Interstate Partnership to Benefit Heroin Trafficking in Massachusetts

Monday, October 13, 2014

Nicholas Handy, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

Massachusetts has joined three other states as a part of a task force to combat the heroin epidemic currently happening in the Northeastern part of the country.

In joining the task force – which also includes New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York – Massachusetts hopes to enhance coordination between law enforcement agencies throughout the country and utilize interstate resources to help eliminate illegal drug trafficking.

“We know all too well how heroin is devastating communities and families,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley. “We must find innovative ways to stop illegal drug trafficking and prevent these sophisticated networks from moving across state lines. This partnership strengthens our commitment to sharing information and resources.”

In Massachusetts, heroin use and addiction has been on the rise and was declared a public health emergency in March by Governor Deval Patrick. The Governor’s Office reported at the time that the number of unintentional opiate overdoses increased by 90 percent between 2000 and 2012. Furthermore, state police report at least 200 deaths from suspected heroin overdoses in the last year.

Working Together

Although there are only four states in the coalition as of right now, more are expected to join within the next couple weeks.

The task force – named the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Heroin Task Force (NEMA-HTF) – was created with the hope of providing a framework in which various state attorney generals can work together in collaboration and share information to combat the growing problem of heroin trafficking across state borders. Rather than focusing on the lower-level dealers, this task force hopes to focus on the large-scale distribution operations that often span multiple states.

“The drug dealers don’t stop at the state border, and with this partnership, neither will law-enforcement,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane. “By sharing intelligence and other resources, we are taking this war to them, not waiting for them to infiltrate our communities. Today we are putting them on notice – we’re here and we are working together. You can’t hide by crossing the state line.”

Worcester Initiative

An interstate partnership is definitely beneficial in stopping the flow of deadly heroin into the state, but Worcester as a city has been working with local, regional, and statewide law enforcement in order to combat the heroin that is current in the state.

According to a Worcester Police Department press release on October 10th, the Worcester Police – in partnership with the Massachusetts State Police and the Worcester District Attorney’s Office – arrested 41 people as a part of a two-day narcotics sweep.

“The investigation began in the middle of the summer of 2014 and involved undercover drug buys over a period of approximately two months,” said the Worcester Police in their press release. “The goal of the investigation was to target gang members and violent offenders in the city.”