Tag: drugs

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TBI Program Would Test Sewage for Drugs

Credit: Roberto Valdivia on Unsplash

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) is proposing a $3 million pilot project to test sewage from Knoxville-area high schools, college dorms, and other locations for illicit drugs, Director David Rausch said Tuesday.

If the budget for the project is approved, testing will initially begin on wastewater from 12 public high schools and 16 college dorms. Another 120 Knoxville locations could be selected for wastewater testing at the TBI’s discretion, Rausch said. The pilot would run for 30 weeks.

The testing is intended to identify specific illicit drugs and the concentration of drug use in a particular location using a key surveillance tool deployed during the Covid pandemic to monitor disease prevalence.

Results of school and dorm-based wastewater testing, Rausch said, can help keep parents and school administrators informed about student drug use.

“That becomes a great piece for those administrators at the school to be able to educate parents and make them aware this is an issue,” Rausch said in presenting the proposal to Gov. Bill Lee as part of his agency’s overall request for a $21 million budget increase next year.

“It also then becomes an educational tool for us to be able to educate the community on these drugs that are being used there.”

The testing would also have law enforcement uses, said Rausch, noting the surveillance — which would be done by an outside contractor — can pinpoint the source of illicit drugs “as close as a block as (to) where that issues.”

“If we have an area with a lot of drug complaints, we can have them test the water in that area,” Rausch said. “They wouldn’t be able to tell me the exact house, but they could tell me a selection of four houses. And then our work on intel and observation, we would be able to tell where the house is.”

Testing sewage for illicit drug use is underway in 70 U.S. cities as part of a National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded program intended to help guide cities in where they need to focus resources in preventing overdose deaths.

Unlike the TBI proposal, the Institute-funded testing is done in conjunction with local public health departments, not law enforcement.

Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com. Follow Tennessee Lookout on Facebook and X.

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News News Blog News Feature

Gov. Lee Orders Guard to Texas Border (Again) in 2022 for “Drug Crisis”

State of Tennessee

Tennessee National Guard troops will, once again, be sent to the Texas border on orders of Tennessee Governor Bill Lee. 

Lee sent 300 troops to the Texas border in early July “in quelling the most severe border crisis we’ve seen in 20 years.” It was unclear even after the visit what the Tennessee troops actually did. At the time, Lee said they aided law enforcement officials there to “evaluate needs in securing the border.”

Critics called that trip political theater to reinforce a crisis narrative on the border. Lee and other Republican governors sent the troops at the behest of Texas Governor Greg Abbott who claimed, “open-border policies have led to a humanitarian crisis at our southern border as record levels of illegal immigrants, drugs, and contraband pour into Texas.”   

This time, Lee is ordering about 50 guard members to the border to curb “a surging drug crisis.” But the crisis can wait until the holidays are over, apparently. The troops won’t be sent to the border until early 2022.   

“An open border has far-reaching consequences that are fueling a drug crisis impacting both our national security and the safety of our state,” Lee said in a statement. “I have authorized additional Tennessee Guard support at our Southern border as we look to address drug trafficking at the source.” 

For the move, Lee made a connection between border drugs and Tennessee overdose deaths. In the statement, he called fentanyl and methamphetamine the “leading drivers of drug overdose.” So far this year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection have seized more than 200,000 pounds of the drugs. Lee said Tennessee recorded over 3,000 drug overdose deaths in 2020, which was a 45 percent increase from the previous year. 

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News News Blog

What’s In A Name? ‘Operation Non-Believers’ Explained

CREDIT: Memphis Police Department

Memphis Police Department

A pile of cash and drugs seized during Operation Non-Believers.

You’ve probably seen by now that the Memphis Police Department made two huge busts this week, netting some 400 arrests.

The arrests were the culmination of two, weeks-long operations. The one that focused primarily on violent crime was called “Operation Spring Cleaning.” That name is pretty straight forward. It’s spring time. They’re cleaning up the streets. OK.

The second operation focused on drugs. It, however, was mysteriously called “Operation Non-Believers.” That one was subtle, a head scratcher. What could that possibly mean? Was this some atheist drug ring they busted?

Louis Brownlee, the legal officer and public information officer with MPD, patiently explained to us, uh, no.

