The most dangerous policy that the Plano police
could pursue is arresting people who call 911 or an
emergency room in a drug-related crisis.

Kelly Marie Smith would have been better off had she
dumped Natacha Campbell in a ditch rather than
trying to save her life. If the police are interested in
saving lives, they should adopt a policy of never
responding to unconscious person calls.
Paramedics only should respond and they should
bring naloxone.

Some accurate information in the media wouldn't
hurt either. The term "overdose" is very misleading.
Death rarely occurs from taking too much heroin
and it is a long, slow process. In contrast, death
can occur quickly if even a typical dose of heroin is
used with another depressant, such as alcohol. In
either case the patient can be saved with a timely
injection of naloxone, but not if everyone involved
is afraid to call for help.

The job of the police is to arrest people. Saving
lives is the job of the medical community. Turning
drug policy over to the police has gotten us where
we are today, 12 dead in and around Plano and
counting.

Suzanne Wills
Treasurer, Drug Policy Forum of Texas Dallas