VG/PG Cops
Bridgewater police in Massachusetts are clamping down on crime by taking part in the Drug Enforcement Agency’s National Drug Take Back Day – but classing vapes as drugs
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by Dave Cross
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National Drug Take Back Day is a biannual, free, no-questions-asked event that gives the community the opportunity to aid in the fight against substance use disorder by disposing of potentially dangerous expired, unwanted or unused prescription drugs.
The event is due to start on October 24, at 10:00 AM, and will run for five hours.
The DEA says: “The National Prescription Drug Take Back Day addresses a crucial public safety and public health issue. According to the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 9.9 million Americans misused controlled prescription drugs. The study shows that a majority of abused prescription drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from the home medicine cabinet. The DEA’s Take Back Day events provide an opportunity for Americans to prevent drug addiction and overdose deaths.”
“Too often, unused prescription drugs find their way into the wrong hands. That's dangerous and often tragic. That's why it was great to see thousands of folks from across the country clean out their medicine cabinets and turn in - safely and anonymously - a record amount of prescription drugs.”
Chief Delmonte says residents can drop off unwanted pills or patches, but not liquids, needles or sharps. All fine so far, but the law enforcement loon is extending the day to include vape kit – except he won’t except all of it.
He doesn’t provide any reason for asking the town’s residents to bin the devices they paid for, just to say he won’t accept vape pens or e-cigarettes with batteries.
“If the battery cannot be removed, residents can check with large electronic chain stores who may accept their vape pen or e-cigarette devices for proper disposal. Residents may also contact their local Hazardous Materials Management Facility to determine if they accept these devices, and for additional guidance regarding proper disposal.”
The DEA is not calling for vapers to hand over their devices.
Delmonte added: “We encourage all of our residents to use this opportunity to get rid of any old or unwanted prescriptions, especially those who are looking to get rid of old e-cigarettes. E-cigarettes and vape pens will only be accepted on this day, but residents are welcomed to use the kiosk in our station’s lobby at any time throughout the year.”
Chief Delmonte has probably never seen a vaper hording equipment like a squirrel preparing for winter but we assure him that this is a thing.
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Image by Diego Fabian Parra Pabon from Pixabay
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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