U.S. Attorney General talks opioids in Lexington

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions paid a visit to Lexington Thursday to talk about opioids, in a state where it’s a killer of a problem.

Sessions started by meeting with families who’ve lost loved ones to the opioid epidemic. He was listening to their stories.

It’s stories like the ones he heard Wednesday that he says need to be shared to fully show the effects of opioid addiction.

“With the amount of destruction these powerfully addictive drugs are causing, the deaths and family breakups, and children lost is such that I think people will be ready to hear your message,” said Attorney General Sessions.

He says in 2016, around 64 thousand people died of a drug overdose.

“That’s the equivalent of the entire city of Bowling Green dying from overdoses in a single year,” said Sessions.

But, these statistics are more than just that. Sessions reminds everyone that each number represents a person: a mom, dad, friend, neighbor and so on. All those people, taken by drugs. It’s something Sessions says happens all too often.

“By the time I’m finished speaking, another American will have died of an opioid overdose and another baby will have been born who is physically dependent on opioids,” said Sessions.

Sessions says he has assigned 12 experienced prosecutors to opioid “hot spots,” including Eastern Kentucky, to focus on investigating opioid abuse.

He also says a new program will allow law enforcement to quickly target those who are trafficking drugs online, going on to say those who think they’re anonymous online are “in for a rude awakening.”

All of these are signs that Sessions says proves the United States government is doing all it can to make change and end the opioid epidemic.

“President Trump believes that our country can break the vicious cycle of drug abuse, addiction, and overdose that has devastated countless American families, and so do I,” said Sessions.

Several local law enforcement officers were among those in the audience for Sessions’ speech. Sessions tells them that he, and President Donald Trump, are standing by them, realizing they aren’t the problem, but rather they are the solution to the problem. He says they are needed to help put an end to the drug crisis.