Drug trafficker faces prison sentence

One reason why there are so many drug-addicted people in the world is because of the fact that there are also a lot of drug dealers and drug traffickers going around. Since people have access to illegal substances, they are likely to use them. When they get addicted to it, they commit different crimes and acts in a way that is against the law of society.

A man who law enforcement officials have called the primary illicit drug supplier on the North Olympic Peninsula pleaded guilty in federal court this week and faces up to 20 years in prison. Nicolas “Nico” Orozco-Cruz, who was the head of a drug trafficking organization pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and in the plea agreement attorneys recommend he face 46 to 71 months in prison.

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Orozco-Cruz, Elizabeth Ann McKean and Jessica Elen Christman were all arrested last year after a year-long Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team and Drug Enforcement Administration investigation into Orozco-Cruz’s drug trafficking organization, which officials believed was the primary supplier of Mexican-produced heroin and methamphetamine on the Olympic Peninsula.

Court papers say he was in the United States illegally.

Orozco-Cruz was indicted on charges of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, six counts of distribution of a controlled substance and alien in possession of a firearm.

Federal prosecutors have agreed to drop six distribution charges as part of the plea agreement.

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Woman recovering from methamphetamine addiction says she used while giving birth

We know for a fact that not only men use and get addicted to drugs, but even women as well. Especially in this present time, the number of women abusing drugs is increasing and the worse part is, there are mothers who even use drugs. There are those who are pregnant but still, they decided to use them. Here is a woman who is recovering from methamphetamine addiction and admitted to using while giving birth.

A recovering methamphetamine addict says she was so hooked on the drug she even used while she was in labour. In an interview with NZME, as part of its series on New Zealand’s meth crisis, Darnell Rumbal said the addiction was “stronger than my will to stop”.

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“With my youngest boy, even during pregnancy I used. I couldn’t stop using,” she told NZME.

“I went into labour six weeks early … When I went to the hospital and I was being monitored my friend turned up and had gear. I knew he had gear and even though I was in labour and even though I knew I was risking my child and I was in the hospital, I still said to him, have you got a puff? And he said yes, so we went into the toilets and I got high,” she told NZME.

Rumbal, of Bay of Plenty, is now more than a year clean.

Last year, the number of charges for the use and supply of methamphetamine hit at a 10-year high.

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Would you recognize the signs of drug addiction in your child?

Anyone can be an addict. At times we can immediately determine if one is under drugs or not. In some cases, without our knowledge that someone close to us- friends or acquaintance, or even our child can be on drugs. When children are involved, it can be very alarming and parents should know about it before it’s too late.

But if you are a parent, how would you know if your child is using drugs, or worse, addicted to it? A seminar happening Monday night in Huntsville is promising to give parents information they need to get their children to help if they become addicted to drugs or alcohol. Phil Plant, a recovery and intervention specialist based in Nashville, is hosting an event called Pushing Past Parental Paralysis.

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“It is really hard to really admit, to say, ‘my child is using drugs’. You want it to be anything else. So parent paralysis is a parent’s inability to help a child, they don’t know what to do, so they’re stuck and they don’t do anything which can lead to enabling which can really make the disease prolonged.”

Plant named off the usual signs parents need to be aware of, but warns, if a parent is in denial, it may be hard to start getting them help. “It’s important to recognize that addiction is a family disease. It’s not just the addict that is struggling. It affects every family member. Self care, with the family, and not just a focus on the person who’s addicted.”

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Several city health centers now equipped with prescription drug drop boxes

The abuse of prescription drugs is becoming a serious problem in many parts of the world. Also, there are a lot of people who do not exactly know how to properly dispose of their unneeded or expired prescription drugs. Given this, in Cincinnati, several of the city’s primary care centers are now equipped with prescription drug drop boxes, the health department announced Monday.

Health Commissioner Melba Moore said the boxes allow for a responsible means of disposing of unneeded or expired prescription drugs. “We believe that the easy access to the drug take-back boxes will be yet another drug abuse prevention measure to help curb the addiction crisis,” Moore said in a written statement.

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The organization PreventionFIRST! worked with city officials to purchase the prescription drop boxes through a grant from the Ohio Department of Health.

“Many homes have unwanted or expired prescription and over-the-counter medications,” said Mary Haag, president and CEO of PreventionFIRST! “When these medicines are no longer needed, they should be disposed of promptly and safely to reduce the chance of someone accidentally or intentionally misusing these medications.”

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Two rival politicians accused each other of using drugs

Drugs are everywhere. This also means that everyone talks about it and anyone can be involved in it. Whoever you are and regardless of your status in the society, you can be a victim of drugs or if not, you might be using them. Drugs can be in any setting, even in politics. Here are two rival politicians who are accusing each other of using drugs.

It’s been described as a “political pissing contest” — literally. Two feuding politicians in Bridgeport, Connecticut’s largest city, spent much of the past week accusing each other of being on mind-altering substances after getting into an ugly fight in the comments section of a local political blog. Naturally, they could only settle their dispute one way: by challenging each other to a public drug test.

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Calling it a “modern twist on the classic political duel,” the Connecticut Post reported on Monday that Bridgeport City Councilman Ernest Newton and Board of Education member Maria Pereira had both handed over plastic cups of urine and passed their respective tests.

As it turns out, they’re not the first ones to go through the humiliating ritual. Both front-runners in Ukraine’s presidential election submitted to live-streamed drug tests earlier this month, and the state of Georgia once made screenings mandatory for candidates running for state office.

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Former drug addict helps others using his experience, yerba mate company

Addiction can turn life upside down. In most cases, people fall into destruction because of it. However, there are also those people who admit their addiction, yet they took the courage to seek help and get out of it. In fact, there are those who serve as an inspiration to others, setting as an example and helping them better understand the effects of drugs and how it can change one’s life.

Five years ago, Wes Hurt struggled with addictions to cocaine, opiates, and alcohol. Today, he runs a company that helps others recovering from addiction. In 2014, Hurt founded CLEAN Cause, an Austin-based yerba mate tea company, to help people recovering from addiction by allocating 50% of profits to sober-living scholarships. He said he not only wanted to be an entrepreneur but also have an impact.

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Hurt said his addiction started in high school, when he began experimenting with drugs and alcohol. In the span of 20 years, Hurt went to six rehabilitation centers and ended up in a psychiatric hospital. After realizing he was truly hooked, Hurt said he continued postponing the recovery process like a New Year’s resolution.

“That was one of my more difficult realizations about my life,” Hurt said. “I knew there was going to be a long battle back.”

It wasn’t until Hurt was dismissed from his former company, had no money left and lived in a warehouse after his wife kicked him out that he realized he wanted to change.

“CLEAN is the product of that extremism in a healthier way,” Hurt said. “It speaks to something bigger, which was an explicit purpose in life that gave my actions reasons (to fight) for recovery.”

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Recovering addict shares her story with local opioid council

The availability of drug addiction treatment centers and the many initiatives led by the government and different organizations have helped many people who are abusing drugs. Although the problem with drugs still exist and the number of users is increasing, if there is one good thing about, it’s the fact that there are many of them who are also trying their best to quit and live a new life. Many of these recovery addicts also share their stories to inspire others.

At 27, “Hope” found herself serving three years in prison after a stint of abusing prescription drugs and later addiction to heroin. She said she started abusing drugs because of the trauma she experienced as a teenager. Unsure about how to cope, she turned to drugs. “I wasn’t addicted to the drug. I was addicted to the numbing,” she said. “I wasn’t using to feel something. I was using to not feel.”

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The Madison County resident grew up in what she described as a “very loving, Christian home.” She attended a Christian academy and went to college. At 16, she was raped and Hope said she didn’t know how to handle the shame she felt. She said her lack of self-worth led her to stay in a mentally abusive relationship, which created more trauma. She said getting “mixed in with the wrong crowd” also contributed to her abuse of drugs.

Following a car accident, Hope began abusing prescription pills. Two years later, she transitioned into using heroin. While Hope stopped using drugs while she was pregnant, she said her inability to cope with pain led her back to using drugs.

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