A Foxborough Mother Pleas for Police to Carry Drug to Fight Heroin Overdoses

A Foxborough mother had made a plea to the town and their public safety officials to start carrying a life saving antidote that can reverse a heroine overdose.

Speaking during citizen’s input at Tuesday, selectmen meeting, resident and mother of two heroine addicts Kris Long asked the selectmen and the Police Department to start carrying Narcan, a reversal drug that can instantly stop a heroine overdoes.

“That needs to change. We have a lot of people that are overdosing,” Long told the selectmen.

Long said she was aware of four overdoses in Foxborough during the 10 days prior to Tuesday’s meeting. She also said that Taunton alone had 185 reported overdoses.

Police Chief Ed O’Leary told the Sun Chronicle last week that six patrol officers, two sergeants and two lieutenants started carrying Narcan on Sunday.

The remaining 21 officers will learn how to administer Narcan when they go though their in-service classes.

According to Foxborough Fire Chief Roger Hatfield, Narcan is carried in his department’s ambulance, with Hatfield calling overdoes, “a frequent situation that we are dealing with in Foxborough.”

When asked why Foxborough police officers have been slow to carry Narcan, O’Leary said that the training is scheduled as part of the officer’s first responder re-certification by the Massachusetts Criminal Justice Training Committee. All 31 officers are set to complete the training by the end of April.