“This operation was coined ‘Operation Non-Believers’ because dealers are continuously attempting to possess, deliver, and sell heroin and fentanyl on the streets of Memphis; without believing they will be arrested for their unlawful actions,” Brownlee said in a statement.

Memphis Police Department

A pile of cash and drugs seized during Operation Non-Believers.


Here’s how MPD described Operation Non-Believers in a news statement yesterday:

“Operation Non-Believers” started in January 2019; members of the Memphis Police Department’s Organized Crime Unit identified Darius Chalmers and several other co-conspirators as being high to mid-level distributors of heroin and fentanyl. During the investigation, Detectives identify (30) individuals who conspired in distributing as much as a half kilogram of heroin and fentanyl per week in Memphis and Northern Mississippi.

On Wednesday, May 29th, 2019, a detective presented the Shelby County Grand jury with the facts of this investigation. The thirty (30) individuals involved in this investigation, (22) men and (8) women, were each indicted on four felony counts of:

Conspiracy: unlawful possession of a controlled substance 150g or more to sell in a drug-free school zone;

Conspiracy: unlawful possession of a controlled substance 150g or more to deliver in a drug free school zone;

Conspiracy: unlawful possession of a controlled substance 2,000g or more to sell in a drug free school zone; and

Conspiracy: unlawful possession of a controlled substance 2,000g or more to deliver in a drug free school zone.

All are A-level felonies, each of which carries (15) to (25) years in prison without parole.

On Monday, June 3, 2019, the Organized Crime Unit conducted a roundup operation to locate and arrest these individuals. Detectives arrested (16) of the (30) individuals indicted. There were also two (2) additional individuals arrested for unrelated drug charges.

During this investigation, detectives recovered (101.8) grams of Fentanyl, 11.0 grams of marijuana, and (20) firearms (3-Rifles and 17-handguns). Detectives seized (12) vehicles and approximately ($31, 200.00) cash as suspected drug proceeds. Detectives also served (7) search warrants throughout Memphis and Shelby County. Of the (30) individuals indicted, (9) of them were either affiliated with or a member of the Crips Street Gang.

These individuals ranged in age from (24) to (62) years of age and some of them had prior arrest for Aggravated Assault, Robbery, Rape, Theft, Drugs Possession, and Felon Weapon Violations.

The Memphis Police Department would like to thank the Shelby County Attorney General’s Office for providing guidance and operational assistance throughout this entire operation.

The Memphis Police Department is continuously working to create a crime and drug free community for the citizens of this city. These operations are in conjunction with the vision and initiative of Memphis Police Department to combat the crime issues within the City of Memphis.

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Opinion

Last One Standing

There is no statute of limitations on notoriety.

In March, George Tiller was sentenced to 10 years in prison without parole for selling 20 prescription pain pills for $100 to a police informant on three occasions at the Olympic Gym in Southaven. The drug, hydrocodone (Lortab), is used by millions of people and abused by a few of them, including Rush Limbaugh.

The sentencing range for illegally selling a controlled substance in Mississippi is unusually broad: a $5,000 fine and no prison time on the low end to a $1 million fine and 30 years in prison on the high end. Tiller pleaded guilty to what is called an “open plea with a cap,” meaning he put his fate in the hands of the judge.

George Tiller has an extensive criminal record. An amateur boxing champion and all-state football player at Germantown High School in 1958, he signed with the University of Tennessee, lasted less than a year, got kicked out of the Marines, and lived on the edge as a street fighter, jailhouse enforcer or “rock bull,” and “mule” for Mexican drug dealers. His brothers Mike and Albert and their cousin, Charles “Dago” Tiller, were also notorious Memphis tough guys who did prison time. Mike is believed to have been murdered in DeSoto County years ago, but his body was never found. Charles Tiller, beaten nearly to death with a baseball bat in prison, died in 2004 while serving 200 years for a double murder. Albert died two years ago.

