Addicts come in all stripes

Reading the letter, “Need to bust heroin dealers,” I had to chuckle a little bit. The sale of heroin has been escalating in our area since the ’90s when the Mexican mafia chose our ‘lil neck of the woods to sell their wares. Back then, few people had cell phones and dealers used pagers. I am a recovering heroin addict, been clean for 12 years. We had to make our calls using pay phones and Jack in the Box’s pay phone was one of the most popular. Today, a pay phone is hard to find and even the homeless and jobless have cell phones.

He said, “I urge the Everett Police Department to please do something about this.” As if they weren’t aware of this problem. The sale and use of heroin in Snohomish County is a pandemic. For every police officer, there are 1,000 heroin users and dealers. The police have been “doing something” as well as can be expected. Unfortunately, today’s heroin user is hiding in plain sight. That poster that used to hang in my doctor’s office sticks out in my mind showing how to “Spot a Junkie.” The man (like women aren’t junkies too) is skinny, wearing dark glasses and a leather jacket. The “junkie” was shown having giant track marks on his arms, dark circles under his red and watering eyes. In reality today’s heroin user may be delivering your mail, or defending you in court. Today’s “junkie” is a housewife living on Mercer Island or your kid’s teacher or school bus driver.

Help our police out. Call them when you see suspicious behavior. If you are a heroin user, please … go to the local methadone clinic and save your life. I know it saved mine.

Susan Martin

Everett

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