Albion and Holley police officers will carry Narcan
Albion also will start using “less-lethal” bean bag projectiles
Press Release, Roland Nenni, chief of Albion and Holley police departments
All Albion and Holley police officers have been trained in the use of the newest form of Naloxone, commonly known as Narcan. Every officer has completed the required training and will be carrying the lifesaving drug.
Naloxone is a drug that temporarily blocks the opiate from acting on the body and allows enough time for more advanced medical treatment. Naloxone is safe and will not cause harm if it is administered to someone suffering from an overdose of a non-opiate or other medical condition. Naloxone is administered via a Nasal Atomizer and does not require a needle.
“With the rise in the use of heroin and other opiates there have been many overdoses that have caused death and other serious long term medical issues,” Police Chief Roland Nenni said.
Police officers from Albion and Holley often are the first on scene at medical emergencies. If a person has overdosed on an opiate and is in serious condition, officers will be able to administer Naloxone in an attempt to save the person’s life. The administration of Naloxone has saved many lives across the country.
“These saved lives have not been isolated to drug users but have also involved children that have accidently ingested an opiate,” Nenni said.
This is only one of the many initiatives that the Albion and Holley police departments are conducting to fight this horrible epidemic that are impacting lives of not only the persons using illegal opiates but the families and associates of users.
The Albion Police Department has recently placed into service a “Less Lethal Program” that will allow officers additional options other than lethal force in certain situations.
Less-lethal guns that fire a Drag Stabilized Bean Bag Projectile have been placed in each Albion patrol vehicle. While less-lethal is not always an option in volatile fast-moving situations, it gives officers additional tools to use when appropriate, that will hopefully reduce death and injuries, Nenni said.
While every police officer carries a Taser, this option requires close proximity, increasing the officer’s likelihood for injury. The Drag Stabilized Bean Bag Projectile allows for greater distance for deployment, reducing the risk of injury to officers and suspects.
This type of less-lethal option was only available to officers in Orleans County by the Multi Agency SWAT Team, which has an array of less-lethal options.
“The problem with only SWAT having this type of less lethal option is the time involved in getting SWAT operators on scene,” Nenni said. “Often the types of incidents that can be handled by less-lethal are quickly evolving and time is of the essence.”
The Albion Police Department being the only road patrol at this time having this option will respond anywhere they are requested to assist other agencies.
The training that Albion Police Officers went through to be certified consisted of both classroom instruction and live-fire range qualification.
The cost of the program was minimal as the guns that are used were obtained through a legal seizure process from guns that were possessed by the Police Department. The guns were seized in cases involving a crime or weapons that were turned over the department because of other situations.
“The goal of the Albion Police Department is to save lives in any way that we can,” the police chief said. “Human life regardless if a victim or suspect is precious and we must always work toward the protection of life.”
