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Those who are charged in Miamisburg Municipal Court have an option to seek treatment, Muncy said, and can have charges dropped.
“Some of those charges could potentially be dropped if they seek treatment within 30 days of being charged,” he said.
The program is a way of seeking to deter overdoses in the community, which have jumped in recent years as the use of opioids has increased, authorities said. Opioids are painkillers such as Vicodin, OxyContin, Percocet, morphine and codeine that are often precursors to heroin use.
Miamisburg has seen double-digit accidental overdose deaths since 2012, according to city records. The city had three accidental OD deaths in 2011, but that figure jumped to 11, 13, 11 and 10 from 2012 through 2015, records show.
Nationwide, accidental overdose deaths reached record numbers in 2014, according to a Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County 2016 study. The study found that Montgomery had the second highest drug overdose rate of all counties in the state (31.1 per 100,000).
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Miamisburg police 2015 began using Naloxone, known as Narcan, which acts to block the effects of opioids. They are also taking “proactive” approaches while working with the municipal court on enforcement options, officials have said.
Some Ohio communities are taking similar measures to crack down on drug use.
In Washington Court House, authorities are bringing misdemeanor charges against drug users who are revived by emergency crews using an overdose antidote.
That practice started in February in the Fayette County community. An inducing panic charge is leveled against overdose victims if responders revive them with Naloxone, Police Chief Brian Hottinger said.