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Section 35: Saving the lives of addicts that don't want to be saved

LOWELL, Mass. — Lowell police officer Kevin Garneau's phone never stops ringing and answering isn't optional. "We'll help you and that's what we're here for" he says to a concerned family member on the other end.

As he’s finishing one call, another phone starts ringing. It’s another person concerned about a friend suffering from addiction. The only problem is the friend doesn’t want help.

“I have a lot of fear they're going to die before they can actually see that recovery light at the end of the tunnel” said Garneau.

In Lowell, the opioid crisis has become so dire, they're taking desperate measures to save their community through involuntary commitment.  It's a last resort they say is saving people who may not want to be saved.

Garneau, along with his two colleagues, make up Lowell's new multi-million dollar Community Opioid Outreach Program, CO-OP. The team works with Lowell General Hospital to get addicts into treatment and other support programs and has seen a drop in the number of overdose deaths since the program started.

But when addicts refuse treatment, there's Section 35.  It's a chapter of Massachusetts law that allows law enforcement, hospitals, or families to petition a court to commit an addict against their will for up to 90 days.   In Lowell, part of the CO-OP's job includes using Section 35 for substance abusers.

According to Lowell police, in the first 6 months of 2016, the city had 40 reported fatal opioid overdoses. That number dropped to 22 for the last half of 2016.

“We're doing an analysis now to see if some of the things we've put into place, like CO-OP has had a positive impact” said Lowell Police Superintendent William Taylor.

Boston University law professor Sean Kealy says as the opioid epidemic has grown, Section 35 has evolved from being part of the criminal process to being a lifesaving tool.

“The key here is there's this likelihood of substantial harm. The system is hoping to prevent people from harming themselves or others. At times, it's essential to getting into these secure settings so it doesn't happen” said Kealy.

Before a judge can approve a Section 35, petitioners must prove the defendant has a substance abuse disorder and will likely harm themselves or others due to their condition.

"We had one patient with twelve overdoses in one year" said Scott Wallace, a social worker at Circle Care at Lowell General Hospital.

"People don't always appreciate that they got locked up for a month but you notice a spring in their step, that they have hope, and are no longer existing but living. It’s great to see" said Wallace

Some of the criteria he says they look for when petitioning for a Section 35: multiple overdoses, failure with inpatient treatment, failure with detoxes, inability to seek help when needed.

Section 35 rulings are not easily handed out, but have been rising statewide.  In the fiscal year of 2016, the Massachusetts Alcohol and Substance Abuse Center in Bridgewater admitted over 2,400 men through section 35.  That's up over 60 percent from two years earlier.

Last year in Lowell, police and local hospitals committed about 80 people. It's a last resort, CO-OP firefighter Kevin Jones wishes he had for his nephew.

”The reason the fire department has a person riding along with a cop…I lost my nephew to opioid addiction. If Section 35 had been in place in New Hampshire, he would be alive right now” Jones said.

Recovering addict Jaime Vasquez didn't want help.

When FOX25 met Jaime last year, he told us his addiction to opioids began 20 years ago. Last year, he says he hit rock bottom while living in a tent city in Lowell. That's when the CO-OP team petitioned the court for Section 35.

"Through the grace of God and them helping me, I am here to tell my story" said Vazquez

Vasquez credits this law and the CO-OP team for saving his life, which at the time he no longer believed deserved saving.

"They stressed our lives did matter and that's what gave me motivation to get up and do something" said Vazquez

But for every success story there are failures.

"We had one section 35 where I picked up this patient at his work and 3 days after he was released from detox, he was deceased" Garneau recalled.

While Section 35 is not the solution, many believe it's a critical component, along with more treatment facilities, and post-treatment support programs.