Nassau prosecutor: Wave of heroin use has parents on guard

Teresa Corrigan has been fielding phone calls she says didn't come her way a year ago, from mothers of those arrested in drug cases, asking that prosecutors seek a sentence that includes mandatory drug treatment for their children.

Corrigan, a Nassau County assistant district attorney, said there have been other such inquiries from parents when she speaks to community groups about her work as a prosecutor of gang, drug and gun crimes.

"That's a change from a year ago," Corrigan told members of the Nassau County Heroin Prevention Task Force at its meeting Friday in Mineola.

In the last year, Corrigan said, she believes a wave of heroin use on Long Island has made parents much more aware of heroin addiction. Now, parents know that a heroin-addicted child's arrest might not mean that the child gets the help he or she needs, she said.

"It's not going away," Corrigan said of heroin addiction among young people in Nassau County.

The task force, chaired by Rene P. Fiechter of the district attorney's office, on Friday unveiled a prototype website. The proposed site will give parents details of substance-abuse resources and keep the public updated on the county's fight against heroin addiction.

In Nassau County, two programs aimed at getting treatment for addicts - one run by District Attorney Kathleen Rice, called Drug Treatment Alternative Program, and a similar program through state-run drug courts - have increased awareness about treatment instead of jail for addicts.

So parents are seeking mandatory drug treatment for their children even when criminal defense attorneys don't, Corrigan said.

The district attorney's drug-treatment diversion program had 251 cases as of Friday. Corrigan estimated the state-run program had about 400 applicants, and about half of those have been accepted so far this year.

In Suffolk County, the state's drug court program has 121 cases admitted to drug court, out of 272 requests as of May 21, said Cheryl Zimmer, spokeswoman for Suffolk County courts.

Defense attorney Lewis Mazzone said that not every defendant is a good candidate for drug treatment programs.

Mazzone, of Jericho, said he's a supporter of treatment for addicts, but failure comes with stiff consequences. If a client isn't mature or disciplined enough to finish a treatment program, he doesn't recommend they seek it.

"You have to complete it," he said. "If you don't, there's a jail sentence hanging over your head."Marc Gann, a criminal defense attorney from Mineola, agreed, saying that drug court can take 18 to 24 months to complete, and going to court can conflict with work and child-care.

"It's not always a clear-cut decision," Gann said.