TAKING BACK

UNWANTED PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

Saturday, October 26, 2013

On October 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. the San Gabriel Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will give the public its seventh opportunity in three years to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs.  Bring your medications for disposal to the San Gabriel Police Department, 625 South Del Mar Avenue in San Gabriel.  The service is free and anonymous; no questions asked.

Last April, Americans cheap cialis online turned in 371 tons (over 742,000 pounds) of prescription drugs at over 5,800 sites operated by the DEA and its thousands of state and local law enforcement partners.  In its six previous Take Back events, the DEA and its partners took in over 2.8 million pounds—more than 1,400 tons—of pills.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue.  Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.  Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. In addition, Americans are now advised that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—both pose potential safety and health hazards.

The DEA is in the process of approving new regulations that implement the Safe and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amends the Controlled Substances Act to allow an “ultimate user” (that is, a patient or pet or their family member or owner) of controlled substance medications to dispose of them by delivering them to entities authorized by the Attorney General to accept them.  The Act also allows the Attorney General to authorize long term care facilities to dispose of their residents’ controlled substances in certain instances.

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The San Gabriel Police Department will act as an official drug collection site on Saturday, October 26, 2013.  You may bring your unwanted prescription drugs to the San Gabriel Police Department, 625 South Del Mar Avenue, San Gabriel, CA 91776.  Sergeant Jeff Whitney can be reached at (626) 308-2845 or JW037@sgpd.com to provide further information regarding this event.

SAN GABRIEL POLICE TO COMBAT ROADWAY DEATHS AND INJURIES

WITH DUI CHECKPOINTS

The San Gabriel Police Department has been awarded a new traffic safety grant for an anti-DUI program aimed at preventing deaths and injuries on San Gabriel roadways.  Enforcement measures to combat impaired driving are coming as a result of a recent $37,449.00 grant awarded by the California Office of Traffic Safety to San Gabriel.  The San Gabriel Police Department is dedicated to keeping our streets safe through both enforcement and education.

“We continue to see far too many people suffer debilitating injuries and loss of their loved ones as a result of impaired driving. This careless disregard for human life must stop,” said San Gabriel Police Chief David A. Lawton.  “To help ensure that this happens, members of the San Gabriel Police Department are dedicated to arresting impaired drivers.”

The special DUI Checkpoint grant is to assist in efforts to reduce the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol and other drug related collisions in the community.  The grant activities will specifically target impaired driving offenders as well as educate the public on the dangers of impaired driving.  When possible, specially trained officers will be available to evaluate those suspected of drug-impaired driving.

Drunk and drugged driving are among America’s deadliest crimes. In 2011, a modern day low of 774 people were killed and over 24,000 injured in alcohol and drug-impaired crashes in California.  Crashes involving alcohol have been shown to drop by up to 20 percent when well-publicized checkpoints are conducted often enough.  Checkpoints have proven to be the most effective of any of the DUI enforcement strategies, while yielding considerable cost savings of $6 for every $1 spent and are supported by nearly 90 percent of California drivers.

Funding for this program is from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.