Repercussions of Drug Abuse Don't Just Affect Users

So much of the bad news you read about in newspapers or hear on the evening news has a drug component to it. Even if that doesn’t make the headlines, drugs or alcohol are often involved in so many of the crimes reported, from domestic violence to child abuse to theft.

That doesn’t mean that there aren’t many good people struggling with drug addiction who are never involved in a violent crime and would never hurt another person, but illegal drugs or the abuse of legal prescription medications can cause people to do things they would never do sober. What’s worse, no one is immune. Even a close-knit, seemingly safe Orthodox Jewish community can become a victim.

Leiby Kletzky

Drugs had no part in 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky’s life, until he disappeared earlier this month on his way home from religious summer camp in his Brooklyn neighborhood. Within days, his body would be found, and autopsy results for Kletzky would list a cocktail of four prescription and over-the-counter drugs in the boy's system: cyclobenzaprine, a muscle relaxant; quetiapine, an antipsychotic drug; hydrocodone, a pain medication; and acetaminophen, the drug found in Tylenol, according to a statement from the medical examiner's office. A jury quickly indicted a neighborhood man, Levi Aron, for kidnapping, drugging and dismembering the boy.

The 35-year-old Aron faces two felony murder counts and a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. Admittedly, the drugs played a small part in what is a larger, horrific crime, and there’s no proof that Aron was on drugs at the time of the alleged abduction or murder. But the availability of those powerful drugs and their use to subdue the young victim are part of the story, and a reminder that the problem of drug abuse affects us all.

Drug Addiction Treatment

If you or someone you love is battling a drug addiction , call La Paloma at our toll-free number. Someone is there to take your call 24 hours a day and answer any questions you have about drug abuse treatment, financing or insurance.