You Probably Won't Read This Heroin Article. But You Should.

MANCHESTER, NJ -- Heroin addict. The phrase brings up mental images of a grungy, disheveled old man, sitting on a stoop or a street corner, begging for money.

That stereotype -- ingrained in many adults years ago -- isn't the reality of heroin use today.

That's the message Manchester Township police sought to convey at a forum for residents held last spring at Manchester Township High School, and it is a similar message they conveyed at a forum earlier this month at the Manchester Township branch of the Ocean County Library.

"We are optimistic that this presentation will provide the community with a better understanding of the epidemic use of heroin within Manchester Township and the surrounding areas," the police department wrote in the event announcement on Facebook. "Our goal is to educate students, teachers, parents, family members and the community so together we can make a difference. It’s not just about arresting addicts; it’s about preventative education as well."

"You think of the heroin addict in the alley by the gas station," Manchester Sgt. James Komsa said during the forum last spring, "but that's not who we're seeing."

"I'm talking about someone who has a beautiful home, great kids, a job -- a 50-year-old woman," Komsa said. "If you see these signs, you have to do something and you have to do something quickly."

Police Chief Lisa Parker said education is part of the way to break the cycle.

"You've seen the cycle -- we lock them up, send them to jail and they're out. Over and over," Parker said. "In between that cycle are victims," victims of burglaries by strangers and by family members whose sole focus is getting that next fix.

"We have obligations to our citizens as well," Parker said. "(This forum) is about teaching parents, teachers, students and neighbors about what to look for and what to see" to prevent heroin addiction from destroying other lives.

Komsa said part of that starts with understanding that heroin claiming lives across the spectrum; that the stereotype most adults grew up with no longer applies, and that kids especially are at risk -- even the ones who come from good families with involved parents, he said.

"You could do all the right things and it still happens," he said, and presented a video produced by the Ohio Attorney General's office to drive the point home.

Watch it here:

The video left many in the audience wiping tears as the lights came back up. From there, Komsa, who is part of the Manchester police department's Narcotics Enforcement Team, presented statistics and detailed information about heroin.

Komsa said heroin overdoses have been on the rise in Manchester just as they have elsewhere in Ocean County. The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said there have been 141 overdose deaths in the county this year as of Oct. 30, according to a report on NJ.com.

"When I started here in 2000 we never saw heroin," Komsa said. "It was rare to see an arrest."

But the explosion of addiction led to the creation of the Narcotics Enforcement Team, set up as a pilot program in 2014. The team made 100 arrests from the end of July that year to December 2014, he said.

Prior to July 2014, no officers were dedicated to drug investigations full-time, he said. There was one detective assigned part-time to drug cases. Now, the officers are making frequent arrests, he said.

"One thing we learned early on, we can't arrest our way out of this problem," Komsa said, echoing remarks that Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph Coronato and other Ocean County law enforcement officials have made in the last two years. "We make an arrest, they go to jail, then next day they're out and using again." Some are arrested three, four, even five times in a year, he said.

Part of the problem is the availability of beds for those who need treatment, Komsa said. Waiting lists to get into detox and affordable in-patient treatment are long. Private places are often fare more expensive than those needing treatment can afford.

Komsa said that contrary to popular belief, the majority of heroin users today are getting addicted to opioid painkillers — drugs like OxyContin, Percodan and Percocet.

"This is what we're seeing," he said. "You suffer a knee injury, the doctor gives you a prescription for a painkiller. The next thing you know you've been taking Percocets for two months and now you're addicted." People eventually transition to heroin because it is cheaper, $4 to $10 per dose, as opposed to $25 to $35 per pill on the street for Percocet or OxyContin. Heroin also is easier to find.

"It is easier to find heroin in Manchester than any other drug," he said. "It is in every town in New Jersey."

The bottom line, presenters at the spring forum said, is despite the intensity of the crisis, there is hope.

"With everyone doing their part and helping each other, there's hope," they said.

Heroin in wax folds, seized during a drug arrest in Manchester. Displayed at a heroin information forum by Manchester Township Police. Photo by Karen Wall (Patch Staff)