Dr. Gordon White has received the frenzied phone calls and seen the shaking patients, all begging for prescription pain medication. But these aren't patients trembling with pain. These are addicts. "It is a frustrating situation," Gordon said. "You don't want someone to go in pain, but you don't want to give drugs to someone who doesn't really need it." The Alexandria doctor wasn't surprised to learn an estimated 15 million Americans abuse prescription drugs. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University released its three-year study on prescription drug abuse earlier this month. The study found that more Americans misuse painkillers such as OxyContin, Vicodin and Xanax than cocaine or heroin. [continues 710 words]
The first taste of drugs came at 13, and for 26 years, it was a constant battle. But at age 39, the Alexandria woman has been clean for 11 months. "I can see things a whole lot clearer," the woman said. She credits, in part, the Rapides Parish Adult Drug Court. Since 1997, the court/treatment program has helped hundreds of people get off drugs and get back their lives. Now, the 9th Judicial District Court program hopes to expand. The parish also has a separate juvenile drug court. [continues 1098 words]
LEESVILLE - Vernon Correctional Center is again receiving state inmates, authorities said Friday. The facility was cited for prison guideline violations and had 41 of its 187 inmates test positive for drug use in July. Vernon Parish sheriff's Chief Investigator Marvin Hilton said changes were made. "We did everything they (the Department of Public Safety and Corrections) asked us to," he said. Security was tightened at the facility, especially when prisoners come back from a work detail. Sheriff's officials said the majority of the inmates who tested positive were involved in outside work details, where they are not watched 24 hours a day. [continues 159 words]
Many Say Yes, Some Question Effectiveness Of Program Eden Morris shyly raised her hand as Alexandria police Cpl. Brian Boney pleaded with the class for responses. Soon, the 10-year-old Peabody Montessori School student's hand shot up when the DARE officers asked a question. She even took part in a role-playing activity. "They look really nice, and they are not shy," she said. "They are confident and believe in themselves. It makes me confident." Last week, 33 Drug Abuse Resistance Education officers walked into five Rapides Parish schools. It was their first time to teach a lesson in front of elementary kids. [continues 890 words]
Two Rapides Parish sheriff's deputies were arrested in separate incidents. Rapides Parish Sheriff William Earl Hilton said Saturday that both deputies worked in the corrections division and did not patrol the streets. The arrests were in separate cases, but both are the result of two-to three-month investigations. Karen Scarborough, 38, of 141 Cleveland Road, Boyce, and Stephen Bennett Sr., 32, of 102 Chevalier Road, Deville, have been terminated from the Sheriff's Office, said Chief Deputy Ronnie Sellers. [continues 217 words]
Towns like Bunkie and Cheneyville don't have a K-9 sniffing the inside of cars for hidden drugs. They don't have a SWAT team to help serve search warrants. There are not enough officers for long-term surveillance or undercover investigations. Most small towns cannot even afford to have specific officers dedicated solely to investigating the buying and selling of narcotics. "We do the best we can with what we got," said Bunkie Police Chief Mary Fanara. What she has are 13 people on staff, including dispatchers, patrol officers and a detective. She doesn't have the manpower or funds to have a narcotics division. All of her officers have to be narcotics agents. [continues 896 words]
In the wee hours of the morning on Oct. 24, Ethel and Joseph Welch were awakened by the sound of banging on their door. "I heard a boom, boom, boom, boom at my door," Ethel Welch said. The couple peeked out of their Wise Street home to see their yard full of armed police officers. "We didn't know what to do or what they wanted," Ethel Welch said. "We were scared and confused." The Welches say state, local and federal officers participating in "Alexandria Narcotics Winter Sweep" served an arrest warrant at their house, although the suspect being sought didn't live there. The Police Department issued a public apology Thursday to the Welch family for the mistake. [continues 676 words]
BUNKIE -- A local car dealership found more than gas in the tank of one its trucks Monday. The service crew at Lamar Ford found 200 pounds of marijuana hidden in the gas tank of a truck, said Bunkie police Chief Mary Fanara. The marijuana, which was compressed into two separate containers, is worth about $200,000. Bunkie officers placed the marijuana in a police evidence room, but the odor still permeated the air at the back of the jail. Many officers said they could stay in the room only for a little while before the odor forced them out. [continues 289 words]
VIDALIA - A case of mixed up property landed a Concordia Parish sheriff's investigator behind bars on a charge of drug possession earlier this month. However, the charges were dismissed Monday in Pike County Mississippi after the rightful owner of the property stepped forward. Investigator Jimmy Darden was arrested July 4 during an outing on the Bogue Chitte River in Mississippi. He remains on leave pending the results of a drug test administered by the Sheriff's Office, Sheriff Randy Maxwell said. [continues 166 words]
Law enforcement officers throughout central Louisiana were on edge Thursday as the events of the Wise Street standoff unfolded. When the gunfire finally ended, two Alexandria police Special Response Team members and the gunman were dead. Three other officers were injured by gunfire in the attack. Several other officers were injured also. SRT team members were met with gunfire from a fully automatic weapon about 12:30 p.m. when they went to serve an arrest warrant at a residence. The warrant was in reference to a Wednesday morning ambush of a police officer. The officer's patrol car was riddled with about 20 bullets. [continues 466 words]
His backpack hung loosely over his shoulder. He walked into his classroom and shuffled to his desk. As he passed his teacher's desk, she caught a whiff of gasoline. Her eyebrows rose, and she became suspicious her fifth-grader was using inhalants. Drug problems, especially the use of inhalants, reach into the elementary school level. On Tuesday, Rapides Parish educators got an up-close look at drugs and what to look for if their students are possibly using. Alexandria police hosted a drug awareness seminar for about 30 teachers, counselors, coaches, principals and assistant principals. [continues 451 words]
More Expected In The Future, Says Authorities Special Response Team members hang on the side of a moving truck, followed by narcotics agents and uniformed officers. As the truck rolls to a stop, the masked officers jump off the truck and rush into 1211 Magnolia St. Agents hopped out of their cars with guns drawn, and patrolmen surrounded the neighborhood. It was all part of Operation Neighborhood Sweeps. Alexandria police Sgt. Newmon Bobb, commander of the narcotics division, said residents in drug infested neighbors should expect to see more of these raids. [continues 317 words]
