Mar 5, 2007 5:58 pm US/Central
Teen Addicted To Heroin 'Cheese' Speaks Out
DALLAS (CBS 11 News) ―
Crime among teens has gone up 40 percent and four people have died of drug abuse this school year in Dallas County. Officials attribute this to the heroin based drug known as "Cheese."
Officials say there are thousands of teens addicted to the drug, and the devastation it can do to the liver and brain is astounding.
One former DISD student shared her battled with addiction. The teen did not want to reveal her identity.
"I would get a lot," she said. "Me and my friends would share it." All this occurred within the halls of Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas.
"I mainly did it at school because it's easiest to get it at school," she said. "Sometimes the kids would do it right behind the teacher, like when she turned her back."
The girl was 15 when she nearly overdosed from "Cheese." The teen said she did the drug twice an hour.
Now 17, the girl is back on track. But it has been a long road to recovery. She admitted the dangerous mix of Tylenol and heroin consumed her life. She stole cash from family and went through the detoxification process twice.
Her story is not uncommon. "I think we're talking about thousands of kids at this point," said Executive Director of the Dallas County Health and Human Services Zach Thompson. "It's not only in northwest Dallas, but it's moved to the suburban communities."
Health officials are teaming up with several agencies that hope to help addicts with treatment and help families with aftercare.
"We have to open up new treatment facilities," Thompson said. "It may be 'Cheese' today or something else tomorrow, but since we are dealing with this highly addictive drug, we need to get individuals in."
"It's not a good feeling to go through," the teen said. "It's not worth all the respect you have toward your parents."
DISD will host two community meetings to discuss the "Cheese" problem in the district. The first meeting will be held on March 24 at Thomas Jefferson High, 4001 Walnut Hill in Dallas. The second meeting will be held on March 31 at North Dallas High, 3120 North Haskell in Dallas.
Both meetings will begin at 8:00 a.m. and will be open to middle and high school students and parents.
Police will not use police dogs to sniff out drugs at the schools until after Spring Break (March 12 -16).
(CBS 11 News)
