Silke Jasso
Pennsylvania parents discovered by state police shooting heroin on Tuesday in a parking lot of a closed restaurant had three young children in the back seat of their car.
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Michael and Elizabeth Anthony, 30, were found, police say, in possession of heroin, an opioid dependence drug called suboxone, syringes, a tourniquet and drug paraphernalia, Penn Live reported.
More importantly, three young children were in the back seat of the car at the time. The kids are ages 2, 3 and 5.
It happened at 11:30 a.m.
The children were taken into custody by child protective services.
Incidents just like this one seem to happen routinely. Whether parents are using heroin and driving around with 2-year-old children or graphically passing out and overdosing while a child looks on, the reckless public endangerment of children appears to be a common consequence of opioid abuse.
As opioid addiction plagues America at epidemic levels, the problem is receiving increased media attention.
The Palm Beach Post, for example, went to great lengths to publish the names, faces and stories of people who died from opioid-related overdoses and deaths to shine a light on the ravages these drugs cause.
Here at Rare, we released a series on the heroin epidemic in America, speaking to the families devastated by loss, law enforcement on the ground and public officials.
Heroin in America, a series by Rare
The Anthonys are currently being held at Dauphin County prison. Their bail has been set at $50,000.
