Heroin in Chicago
Heroin Documentary – Filmed in Chicago – Video to come…
- Part: 1 – Introduction – “The Brickyard” – I-290 “Heroin Alley”
- Part: 2 – Suburb Spread – Addicted Mother – Dealers – Sex Workers
- Part: 3 – The Chop House – Dirty Business – Conclusion
Articles:
- Study: Chicago Worst Heroin Problem in U.S.
- Heroin Hooks Suburban Kids
Chicago Has Worst Heroin Problem in U.S.
June 29, 2010
Heroin use and its associated problems are worse in the Chicago metropolitan region than in any other metro area in the nation, a new study shows.
The report by researchers at Roosevelt University’s Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy reveals that in Chicago and its suburbs, more people visit hospital emergency rooms with problems related to heroin than in any other major metropolitan area in the U.S.
Heroin is also the most common illegal substance for which Illinoisans seek public treatment – more prevalent than cocaine and marijuana – and is second only to alcohol.
African Americans accounted for 74 percent of those aged 40 to 49 discharged from hospitals for heroin. However, a growing number of users are white suburban teens.
Of those in publicly funded treatment for heroin in 2008, nearly 70 percent under age 18 were white.
Those who treat them say it’s a disturbing trend.
“It’s cheaper to buy heroin than to go to the movies, to buy a movie ticket. That’s really frightening,” said Kate Mahoney, executive director of PEER Services.
Heroin Hooks Suburban Kids
17, Feb 2012 – Naperville, Ill.
It’s cheap. It’s easy to get. And it’s becoming the drug of choice for teenagers in the western suburbs.
Places like Naperville, which is loaded with tree-lined streets and nice houses with two-car garages. Here, money is supposed to buy you a pass on urban problems. But not any more.
Death by an overdose of heroin is a disturbing trend among teenagers and young adults in dupage—lake and will counties. In 2010 in the western counties, nine users overdosed on drugs. Just one year later, that number skyrocketed to 94.
Law enforcement officials in Joliet and Naperville are trying to save lives by educating parents in the suburbs about teenage drug use. Earlier this week, five hundred parents in Naperville attended a meeting with Naperville police and the superintendent of schools.
Experts say the problem is bad in the suburbs because Chicago has the worst heroin problem in the nation. The drug in it’s purest form can kill, but the stuff that’s out on the streets now has been mixed with things like household cleaning products, drywall and strychnine. When those are injected into the body, they clog blood vessels and can kill.
Also see…
Heroin – What are the effects?
