Politics & Government

Manley, Bertino-Tarrant Host Heroin Task Force Hearing in Plainfield

Event is April 19 at Troy Middle School.

Submitted by the Office of State Rep. Natalie Manley:

State Rep. Natalie Manley (D-Joliet), and state Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood), are hosting the fourth hearing of the Young Adults Heroin Use Task Force at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 19 at 10 a.m. at Troy Middle School, located at 5800 W. Theodore St. in Plainfield.

“Our community must continue to work together to prevent our children from using heroin,” said Manley. “While we have made progress, my hope is that we will all have a better and more comprehensive understanding of heroin addiction, so that we will be able to make the best recommendations for effective programs within schools.”

The purpose of the task force is to make effective recommendations for Illinois middle schools and high schools to educate students and prevent heroin use. Speakers at the hearing include Will County Executive, Larry Walsh; Will County Coroner, Pat O’Neil; Stepping Stones’ Executive Director, Pete McLenighan; Robert Crown Center’s Kathleen Burke; and from the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office, Coordinator of the Adult and Juvenile Drug Courts, Julie McCabe-Sterr. They will address psychological effects and treatment of heroin, how it affects the family, first-hand accounts of the repercussions of heroin use, and what Will County has been working on to combat the drug.

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“This is a community issue and one that Will County has been working to combat for quite some time,” Bertino-Tarrant said.  “We have already instituted drug courts in our area, which requires rehabilitation, even for first time offenders. We also work closely with the Robert Crown Center and area schools to educate children about the dangers of even trying this drug one time. We still have a long way to go, but for the first time since 1999 the number of heroin-related deaths in Will County has decreased.”


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