Featured Articles

Residents of Long Island, New York are seeing a spike in teen heroin use. Recent deaths of local teenagers have shaken parents, who didnt realize that heroin was even an option for local youth. Linda Diorio, whose son, Erik, died of an overdose in 2008, commented on how the drug is taking parents by surprise: "You worry about them smoking pot. You worry about them driving recklessly. You worry about them not using their seat belt. You worry about that phone call in the middle of the night. ... You don't worry about heroin. Because it didn't exist in my mindset."

Eriks death came only weeks after the death of another teen, Natalie Ciappa. Ciappa was a college-bound honors student who sang in her church choir. She overdosed on heroin in June 2008. Her death caused an outpouring of concern and bewilderment from the community.

In an effort to combat soaring drug use, parents have been gathering at community events designed to educate families about the dangers of heroin. In addition, both Suffolk and Nassau counties have passed laws requiring law enforcement to inform schools about nearby heroin-related arrests.

Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice commented on the trend: "You could almost use the word 'epidemic.' ... What we've seen over the past three years, almost immediately after my administration came in, is a big increase in fatal heroin overdoses."

(Source: www.newday.com)

Labels: teen drug use, heroin, long island

Posted By: Aspen Education Group