Category: drug overdoses

Surge of Weekend Drug Overdoses in Ottawa Part of Ongoing National Crisis

Ottawa police say nearly two dozen people suffered drug overdoses over the weekend in the country’s capital city. The Ottawa Police Service says it responded to 19 drug-related overdoses on Saturday, and another three on Sunday morning. Police say emergency responders and civilians administered naloxone, a drug that reverses opioid overdoses, in many of the…


Los Angeles Metro Considering Creating Its Own Police Department

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Agency (MTA) June 22 voted to move forward with a plan to create its own public safety department. The agency’s board of directors voted to have staff present a comprehensive plan—including department structure, regulatory rules, job descriptions, and pay ranges—for the board to consider in January 2024. “[We need…


How Many Deaths Will It Take Before Biden Forcefully Addresses the Fentanyl Crisis?

Commentary PENN HILLS, Pennsylvania—When the Penn Hills police and paramedics arrived at the modest suburban Pittsburgh home in the 8100 block of Chaske Street on Jan. 14, they found the father of 7-month-old Zhuri Bogle desperately performing CPR on his infant daughter. It was 6:44 a.m., and with the exception of a few flurries swirling…


BC Setting Records for Overdoses, Drug Poisoning

British Columbia, which recently decriminalized the possession of small amounts of hard drugs, set a record in March for the most overdose calls in one day. The province also recorded the highest 30-day average of overdose calls and the most consecutive days where paramedics responded to 100 or more poisoning calls each day in March. On…


B.C. Setting Records for Overdoses, Drug Poisoning

British Columbia, which recently decriminalized the possession of small amounts of hard drugs, set a record in March for the most overdose calls in one day. The province also recorded the highest 30-day average of overdose calls and the most consecutive days where paramedics responded to 100 or more poisoning calls each day in March. On…


3 People Found Dead in Downtown LA Apartment; Drugs Suspected

LOS ANGELES—Three people who may have overdosed on drugs were found dead April 5 inside an apartment building in the Skid Row area. The bodies of two men and one woman were discovered Wednesday afternoon inside 649 Lofts, a building in the 600 block of Wall Street, near Sixth Street, the Los Angeles Times reported….


Sharp Rise in Marijuana-Related Psychosis: American Board of Pain Medicine President

As drug legalization groups and the cannabis industry lobby to legalize cannabis across the United States, with initiatives to legalize marijuana on the November ballot in five more states, many experts warn this will only increase the physical and mental harm from the unregulated, high-potency cannabis. President of the American Board of Pain Medicine and…


Opioids @ Work: Hidden Scourge Sapping the Economy

Strung out on drugs half her life, Brandi Edwards, 29, said the longest she held a job before getting sober four years ago was “about two and a half months.” “I worked at an AT&T call center, a day-care center for a month, fast food places, but I had to take drugs to get out…


Mothers Hold Anti-Drug Rally in San Francisco

Mothers Against Drug Deaths held a rally in San Francisco on Aug. 21, the first National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day. In front of City Hall, hand-painted rocks were placed on the front steps leading up to a podium. Each one represented a life lost to overdose in San Francisco this year from January to…


Mothers Rally to End Deadly Fentanyl Epidemic

Mothers Against Drug Deaths held a rally in San Francisco on Aug. 21, the first National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day. In front of City Hall, hand-painted rocks were placed on the front steps leading up to a podium. Each one represented a life lost to overdose in San Francisco this year from January to…