The drastic and deadly face of opioid epidemic

The answer to the heroin epidemic remains elusive. Tougher penalties for drug dealers is a start.

How insidious is the opioid epidemic that is ravaging so many of our communities.

Two recent stories show just how nefarious – and deadly – this problem is, and how far we still need to go in combating it.

Last week a 39-year-old Chester woman was charged with drug delivery resulting in death, among a slew of other charges.

Police say Alexandria Santa Barbara sold her neighbor, a 51-year-old Trainer man, a $10 bag of heroin.

At least she believed it was heroin. It turned out to be pure fentanyl.

Fentanyl is quickly becoming almost as big a problem as heroin in the opioid wars. It’s a powerful synthetic, 50 to 100 times more powerful than the common heroin found on the street.

It is now often being added to heroin to increase the ‘kick,’ often with deadly results.

Then a man who was already in state prison on drug-dealing charges for transporting 1,500 bags of heroin in his car was charged with the sale of a fatal overdose of the drug.

How cheap is life in the drug wars? ‘

Police say that Raheem Harper swapped heroin for a PlayStation game.

A 28-year-old Chester man was killed by the heroin laced with fentanyl in April 2017.

Harper was arrested later that day in Tinicum Township. He was released on bail.

But he was stopped again less a month later in Clifton Heights when residents reported a vehicle suspected of taking part in drug transactions in the borough.

Harper was pulled over and a search of the vehicle turned up 1,500 packets of heroin.

Some of the packets matched those found at the scene of the earlier fatal overdose.

In total Harper is now looking at the possibility of spending nearly 70 years in prison. Santa Barbara faces of a maximum of 20 to 40 years behind bars.

The Delaware County district attorney is wielding the new felony charge of drug delivery resulting in death as the latest tool in the opioids war.

She is hoping it sends a powerful message to drug dealers, at least as powerful as the poison they are peddling.

This region has been in the forefront of the battle vs. heroin. Delaware, Chester and Montgomery counties have established heroin task forces. They have set up drop-off boxes where residents can get rid of unused opioid prescriptions or painkillers. They have arrested doctors suspected of operating little more than pill mills, handing out painkillers like candy. Delaware County has even filed suit against the drugmakers. Officials pushed for David’s Law, which resulted in the miracle, overdose-reversing drug Narcan being placed in police and first responder vehicles.

The drug has been used to save thousands of lives since it went into effect.

The answer to the heroin epidemic remains elusive. Some law enforcement officers point out they are now seeing repeat heroin offenders revived from death’s door by Narcan, only to go right back to the problem that landed them in such dire straits.

Certainly more treatment and rehab options are needed.

A new facility opened at Crozer Chester Medical Center has been full since they opened the doors.

Delaware County District Attorney Katayoun Copeland is fully aware of the depth of the problem.

“We’ve gotten together as a community, as our District Attorney’s office in combination with County Council, in combination with our treatment providers, our recovery enters and are trying to find new and innovative ways to deal with the epidemic,” she said.

“We recognize that we will do whatever we need to do to make sure our community members are kept safe.”

That includes this new felony charge of drug delivery resulting in death.

Those who insist on peddling this menace – in particular those who do so with knowledge that the much more powerful – and deadly – fentanyl has been added to their poison, deserve to face the full wrath of the law.