I watched an outdoor boxing match on Beale Street with George last fall. The eyes that glared in police mug shots were no longer fierce, but he was still a hard-looking man, 6′-3″ tall and flat-bellied from daily workouts. His hair was silver, and his face was smooth and dark. The beer was free where we were standing, but he sipped a Coke instead. He recalled his own ring record of 11 wins in 12 fights and joked that maybe he could take on another geriatric ex-Golden Gloves boxer, Mayor Willie Herenton, who was about to “fight” Joe Frazier.

At his sentencing before DeSoto County Circuit Court judge Robert Chamberlin, Tiller talked about his notoriety.

“My name, wow, Tiller, I guess it must still ring a little feather in the hat or maybe a jewel on the ground. I mean, God, it’s been 40 years. I mean, my cousin is dead. My two brothers are dead. But I guess I’m like the last one standing.”

He called himself “a 68-year-old has-been who’s got one foot on a banana peel and one in the grave” and is fighting prostate cancer and cardiac arrhythmia instead of barroom brawlers. Two character witnesses — a former Olive Branch police officer and a Hernando minister — described him as a guy “who makes us laugh,” “an asset to the community,” and a churchgoer whose hobby is pitching horseshoes.

That pitch didn’t sway Chamberlin or District Attorney Susan Brewer. They balanced Tiller’s age and physical condition with his criminal history, including convictions in 2000 and 2002 for selling controlled drugs. They also noted that he said “I ought to kill you” to the informant and then showed him a copy of a book he was carrying. The title was Dead Man Walking.

“I just said it out of madness and frustration,” Tiller told the judge.

“I think 10 years is being more than fair and more than lenient,” Chamberlin finally said. “I sympathize with Mr. Tiller’s health condition, but certainly, the Mississippi Department of Corrections has the ability to take care of that.”

Brewer told me last week that even first offenders get prison time for distributing drugs in DeSoto County. Tiller’s sentence was “sort of a lifetime achievement award.”

He was sent to Parchman, the legendary Delta prison two hours from Memphis. If he lives to be 70, he will be in an exclusive club. Only 82 inmates — less than half of 1 percent of the 24,000 state prisoners in Mississippi — are 70 or over.

“Can you believe it’s been a year since we had lunch?” he wrote me in a recent letter. “Time fly’s out there, stops in here.”

He can cut his time 15 percent if he behaves. That leaves just over 3,000 days.

There is a sad joke about an old prisoner who protests in court that he won’t live long enough to complete his harsh sentence.

“That’s all right,” says the judge. “Just do what you can.”

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Opinion Viewpoint

Here’s the Deal

A couple weeks ago, I attended the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, courtesy of the Manchester, Tennessee, paper that carries my column.

Bonnaroo is an amazing series of concerts on a 700-acre farm between Nashville and Chattanooga. It is like an annual Woodstock, where hippies and hipsters go camping and watch top bands play for four days. I did not camp, however, because camping outdoors involves the outdoors, and in my opinion, the outdoors is best left outdoors.

I was initially told that Bonnaroo is a made-up word that means nothing, just like “lollapalooza” or “congressional ethics.” Later, I found out that “bonnaroo” is Cajun slang for fun. And it was.

There were lots of kids with nose rings and tattoos. Many were wearing bathing suits that they should have reconsidered. In fact, although I am steadfastly against more government, I really think some of these people should have to apply for a permit to wear a two-piece. Bill Clinton could chair the committee to review applicants; he’d like that.

One person died, and I am sure countless kids had to be untangled from making out with another joyous soul wearing a nose ring. There was more sex going on than Paris Hilton’s last night before jail. (I bet some attendees are checking their crotches this week, just hoping that itch is only a bug bite.)

As you might imagine, the Birkenstock crowd was there with booths supporting all their social causes. As best I can figure, they like to “raise awareness” in hopes that someone else will actually do something about the problems. It is apparently more noble to be an activist for grand-scale issues such as the environment than cleaning up your own campsite.

Anytime young music fans get together, there will be drugs. And the drug use at Bonnaroo was so open that if a kid was arrested with pot in his system, he could probably have asked for it back.

Drug vendors on foot offered a wide array of pot, coke, and acid for reasonable prices. Capitalism at its purest. Drugs were sold at a more competitive price than the prescription drug benefit Congress gave us, because at Bonnaroo, drug dealers were forced to compete on prices.

The way dealers at Bonnaroo operated is that when they walked by, they said the name of their product. You heard the word “pot” said by a passerby. If you wanted to buy said product, then — unlike our government’s drug purchases — you engaged the vendor in price negotiations. (And as with most of my purchases, the conversation began with: You ain’t no cop are you?)

Being one of the oldest people at Bonnaroo, I didn’t get many offers to buy drugs, although I was a little nonplussed when one dealer walked by and whispered, “Geritol.”

They also registered voters at Bonnaroo. Organizers assume the young people they register are going to vote for Democrats since most of the participants probably get their political views from the drummer for Third Eye Blind. This is the same drummer who rails against 10-cents-a-gallon profit for the oil companies yet has no problem selling his band’s T-shirts for $35 a piece.

One vendor said that he was for Hillary Clinton because Hillary would fight global warming. I told him that he might be onto something, since there is nothing about Hillary that is the least bit warm.

Another activist told me he was going to vote for Dennis (“Munchkin”) Kucinich because of his strong environmental stance. He kept citing the fact that some scientists say the oceans will rise four feet because of global warming, which explains why Kucinich is fighting it so hard: He would probably drown.

In the end, I must admit I really enjoyed Bonnaroo. I would advise other fortysomethings to try it. On one hand, the festival made you feel old, yet the vibrant and infectious carefree atmosphere made you feel young and rejuvenated.

And it reminded me that while getting old is inevitable, acting old is optional.

Ron Hart is a columnist and investor in Atlanta. He worked for Goldman Sachs and was appointed to the Tennessee Board of Regents by Lamar Alexander. His e-mail: RevRon10@aol.com.

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Letter From The Editor Opinion

Letter from the Editor: Mayoral Applicants Welcome

Memphis is facing a watershed year. The looming mayoral election hasn’t begun to heat up yet, but the summer promises plenty of political maneuvering and fireworks as candidates jockey for position.

It’s now looking more and more likely that several candidates — each supported by varying constituencies — will be vying to unseat Mayor Willie Herenton. This is no doubt the way Herenton hopes it will play out. The more candidates there are, the more likely it is that the mayor will return for another term.

I have nothing against any of the announced candidates, but I don’t think any of them has thus far shown themselves capable of addressing the current citywide ennui. There is no one yet running who, in the immortal words of George Bush the Elder, has “the vision thing.”

Most candidates are trying to tap into the anger of the electorate, but there is nobody — black or white, Republican or Democrat — who would seem to have the ability to inspire hope and provide a coalescing leadership.

We need someone who can unify us and make us proud to be Memphians again. Our self-esteem as a city is at rock-bottom. Our corrupt and inept politicians have made us a statewide joke. Our crime problem eats at our core like a cancer. But crime isn’t made from whole cloth. It’s woven from the dark threads of poor education, one-parent homes, illegal guns, drugs, poverty, and hopelessness.

A candidate with vision sees the big picture, articulates the problems and their causes — and lays out a way forward. Herenton hasn’t done this, at least not recently. And even if he began to do so today, he’s burned too many bridges, alienated too many of his constituents. After three terms, his relationship with the City Council — and with at least half of the city’s residents — is probably broken beyond repair.

Another four years of “staying the course” with the political status quo could prove disastrous. At this point, change of any kind would be welcome, but real change will require a vision — and a visionary. Applicants welcomed.

Bruce VanWyngarden

brucev@memphisflyer.com

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News The Fly-By

Fly on the Wall

Taste the Rainbow

A recent AP article chronicling the difficulties faced by openly gay students on historically black college campuses quoted Rev. William Owens, a historically black college graduate and head of the Coalition of African-American Pastors in Memphis. According to Owens, school administrators can say “no” to gay students who ask for inclusion and acceptance.

“I don’t think they have to give a lot of reasons,” said Owens, who, like other black pastors, worries that homosexuality “is a threat to the black family.”

The article was inconclusive as to whether or not gays should use separate water fountains and toilets.

