Pubdate: Sun, 29 Jul 2001
Source: Courier-Post (NJ)
Copyright: 2001 Courier-Post
Contact:  http://www.courierpostonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/826
Author: Michael T. Burkhart
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)

HEROIN USE SPREADING IN S.J. SUBURBS

Kevin grew up in a middle-class neighborhood in Vincentown, complete with a 
white picket fence and family dog. His father was a corrections officer. 
His mother stayed at home to take care of the kids.

But like a growing number of suburbanites, Kevin, who did not want his last 
name used because of the stigma, became addicted to heroin. It capped a 
string of drug use that started at age 12 and included cocaine and crack.

"Heroin is more available," said Kevin, 31, who works as a union pipe 
fitter and is in a Virtua Health drug-free treatment program. "It's in 
easier forms to use, and it's cheap."

Those are two reasons why heroin use in suburban communities has been 
increasing for five years, although some law enforcement agencies believe 
the trend is leveling out.

The most recent high-profile heroin death came July 4, when Thomas Szumski, 
43, a self-employed contractor, was found dead of an apparent overdose in 
his Cinnaminson home. He had been in the news because his wife, Kimberly, 
disappeared in May and remains missing. Police believe foul play was 
involved in her case.

Thomas Szumski's death stunned family and neighbors, who believed he had 
been free of drugs for at least a decade.

His death exposed the underlying issue of heroin use in suburbia, and how 
it often seamlessly blends itself into daily lives. More and more suburban 
residents are bitten by its lure because it is an inexpensive and potent 
high. Locally, the number of those seeking treatment is soaring, officials say.

In his 1998 book Heroin, Humberto Fernandez wrote that using the drug 
allows a suburbanite to identify with the dangers of the underclass, to 
feel like an outlaw, someone willing to play with fire, and to do so in the 
relative safety of his or her suburban environment.

Camden County Prosecutor Lee A. Solomon said buyers of heroin in Camden are 
often affluent, driving nice cars and wearing expensive suits, he said. 
They stop at drug markets to get their fix before heading to work.

Lt. Joseph A. Bowen of the Camden County Prosecutor's Office said about 40 
percent of people arrested on heroin   charges in the county come from 
Camden suburbs. Philadelphia police said 20 percent of people arrested on 
heroin charges there are from outside the city.

The federal Drug Enforcement Agency considers heroin a " serious threat" 
due to expanded availability, its cheap price and higher potency that 
allows users to steer clear of needles. It's also become more of a 
social-use drug.

"It's just kind of creeping and creeping into the suburbs," said William R. 
Nelson, acting special agent in charge of the DEA's Philadelphia division.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, cocaine, fashionable in middle- and 
upper-class business and social circles, started to trail off and gradually 
was replaced by opiates, including heroin, said Ian Gershman, supervisor 
for Kennedy Health System's methadone treatment program in Blackwood.

"It's cheap, and it's potent," he said.

The drug's use cuts across all social and economic backgrounds, Gershman 
said. There is no typical suburban or urban user, he said. Look out into 
the parking lot at the Gloucester Township treatment center, which has 
about 180 clients and another 90 on a waiting list. You'll see everything 
from beat-up old Buicks to new BMWs. Clients include teachers, accountants 
and engineers, he said.

"There's absolutely no stereotype," Gershman said. "The only constant 
factor is that heroin use eventually catches up with you."

Patients' ages range from 19 to 63 years old, Gershman said. And they come 
from a wide range of South Jersey communities - from Cherry Hill to 
Woodbury and Haddonfield. Forty-two percent are women.

Folks treated at the Kennedy clinic come voluntarily, Gershman said. Most 
pay the $55 weekly fee out of their own pockets because most health 
insurance plans don't cover methadone treatment.

"They want some help," he said. "They need help."

Since New Jersey State Police Detective Mike Sovey joined the narcotics 
unit in 1992, he has watched heroin use spread from Camden, Asbury Park and 
Atlantic City to Ocean County communities such as Long Beach Island. 
People, including teens, are using the drug at a younger age.

Ray Madiou, Virtua's outpatient services coordinator, said the number of 
suburban heroin users seeking treatment has tripled since 1998.

In 1998, there were 149,000 new heroin users across the country, according 
to the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Of those, 80 percent were 
under age 26.

Increased purity allows heroin to be inhaled or smoked, avoiding the social 
stigma of needles, said Solomon. With alternative delivery methods, there 
is less fear of acquiring syringe-borne diseases like HIV or hepatitis. 
Some people may feel that taking heroin in ways other than injection is 
less addictive, Solomon said, but that's not true.

Dealers largely have not migrated into the suburbs to ply their wares, said 
Sgt. Mark Nicholas of the Camden County Prosecutor's Office.

"For some reason, it stays (in the city)," Nicholas said.

Someone caught with two bags of heroin - perhaps a first-time, nonviolent 
offender - would be a candidate for probation and treatment. Prison would 
be unlikely.

Day-to-day street-level dealers and buyers in Camden County typically fall 
under the jurisdiction of the prosecutor's office. Drug court also operates 
in Camden County. For higher-level dealers, Camden works with state and 
federal officials.

Kevin, the Vincentown man trying to beat his addiction, has been clean for 
two months. He hopes treatment will work for him this time.

"It's just amazing," Kevin said. "Each time you swear you'll never do it 
again. But each time the bottom's further and further down."
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MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager