Mother: Heroin Doesn’t Care Who You Are

CHARLOTTE, NC — North Carolina ranks ninth in the country for the most heroin overdoses. Local police, hospitals and families say the deaths are growing at an alarming rate.

Just weeks after his 35th birthday, Jason Freeman died after two years of using heroin.

“Jason was smart and funny,” said his mother, Alicia Owens. “His IQ was off the charts. He spoke several languages. Heroin doesn’t care who you are.”

Nearly 9,000 people in Mecklenburg County alone overdose due to the drug every year. A number Annuvia Rehab counselor Edward Blevins has seen climb at an alarming rate since 2010.

“45 percent of people who are in the Charlotte area using heroin start off on pain medication, prescribed pain medication from their doctor,” said Blevins.

Right now, his rehab facility is treating at least 100 addicts. 11 years ago, that number was 50. The youngest heroin user he’s treated was 14 years old.

The drug is abundant and cheap. 10 bucks for a bag that can last a few days.

“A person, from the time they think about getting the drug, and this is in Mecklenburg County, to the time they get it: 30 minutes,” said Blevins.

Alicia Owens learned just how easily her son could get his fix.

“You can go to almost any convenience store in Charlotte and find a dealer in the parking lot,” she said.

Officer Tim Aycock with the Matthews Police Department says narcotics teams worked 35 cases in which people were using or dealing heroin in 2015. In 2014 that number was 23.

“We have a narcotics bust at a home that is known for narcotic issues, we see it there, up to middle class homes, everyday working people,” said Officer Aycock.

No county is immune in North Carolina. Union County deputies charged Farrell Glaser with murder in December after tracing an overdose back to the 24-year-old as the seller.

Law enforcement says users aren’t just injecting it, but snorting powder. There’s even pill form now, appealing to children.

Narcan is a nose spray that is stopping people from overdosing immediately. In the past only first responders and doctors had the treatment to save patients. Now, friends and family of opiate users can get the spray.

The North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition has handed out 19,000 kits.

The estimate 1,500 kits have been used to stop people from overdosing.

To learn about those rescue kits, click here.

“It’s the dirty secret in the family, you know? You don’t want anyone to know your child is a heroin addict,” said Owens.

But Owens isn’t hiding. Her son’s obituary printed around the state says “…Jason lost his battle with heroin addiction.”

“Maybe it will save one person,” said Owens.

Her aim now is to raise awareness.

“It’s a savage beast that’s going to take everybody with it that it can take,” she said.

To learn more about addiction treatment and recovery, click here.