Urban Camping

From Action News 5: “Joe Birch went to check out a tent [that] sits on a hill near Preston and Waldorf in South Memphis. … A lifelong neighbor and concerned citizen says the tent is a hub of criminal activity where addicts trade stolen items for drugs. … In a one-mile radius of the intersection of Preston and Waldorf in the last 30 days, there were 27 narcotics arrests, 3 robberies, 17 aggravated assaults, 50 burglaries, 38 domestic-violence arrests, 30 thefts from homes and 11 from cars.”

The news report failed to mention whether or not the tent’s occupants were flying a red flag.

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News The Fly-By

Over Dose

Memphian April Houser takes four medications each day — a sleep aid, two antidepressants, and birth control pills — but since her boyfriend’s 10 prescriptions fill the medicine cabinet, she has to store her own pills on the nightstand.

Her boyfriend, who asked to remain anonymous, takes several allergy medications, anti-depressants, prescription vitamins, and pills for chronic fatigue syndrome.

“In the morning, it takes him about 15 minutes [to take all his medications],” said Houser. “Then he has to do it all over again each night.”

It may sound out of the ordinary, but according to a new study, Tennesseans lead the nation in prescription-drug use. The study, done by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee (BCBS), found that the average state resident filled 17.3 prescriptions in 2005. The U.S. average was 11.3 prescriptions.

“We’ve been number one for several years,” said Bill Cecil, director of health policy research for BCBS.

With such a high rate of prescription use, Tennesseans should also rank high in terms of overall health. But according to the United Health Foundation, which ranks states’ health status each year, Tennessee ranked 47th in 2006.

“Tennessee has issues with obesity, and the number of related diseases is pretty high in terms of diabetes and hypertension,” said Lawrence Brown, a professor at the University of Tennessee’s College of Pharmacy.

Generous TennCare benefits may also play a role in the study’s findings. Before 2005, TennCare enrollees had unlimited access to prescriptions. But after recognizing a high prescription rate among enrollees, the agency instituted a limit of five prescriptions per month.

“We’ve already gone from an average of 32 prescriptions [per enrollee per year] to about 10,” said Marilyn Wilson, a spokesperson for TennCare.

There’s a financial issue too, aside from the cost of purchasing the medicine. As a result of Tennesseans’ use of prescription drugs, insurance rates have skyrocketed in recent years.

“That’s been the truth for the increases in the past six to eight years,” said Cecil. Side effects of using too many prescription drugs, such as accidental poisonings and resulting hospitalizations, affect insurance rates as well.

But does the high rate mean that Tennesseans are abusing prescription drugs or does it mean that the state population is plagued with illnesses?

“Right now, we really don’t know,” said Brown, who’s researching the issue at UT. “We’re looking at health status, education level, socioeconomic status, and insurance to determine if any of those factors are what’s leading to the higher utilization in Tennessee.”

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Opinion Viewpoint

Filling a Vacuum

When Richard Nixon declared a war on drugs in 1971, he called drug abuse “public enemy number one in the United States.” Well, that “enemy” is still here and so is the war.

Readers of the Flyer‘s Web site saw a November 27th story, “Memphis Police Make Major Pot Arrest,” and thought they were reading about another successful effort in fighting this war on illegal drugs.

But they weren’t. They were reading about a drug-distribution system broken after months of investigation and the arrests of the individuals allegedly responsible. Readers were told illegal drugs were taken off our streets. And some were. But they will be back.

After 20 years as a law enforcement officer, I retired in 1989 with the rank of captain. I witnessed and aided in many such busts. And the successes, while momentarily gratifying, never ended the war. In fact, all the successes and hard work of dutiful officers across this nation haven’t slowed drug trafficking one iota.

Yet we continue to hear the old refrain “just a few more years, just a few more million dollars here and several more million there, and we can win this. We must win this.”

Hogwash. We cannot change human nature with legislation, and we can’t stop a runaway freight train by yelling “STOP.” As much as Prohibition in the early 20th century failed to stem the flow of and the appetite for alcohol, so too has the modern-day version of prohibition failed.

After 35 years, the war on drugs has only given us more and cheaper drugs and enriched criminals and their organizations by allowing them to manage production and distribution of some drugs in a system free of quality controls, taxation, and age restrictions.

This war endangers our law-abiding citizens and puts more officers in harm’s way. We can’t even keep drugs out of our prisons. How then do we keep them out of free society and away from our children?

How? By removing the drugs from the control of criminals, by regulating their production to meet precise industry standards for purity and dosage, and by making drug abuse a medical rather than criminal issue.

The answer, which is supported by a growing segment of the American population, is the legalization of all drugs. There are really but a few drugs that are illegal, and their status is under the auspices of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and its five schedules. Marijuana, for instance, carries a schedule 1 status. Schedule 1 drugs are supposed to be the most dangerous, with a high potential for abuse and no medical value. Yet, in 1988, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) released a report prepared by its administrative law judge, Francis Young, in which he stated cannabis “is the safest therapeutic substance known to man.” Judge Young’s report was buried. As often happens with truth in government, it had no place in policy.

More states each year investigate medical cannabis programs because their citizens demand it. Despite federal intervention, despite fears of DEA raids and threats to doctors, more Americans see the effectiveness of cannabis as medicine. And so it goes with legalization. The government pressures one way, but the citizens’ will is steadily pushing the other. There are dissenters in this war.

I am one of them. I am the founder of the group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. LEAP now has over 6,500 members. Judges, prosecutors, policemen, correction officers, and citizens are joining us to oppose this policy of drug prohibition that has not made us safer, that has not removed the menace of drugs from our streets, but has in fact done just the opposite — literally turned our inner-cities into war zones.

Prohibition was a failure the first time around, and we ended it. It has failed again, and it is time to end it. Again.

Peter Christ retired as a police captain in 1989. LEAP is a drug-policy reform group of current and former members of law enforcement modeled on Vietnam Veterans Against the War.

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News The Fly-By

Putting the Smack Down

Jen, a 24-year-old Memphis woman, first started using heroin six years ago. Now three weeks clean, she once sold everything of value in her parents’ home, even their wedding rings.

“I got in a lot of trouble: burglary, robbing folks. I’d go to Wal-Mart and snatch purses out of people’s baskets,” says Jen, who is enrolled in a year-long treatment program and didn’t want her last name used for this story.

“When I used to go get it, I’d be the only person waiting,” says Jen. “But recently, there’d be times when 10 or 12 cars are waiting.”

Last week, Memphis Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) officials arrested 10 leaders in a major Mexican heroin ring operating in Memphis. Five others were indicted but have not yet been arrested. Some are believed to be hiding in Mexico.

The ring was active in 15 cities in the southeastern part of the United States, including Nashville and Knoxville. Over the course of the DEA’s year-long investigation — dubbed Operation Black Gold Rush — 50 pounds of black-tar heroin were seized. About six pounds were seized in Memphis.

“This is the first major operation targeting the trafficking of heroin here in years,” says U.S. attorney David Kustoff. “Lately, we’ve seen an increase of heroin cases in Memphis.”

Lt. Ralph Peperone with the Memphis Police Department’s (MPD) Organized Crime Unit agrees that Memphis’ heroin use is on the rise. Last year, MPD seized 5,852 grams of heroin. By the end of July this year, 5,899 grams had been seized.

The West Tennessee Violent Crime and Drug Task Force made one of the largest busts in recent years in March when 8.5 pounds of heroin were seized from a home in Hickory Hill.

“These days, I’d say about one in every three patients has used heroin,” says Kenneth Richardson, one of Jen’s counselors at Synergy Treatment Center. “It’s been on the rise for the past five years, but due to the meth epidemic, it’s kind of taken a backseat.”

If use continues to rise, Richardson says Memphis can expect more robberies as well as an increase in viruses that can be spread by shared needles, such as HIV and Hepatitis C.

“If someone has a heroin addiction, it may cost them $50 to $75 a day, every day,” says Andy Dimond with the Memphis DEA office. “If they don’t have a job, they’re forced to turn to crime, but it’s less likely to be violent crime.”

Dimond says heroin users tend to commit crimes against property rather than people. During DEA investigations, Dimond says they’ve seen everything from computers to a Blockbuster video rental card traded for heroin.

“It has a ripple effect on the entire community,” he says. “Any one of us can have a laptop stolen out of our car because some heroin user needs it to sell or trade.”

Though heroin use is on the rise, marijuana, crack cocaine, and methamphetamine are still the most abused drugs in Memphis.