vile. Every Ottawa County Sheriff's deputy will carry two doses of Narcan, the brand name for nasal naloxone, a new nasal spray used to prevent and reverse a drug overdose from opiates, including heroin and methadone. In the event of a subject overdosing, a deputy will administer the spray into the nasal passages, effectively closing the opiate receptors and breaking the high. [continues 336 words]
PORT CLINTON - In a Jan. 22 letter to Port Clinton City Council, Ottawa County Prosecutor Mark Mulligan urged members of council to give more to the drug task force in 2014 than the $10,000 that had been budgeted. In the past, the city has contributed $35,000 of the Ottawa County Drug Task Force's annual budget of about $275,000. Port Clinton Mayor Vince Leone provided a copy of a letter to township trustees and village officials, which he said was his response to Mulligan's request - which showed a majority of the cases were worked within the city limits. [continues 264 words]
Heroin conjures up images of junkies sharing needles in trash-strewn alleys. Powerful painkillers are clean and distributed legally by a network of doctors and pharmacies. That's the public perception. But there's a disconnect between perception and reality. Abusing painkillers can lead people to make the same decisions as heroin addicts, with sometimes fatal consequences. "They don't understand that people can develop addiction and dependence over a relatively short period of time," Dr. Robert Carlson, professor at the Boonshoft School of Medicine at Wright State University, said of the use of legal opiates. [continues 385 words]
Authorities pulled $221,000 worth of marijuana plants grown in rural and agricultural areas across Ottawa County, the largest seizure in recent years, a drug task force agent said. The Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation and Ottawa County Drug Task Force used a helicopter to spot the plants during the annual Marijuana Eradication program. A ground crew of agents then pushed through weeds and cornfields to dig up the plants. Each plant is worth an estimated $1,000 a piece and could yield two pounds of marijuana, said Don St. Clair, Ottawa County Drug Task Force agent. [continues 163 words]
Since its beginning 18 years ago, the Red Ribbon Week, which is being observed at this time, has touched the lives of millions of people. The observation began after the murder of Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, a Drug Enforcement agent assigned to a case in Mexico. Angered by the brutal murder and the destruction caused by substance abuse in America, the young people of his hometown of Calexico, Calif., began wearing red ribbons. The National Family Partnership and its affiliated organizations soon picked up on the movement and began to wear red ribbons as a symbol of their commitment to fight the illegal use of drugs. That symbol remains today as millions don the red ribbon to show their support for substance abuse prevention. [continues 346 words]
