WEISER, Idaho — Law enforcement around the Treasure Valley says fentanyl is a growing threat and the need for education and awareness is great.
Governor Brad Little's Operation Esto Perpetua Citizen's Action Group met with Sheriff's Offices, Police Departments, Idaho State Police, and other community members in Weiser on Wednesday.
"From a law enforcement perspective, we are inundated with these calls on overdoses, seizures, interdiction," Canyon County Sheriff Kieran Donahue told the task force at the Weiser Vendome Event Center.
Donahue, who has been outspoken about the dangers of the synthetic opioid for a while, said the time has come to show the public the "evil" and real dangers it brings.
"I've personally had four officers be affected dramatically and go down, if you will, immediately upon having contact, not with the fentanyl itself but actually airborne particles from the fentanyl," Donahue said.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine. Besides how deadly it is, the rise of how much law enforcement has come across is another concern.
"Last year we had 3,000 pills seized, this quarter alone we've had over 10,000 pills that we seized," said Pocatello Polie Chief Roger Schei.
According to the governor's office, law enforcement reporting shows drugs are primarily transported into Oregon and Idaho from Mexico through California. Also, approximately 96% of drug trafficking organizations investigated identified Mexico as the source country for drugs trafficked into the region.
"What sticks out to me is just how silently this has crept up in communities," said the Chair of the group, former prosecutor and former state representative Luke Malek.
This is the second Citizen's Action Group meeting since Esto Perpetua was formed in March. They previously met with local leaders and the public in Coeur d'Alene earlier this month to hear their experiences with the drug.
"We have to get ahead of this educate people on just how deadly and dangerous and addictive fentanyl is and make sure that people are aware of what's happening in their communities," Malek said.
Law enforcement said it's become a lot more accessible and is being repackaged to look like legitimate prescription medication or other drugs.
Law enforcement around the areas said the staffing shortages and the lack of testing capabilities also have made it difficult for them to fight the problem. They said it could sometimes take weeks for them to get results back on drug seizures, and if it's someone that is passing through it could be difficult to find them again.
There's also the safety aspect for officers that is a concern.
Last April, two Canyon County Sheriff's Office deputies were hospitalized after they were exposed to suspected fentanyl while booking an inmate.
While the deputies were booking an inmate into the Dale Haile Detention Center, they found an unidentified substance on his person during a routine search. After confiscating the substance, both deputies began experiencing symptoms associated with fentanyl exposure.
"It's really important that we find solutions that are safe for our people to be using so we don't have officers that are out here trying to protect their communities and overdosing themselves on this same problem," Creech said.
State leaders and law enforcement say while strict Idaho laws curb some drug dealers from entering the state, there is still work that needs to be done when it comes to training, education, and equipment.
State leaders said Idaho can't arrest their way out of it.
"Law enforcement agencies have got to have the tools that they need and that includes increased laboratory capacity," said a member of the group and Idaho Speaker of the House Scott Bedke (R) of Oakley.
Malek said through this process he hopes to speak more on the behavioral and mental health aspect when it comes to opioids and addiction.
"We have to have the resources in place to make sure that they can transition smoothly away from that opioid addiction," Malek said.
Malek and Bedke said as part of the awareness campaign they want to target schools and work with School Resource Officers to help educate teenagers.
"Don't even experiment with this stuff, is really the big message that people need to take away," Malek said.
The Citizen's Action Group will meet two more times with the public and law enforcement before the Law Enforcement Panel with Esto Perpetua will target goals. Malek said the next meeting will be in Pocatello.
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