Miami-Dade County Drug and Alcohol Problems are Epidemic
Let’s begin with alcohol DUI arrests in Miami-Dade County. According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and under the categories of Public Safety / Transportation Safety, Health / Substance Abuse, Public Safety / Crime & Crime Prevention – this information was last updated in August 2015.
Look at the facts:
According to CNN, unfortunately even Justin Bieber is getting caught in Miami-Dade County driving under the influence. Alcohol is a problem. It is a drug and it is the most accessible drug to our residents and visitors.
The American Society of Addiction Medicine talks about the six dimensions when treating addiction. ASAM’s treatment criteria provide separate placement criteria for adolescents and adults to create comprehensive and individualized treatment plans. Adolescent and adult treatment plans are developed through a multidimensional patient assessment over five broad levels of treatment that are based on the degree of direct medical management provided, the structure, safety and security provided and the intensity of treatment services provided.
According to Justice.org publication “Widespread CPD diversion and abuse, particularly of opioid pain relievers, are significant drug threats to the South Florida HIDTA region because of the overall negative societal effects of CPDs.”
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Federal Agents arrest dozens in violent-crime takedown in Miami-Dade. The Agents arrest dozens of suspects accused of violent-crime, drug and gun offenses. They confiscated 50 weapons, 500 rounds of ammo and multiple kilos of drugs.
“Drugs, illegal guns and violence rip us apart,” U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer declared on Thursday during a news conference at the Miami-Dade Police Department in Liberty City, one of the “hot spots” targeted by federal authorities. “Every child in our community has a right to walk home and be safe in their backyard without having to be a victim of gunfire.”
This was reported by Jay Weaver at the Miami Herald: 305-376-3446, @jayhweaver – great article to read to learn about the fight and actual siege we are under.
Deaths from Drugs and Alcohol in Florida are overwhelming
According to DrugAbuse.gov “Data on drug-related mortality presented were provided by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Medical Examiners Commission’s 2013 Interim Report of Drugs Identified in Deceased Persons between January and June 2013. The report provides information on the total number of various drugs detected in 4,159 decedents, mostly for whom an autopsy was performed but not for all of the more than 94,000 deaths that occurred in Florida during the first 6 months of 2013. The numbers of drugs detected are referred to as “occurrences” and should not be confused with the actual number of drug-related deaths.”
“The number of heroin-related deaths (occurrences) increased sharply between 2011 and 2012,
declined in the first half of 2013 compared with the last half of 2012 statewide and in Broward county, but they increased in Miami-Dade during that period. South American heroin has been entering the South Florida area over the past two decades. However, reports and seizures of Mexican heroin in South Florida have been noted since 2008. The proportion of primary treatment admissions for heroin increased in the two South Florida counties between 2012 and 2013. The number of crime laboratory reports for heroin among seized drug items analyzed by NFLIS laboratories increased by 33 percent in the region between 2012 and 2013. Many heroin consequences also involved the nonmedical use of prescription opioids. “
High School Students Report Their Prescription Pain Reliever Use in Miami Dade County
There is plenty of data ranging from alcohol use to marijuana use to prescription drug use with our youth. The Florida Youth Substance Abuse Study reveals every detail you would imagine around use, and the effects on our children.
Drug problem and Heroin abuse at ‘epidemic’ level in South Florida
Deaths from heroin – now more potent and widely available than ever – rose 89 percent statewide from 62 in 2011 to 117 in 2012, with the problem reaching epidemic proportions in South Florida, according to a report by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institute of Health.
“In Miami-Dade County, deaths jumped 120 percent, from 15 in 2011 to 33 in 2012.” Ruters.com
We need to really wake you and smell the coffee here – we have a problem – and we have rehabs – some are private, some state funded. We need to be aware and help addicts get clean!
If you need get arrested there is help – Drug Court’s Holistic Approach
Miami-Dade County Drug Court was set up in the summer of 1989 by administrative order of the chief judge of Florida’s 11th Judicial Circuit. The Drug Court places defendants in a Treatment Program., monitors their progress, and decides whether they have recovered sufficiently to have their cases dismissed. In essence, it is a treatment program overseen by a court.
Not every arrestee charged with a drug offense gets the chance to participate in Drug Court. Program eligibility is governed by Florida Statute 948.08 (6)(a). To qualify, generally, a defendant must be charged with possessing or purchasing drugs, tampering with evidence (added 2001), solicitation for purchase (2001), obtaining a prescription by fraud (2001) and the state attorney must agree to diversion. Defendants who have a history of violent crime, have been arrested for drug sale or trafficking, or have more than two previous non-drug felony convictions (Administrative Order), are typically ineligible.
For more information on Drug Court and related programs, contact:
Judge Jeri B. Cohen
Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building
1351 NW 12th St., Room 405
Miami, FL 33125
Phone: 305-548-5103
Fax: 305-548-5105
E-mail: jcohen@jud11.flcourts.org
If you have not been arrested and have the ability to pay or have insurance call the number and we will guide you. If you need state funded programs contact Miami-Dade.gov and they will help you!
