Queens DA Richard Brown (second from r.), along with members of his Detectives Bureau, display a Naloxone kit, a drug overdose antidote. Brown had all of his detectives issued Naloxone kits and trained in their use by the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Photo Courtesy of the Queens DA’s Office
Members of the District Attorney’s Detective Bureau have been equipped and fully trained to administer Naloxone, a drug overdose antidote used to quickly reverse the effects of heroin and other opioids – such as morphine, methadone, Vicodin, Perocet, OxyContin and Fentanyl.
A dramatic rise in Opioid-involved overdoses have become a significant problem in New York State and New York City. A study by the Department of Health reveals that 420 people in NewYork City died in 2013 as a result of heroin overdoses and that the heroin death toll in Queens has dramatically risen by more than 50 percent last year compared to the previous year. “As law enforcement professionals, my office is equally committed to providing justice to the residents of Queens County and to protecting the lives of all members of the public. As a result, my office has become one of the first District Attorney Offices in the state to
have its detective bureau appropriately trained in this important and critical life-saving method. If an individual has overdosed on an opiate and is in serious condition, my investigators will be able to administer Naloxone intranasally (by means of the nostrils) in an attempt to save the person’s life. The lifesaving benefits of this quick-acting medication have been well documented across the country.”
The District Attorney’s Detective Bureau, totaling more than fifty officers, and other District Attorney staff members attended a training session at their office earlier this summer. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene conducted the training and provided Naloxone kits, which carries two doses of the medication, at no cost to the District Attorney’s Office.
District Attorney Brown noted that administering the medication intranasally carries no significant health risks to the officers or require any advanced medical training. In addition, if Naloxone is administered to someone who is not suffering from an overdose the medication does no harm.
As part of their training, the detectives received an overview of New York State’s 911 Good Samaritan Law, which encourages people to call 911 when they witness or experience a drug or alcohol overdose by providing a limited shield from arrest or prosecution for both the overdose person and the witness(es) who call 911. The lifesaving benefits of this quick-acting medication have been well documented across the country.”
The District Attorney’s Detective Bureau, totaling more than fifty officers, and other District Attorney staff members attended a training session at their office earlier this summer. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene conducted the training and provided Naloxone kits, which carries two doses of the medication, at no cost to the District Attorney’s Office.
District Attorney Brown noted that administering the medication intranasally carries no significant health risks to the officers or require any advanced medical training. In addition, if Naloxone is administered to someone who is not suffering from an overdose the medication does no harm.
As part of their training, the detectives received an overview of New York State’s 911 Good Samaritan Law, which encourages people to call 911 when they witness or
By Forum Staff
