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Plague of heroin deaths probed by police, coroner
A troubling rise in heroin overdoses is being tackled by Victoria Police and the Coroner, who are investigating whether increased purity is responsible for the deaths.
The number of heroin deaths jumped almost 20 per cent in 2015, an increase equivalent to an extra death every fortnight.
Heroin overdoses remained steady between 127 and 137 annual deaths since 2009, but hit 168 last year, according to figures released by the Coroners Court of Victoria this month.
Chantelle Miller, the manager of Victoria Police's drug and alcohol strategy unit, confirmed that police, the Coroners Prevention Unit, and the Department of Health and Human Services were working together to share and examine data and intelligence on heroin purity, seizures and overdoses.
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In the past seven years, heroin contributed to 943 deaths, more overdoses than for any other drug except diazepam.
Despite heroin being Victoria's deadliest illicit substance, Ms Miller said only a small number of the 23,020 drug offences recorded last year involved heroin.
She said this meant the information group considered making recommendations relating to all drugs.
"This information assists police to develop strategic and operational responses to reduce the supply and demand of all illicit drugs, not just heroin.
"This intelligence is also used to inform government on broader issues relating to drug use and harm."
Crime Statistics Agency data shows drug-related offences in Victoria have increased significantly, but cannabis accounts for the majority of offences, followed by methamphetamine.
Drug use and possession offences jumped 16.5 per cent from December 2014 to December last year, and trafficking and dealing offences were up 17.7 per cent.
The number of use and possession offences has almost doubled since 2011.
Methamphetamine offences were largely behind the increase, Ms Miller said.
The Coroners Court data released earlier this month showed overdose deaths had reached a seven-year high.
Jeremy Dwyer, from the Coroners Prevention Unit, found that this increase was due to the jump in overdoses from illegal drugs, despite pharmaceutical drugs being responsible for a larger proportion of overall deaths.
Illicit drug overdoses were most prevalent in local government areas that have long been associated with heroin.
Yarra recorded 96 illegal drug overdoses, and had a rate of total overdoses more than three times the metropolitan average.
The council includes Victoria Street, Abbotsford – ground-zero in the fight against the state's heroin scourge – and therefore subject to calls for either a hard-line approach led by tougher policing, or a harm-minimisation approach including safe injecting rooms.
Melbourne had 89 overdoses that were due to illegal drugs, and Port Phillip, which includes St Kilda and surrounding suburbs, had 79.
In regional Victoria, Geelong recorded 40 illegal drug overdoses. However, it is the largest regional local government area, with more than twice the number of residents than the second largest council, Bendigo.
The regional councils with the highest rate of total overdoses per capita were Glenelg, in the state's far west, which had a rate double the regional average, Latrobe, and Northern Grampians.
Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/p...ce-coroner-20160415-go7ax4.html#ixzz468kBGYgw
A troubling rise in heroin overdoses is being tackled by Victoria Police and the Coroner, who are investigating whether increased purity is responsible for the deaths.
The number of heroin deaths jumped almost 20 per cent in 2015, an increase equivalent to an extra death every fortnight.
Heroin overdoses remained steady between 127 and 137 annual deaths since 2009, but hit 168 last year, according to figures released by the Coroners Court of Victoria this month.
Chantelle Miller, the manager of Victoria Police's drug and alcohol strategy unit, confirmed that police, the Coroners Prevention Unit, and the Department of Health and Human Services were working together to share and examine data and intelligence on heroin purity, seizures and overdoses.
Advertisement
In the past seven years, heroin contributed to 943 deaths, more overdoses than for any other drug except diazepam.
Despite heroin being Victoria's deadliest illicit substance, Ms Miller said only a small number of the 23,020 drug offences recorded last year involved heroin.
She said this meant the information group considered making recommendations relating to all drugs.
"This information assists police to develop strategic and operational responses to reduce the supply and demand of all illicit drugs, not just heroin.
"This intelligence is also used to inform government on broader issues relating to drug use and harm."
Crime Statistics Agency data shows drug-related offences in Victoria have increased significantly, but cannabis accounts for the majority of offences, followed by methamphetamine.
Drug use and possession offences jumped 16.5 per cent from December 2014 to December last year, and trafficking and dealing offences were up 17.7 per cent.
The number of use and possession offences has almost doubled since 2011.
Methamphetamine offences were largely behind the increase, Ms Miller said.
The Coroners Court data released earlier this month showed overdose deaths had reached a seven-year high.
Jeremy Dwyer, from the Coroners Prevention Unit, found that this increase was due to the jump in overdoses from illegal drugs, despite pharmaceutical drugs being responsible for a larger proportion of overall deaths.
Illicit drug overdoses were most prevalent in local government areas that have long been associated with heroin.
Yarra recorded 96 illegal drug overdoses, and had a rate of total overdoses more than three times the metropolitan average.
The council includes Victoria Street, Abbotsford – ground-zero in the fight against the state's heroin scourge – and therefore subject to calls for either a hard-line approach led by tougher policing, or a harm-minimisation approach including safe injecting rooms.
Melbourne had 89 overdoses that were due to illegal drugs, and Port Phillip, which includes St Kilda and surrounding suburbs, had 79.
In regional Victoria, Geelong recorded 40 illegal drug overdoses. However, it is the largest regional local government area, with more than twice the number of residents than the second largest council, Bendigo.
The regional councils with the highest rate of total overdoses per capita were Glenelg, in the state's far west, which had a rate double the regional average, Latrobe, and Northern Grampians.
Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/p...ce-coroner-20160415-go7ax4.html#ixzz468kBGYgw
