The City of Santa Clarita invited neighboring cities Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley to a Tri-City Anti-Drug Summit on Wednesday, June 26, 2013 to address the issue of heroin and prescription drugs being abused by teens within each community.  In conjunction with the Heroin Kills outreach plan, Santa Clarita hosted a 10 person panel which was held in response to a spike in heroin related deaths and arrests in order to combat the problem and find a solution.

Produced by local television station SCVTV, the Tri-City Anti-Drug Summit panel discussion will air on Time Warner Cable Channel 20, AT&T U-Verse Channel 99 and online at SCVTV.com on Wednesday, July 31 at 8:00 p.m., Friday, August 2 at 6:00 p.m., Sunday, August 4 at 5:00 p.m., Monday, August 5 at 9:00 a.m. and Tuesday, August 6 at 6:00 p.m.

“Heroin abuse is an issue many communities across the nation face, including Santa Clarita,” said Mayor Bob Kellar.  “This panel discussion not only allowed city representatives to come together to discuss the issue of heroin and prescription drugs but it gave us the opportunity to share ideas to help deter teens from abusing such drugs and dilute the overall problem.”

The Tri-City Anti-Drug Summit featured a panel of experts who discussed issues of heroin and prescription drugs including: what the specific problem is within each city, what strategies and resources are being used to prevent abuse and fatalities, and what is working within each community.  Panelist speakers from the City of Santa Clarita included Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station Captain Paul Becker, Director of Student Services for the Hart District Kathy Hunter, Superintendent of Community Services Ingrid Hardy and City Manager Ken Striplin who acted as a moderator for the discussion.  The City of Simi Valley representatives included Assistant to the City Manager Samantha Argabrite, Deputy Chief of Police John McGinty and Deputy Director, Community Programs and Facilities Sommer Barwick.  The City of Thousand Oaks’ panel consisted of Chief of Police Randy Pentis, Assistant Chief Police James Fryoff and Sergeant Eric Hatlee.

Santa Clarita will continue to spread awareness of this deadly issue at the third annual Heroin Kills Symposium to be hosted on Wednesday, August 28, 2013 at 6:30 p.m. at the Santa Clarita Activities Center located at 20880 Centre Pointe Parkway.  The Symposium will provide the tools needed to identify signs of abuse and is a great resource for parents to understand heroin and prescription drugs are problems that constantly affect families in the Santa Clarita Valley.  The symposium is free and open to the public.  To learn more, visit HeroinKills.org or check out the Heroin Kills Facebook page at FB.com/HeroinKillsSCV.

For more information on the Tri-City Drug-Summit, please contact Human Services Administrator Janine Prado at (661) 250-3716.