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Diverse cultures: Putting a face on community policing
Houston Chronicle | November 11, 2016
On Monday, Draaven joined the current class of 68 Houston police cadets through a daylong diversity tour across the city to learn about sometimes-marginalized communities they’ll meet on the…
How the City Came to Know Dozens of Midtown Kush Users on a First-Name Basis
Houston Press | October 4, 2016
The relatively chaotic scene is typical of the blocks surrounding the Wheeler light rail station. If you’ve driven past the area, you have seen what Eichenbaum and the city’s two-person Public Intoxication Team…
New city program getting Kush users off the streets
KHOU | September 8, 2016
The City of Houston is trying something new to get users of Kush, or synthetic marijuana, off the streets. Four months ago, city officials launched a pilot program called the Public Intoxication Team. The PIT…
Kush City: Houston has Become a Major Hub for the Latest Drug of Choice
Houston Press | August 8, 2016
On June 23, 17, people in Hermann Park were hospitalized after overdosing on kush. Less than two weeks later, 33 people overdosed on kush on a single block in Brooklyn. Days after the Brooklyn episode…
Kushed out: City takes aim at stubborn new drug problem
Houston Chronicle | July 23, 2016
The cigarillo the man had been smoking was laced with Kush, a synthetic cannabinoid that is cheap and plentiful. It left him unconscious for almost 20 minutes before he staggered upright and walked…
33 Suspected of Overdosing on Synthetic Marijuana in Brooklyn
New York Times | July 12, 2016
On Tuesday, the longstanding problem became a local crisis on this gritty patch, on the border of two developing neighborhoods, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Bushwick. In the area around the subway station at…
The Harris County DA Invites Law-Breaking Citizens to “Make It Right”
Houstonia | July 18, 2016
“A lot of this is poverty-driven,” says Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson. “They get a ticket and they either can eat or pay their fine. So they don’t show up, they get a warrant, it gets worse.” But the…
Synthetic drug use at Hermann Park sends 16 to hospital, authorities say
Houston Chronicle | June 23, 2016
More than a dozen people were transported to hospitals around the Texas Medical Center on Thursday after apparently ingesting synthetic drugs at a section of Hermann Park known as “Kush Corner.” Authorities said 16 people…
Ten people hospitalized after possible drug overdoses on skid row
Los Angeles Times | April 23, 2016
Several police, fire and ambulance crews responded to the scene and found multiple drug overdose victims. Witnesses told police that the victims were smoking Spice, a synthetic marijuana. The synthetic…
Harris County Wins $2 Million Grant For Plan To Reform Its Criminal Justice System
Houston Public Media | April 14, 2016
District Attorney Devon Anderson announced the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation has awarded the county $2 million dollars. “Our main goals are to safely reduce our jail population by 21 percent in…