Benicia Police Drug Take Back Nets 385 Pounds of Prescription Meds

On Saturday, September 29, over 150 people took advantage of the opportunity to safely dispose of unwanted or expired prescription drugs.  Benicia and Vallejo residents turned in 385 pounds of unwanted, expired, or unused prescription drugs at the Benicia Police Department.

“This is the third time we have offered this service, and again the response was great,” said Benicia Police Lt. Frank Hartig.  “Last year, we were able to take back 163 pounds.  This was by far the largest take back since we began participating in this program.”

There were 115 Benicia residents and 38 Vallejo residents who came to the police department to turn in medications.

Benicia Police Department Volunteer Coordinator Patti Baron coordinated this event that was co-sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Agency.  On Saturday, she worked with Police Volunteers Ron Uhlman, