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Wallkill Valley Times , Wednesday , November 9 , 2016

PUBLIC AGENDA

WEDNESDAY , NOVEMBER 9 Crawford Planning Board , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 121 Route 302 , Pine Bush .

THURSDAY , NOVEMBER 10

Montgomery Town Board Audit / Work Session , 7 p . m . Town Government Center , 110 Bracken Road , Montgomery .

MONDAY , NOVEMBER 14 Maybrook Village Board , 7 p . m . Village Government Center , 111 Schipps Lane , Maybrook . Valley Central Board of Education 7:15 p . m . Administration building , 944 Route 17K , Montgomery . Town of Montgomery Planning Board , 7:30 p . m . Town Government Center , 110 Bracken Road , Montgomery .

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The Wallkill Valley Times , ( USPS 699-490 ) is a weekly newspaper published every Wednesday at Newburgh , N . Y . 12550 , with offices at 300 Stony Brook Court , Newburgh , N . Y . . Single copy : $ 1 at newsstand . By mail in Orange , Ulster or Sullivan Counties : $ 40 annually , $ 44 out of county . Periodicals permit at Newburgh , N . Y . POSTMASTER : Send address changes to Wallkill Valley Times , 300 Stony Brook Court , Newburgh , N . Y . 12550

By JESSICA COHEN jcohen @ tcnewspapers . com

Three police officers were recently hired by the Town of Wallkill , at Police Chief Robert Hertman ’ s request , said Wallkill Town Supervisor Dan Depew .

“ But we could have hired 40 more ,” DePew said .

After what Hertman described as a “ dramatic ” rise in crime , largely stemming from rises in heroin use , the board passed an amendment to transfer funds from a revenue line outside the police budget to hire more officers , said DePew .

Along with heroin-related crime increases came a rise in overdoses .

“ The county is leading the state in drug overdoses ,” said Hertman , noting that since Wallkill police officers were trained during the summer to use Narcan , an opioid antidote , they have saved five lives . Just a few days earlier , he said , the police received a call about a man unconscious at a Super Eight Motel , who was then saved with Narcan .

“ There ’ s been an exponential jump in overdoses over the last two years ,” he said , with over 100 county-wide this year .

From larceny to prostitution , increases in crime are linked to heroin addiction , as offenders are often apprehended carrying drug paraphernalia or going through withdrawal , said Hertman .

From 2015 to 2016 , robberies have more than doubled , rising from seven to 15 , including two robberies of pharmacies , from which defendants stole prescription drugs . Robberies of fast food restaurants along Route 211 were also part of a pattern , Hertman said .

Aggravated assaults increased by a third , from 17 to 23 this year . Larcenies also increased by a third , from 316 to 415 . Meanwhile , arrests of prostitutes rose from one in 2015 to six in 2016 . Debriefing interviews with defendants indicated that drug addiction was their motivation , Hertman said . Murders increased from one to two . Arrests directly related to drug crimes

The Town of Montgomery receives one percent of Valley Central School District taxes in return for collecting those taxes . Most recently the town received $ 406,000 for its services . District Superintendent John Xanthis confirmed the amount and agreement , which he said had been signed in 1979 .

Although the arrangement provides the more than doubled , from 77 to 168 , he noted , quadrupling from 42 in 2013 . Overall arrests increased by 26 %, from 650 to 820 in the past year .

Part of the strategy of the Orange County Drug Task Force is to increase efforts to apprehend drug crime , particularly drug suppliers , Hertman said . But some drug offenses come to police attention when they respond to other kinds of calls , such as car accidents , he said . To address crime increases , Hertman says , “ We ’ re looking at many initiatives .”

Coming this month is a social media campaign for sharing information with the public . The police data initiative , recently implemented , uses crime statistics to develop crime control strategies . Also , in monthly police community council meetings , Hertman and other officials discuss crime and quality of life issues . Meanwhile , Wallkill Police Youth Coalition , begun eight years ago , meets every third Tuesday of the month , engaging youth in various activities , community service , and leadership programs .

Hertman and Depew say heroin that plagues the U . S . is grown in Afghanistan and enters the country across the Mexican border . However , the appetite for heroin , says Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler , can be traced to the I-STOP program , “ turning off the spigot ” for illegal pharmaceuticals , beginning in August , 2013 . The program requires computerized monitoring of opioid prescriptions , driving addicts to heroin to satisfy their opioid addiction , Hoovler said .

“ Heroin use is up 75 % from five years ago in the U . S ., not just Orange County ,” as 80 % of heroin users begin with pharmaceuticals , then shift to heroin , cheaper and more accessible , Hoovler says . Middletown , Wallkill , New Windsor , and Newburgh are the municipalities particularly affected in Orange County , he says .

Heroin costs $ 10 to $ 20 a bag , compared to an Oxycontin 30-gram dose at $ 30 to $ 60 .

town with extra revenue , Xanthis said , “ I ’ m guessing that any change would have to come from Montgomery . It ’ s their right . We don ’ t have the ability to terminate the agreement . It ’ s $ 400,000 of revenue they don ’ t want to lose , but we ’ ll reach out to them and see if they ’ ll change the percentage or hire someone .”

Montgomery Town Supervisor Michael

But on first exposure especially , opioid addicts may not know how much they can tolerate , nor would they anticipate a more potent variety , perhaps cut with other drugs , says Hoovler . After detox , they also may not realize that their tolerance is substantially lower .

As the Orange County Drug Task Force targets heroin suppliers , their strategies now emphasize finding the suppliers of heroin overdoses and holding them legally accountable . After a Port Jervis man died of an overdose on Nov . 3 , 2015 , Kevin Pelton pled guilty to selling and injecting narcotics causing the death on June 26 , 2015 . He was sentenced to one and a half to four years in state prison , the first such case , setting a precedent in Orange County , said Hoovler . “ But victims are secretive and sellers are hard to track ,” he said .

The task force initiative to prosecute suppliers this way is less than a year old . Meanwhile , he says , “ Education and prevention efforts are at an all time high ,” with community affairs assistant district attorneys assigned to relevant coalitions and not-for-profits .

But drug-related crime continues to rise . In 2015 , the county had 95 handgun offenses , almost doubling from 2014 , when there were 58 handgun offenses , increasing from 41 in 2013 . But this year the county has already exceeded 95 , Hoovler says , as drug dealers use guns to protect their drugs and money . Felony drug cases are also climbing , from 128 in 2013 , to 269 in 2014 , to 286 in 2015 . Sex trafficking is also up slightly , Hoover said .

As drug suppliers become law enforcement targets , Hoovler distinguishes them from non-violent , low level offenders , For the latter , he supports medically assisted treatment with drugs such as suboxone , Vivitrol , and methadone , which interfere with the craving for opioids . However , he sees treatment opportunities as insufficient .

“ There aren ’ t enough facilities and resources for treatment ,” he says , as profitability is a problem .

Hayes confirmed that the school district can contract with the town to collect taxes for them .

“ Other school districts also have contracts ,” he said . “ Once in a while the issue is brought up . I ‘ d have to research what the rules are . The language may set up a percentage . Once budget season ends , that will free up some time to look into it .”