Schools, Cops: Hard Drugs on the Rise in Jefferson

Some Jefferson residents tell stories of families torn apart. Of childhoods lost. Of futures ruined.

They're the Jefferson residents whose lives have been touched by drugs—a topics that's gained prominence in the town's public sphere in recent months. At a recent candidates' night for the school board, and at a board of education meeting, questions have been raised about what some see as an increasing problem. Everything from education to random drug testing has been put on the table for discussion.

Jefferson Township's schools superintendent said the core of the problem is not necessarily that drug use overall has increased.

“I would contend that there is a collective national awareness that an unacceptable number of students are involved in the use of dangerous drugs—this is not new information for any of us,” said Dr. Kathaleen Fuchs, superintendent of Jefferson Township schools. “What is alarming is that in recent years drugs have become more potent and easier for our children to acquire."

In 2009, the most recent year for which statistics were available, Jefferson township accounted for approximately 6.5 percent of all Morris County drug arrests. The town represents about 5 percent of the population of the county.

Just slightly later, in 2010, Jefferson police made 27 arrests of adults for alleged possession of Schedule I, II, II and IV drugs, which include heroin and prescription medications, according to Jefferson Township police department records. There were 43 arrests of adults and 10 juvenile complaints for alleged possession of 50 grams or less of marijuana. There were two adult arrests and two juvenile complaints for alleged possession of 50 grams or more of marijuana. Police made 29 adult arrests and lodged six juvenile complaints for alleged possession of drug paraphernalia.

Throughout Morris County, there were 1,585 adult arrests and 304 juvenile complaints for drug offenses in Morris County, according to the State Police's Uniform Crime Report, as compared to 1,519 adult arrests and 313 juvenile complaints for 2008. Statewide, 47,706 adults were arrested for drug offenses, and 5,572 juvenile complaints were lodged, compared to 49,002 and 5,930 respectively for 2008.

"Do I think the problem is a lot worse here than anywhere else in the county? No," said Captain Eric Wilsusen of the Jefferson Township Police Department. "Do I think it's growing here? Yes. And I think the problem is that we're seeing more heroin, which is a much more addictive drug than things like marijuana or alcohol, which are traditionally called gateway drugs."

The police captain said Jefferson has an active drug investigation program, "and I’d like to think that we’ve curtailed the issue to a certain degree.”

Wilsusen said that while Jefferson is a fairly low-crime community, the police department sees a lot of what he termed “lifting.”

“People go around and lift car door handles,” he said. “When they find one open, they rummage. Our investigations have found that a lot of these crimes are drug-related, as people are looking for quick cash or something to sell to get money for drugs.”

Others have seen evidence of this as well.

At the candidates night, current board of education member Judy Castiglione asked the candidates how they intended to handle the substance abuse problem in the schools.

"My son, a recovered heroin addict, was offered drugs for the first time when he was a student at Jefferson Middle School," she said.

Castiglione said she would like to see random drug testing in the schools, an idea that has met with some resistance.

"I'm not sure testing a bunch of 12-year-olds for drugs is the answer," said Mark Krisinski, parent and board of education candidate. "I'd like to see education be put into place."

At a later board of education meeting, Castiglione countered that opinion.

"I think we need a way for kids to be able to say no," she said. "If parents signed their kids up for random drug testing, then if someone offered them something, they would be able to say no, and that they chanced getting in real trouble if they were drug tested.

"Unfortunately, I think this is a bigger problem than we are willing to admit," she continued. "There has to be something more than what we're doing that we can be doing. I'm not going to stop until this problem is out of Jefferson."

Each day this week, Jefferson Patch explores the impact drugs are having on our community. Today, we also share the tale of a Jefferson man whose family struggled for years with addiction.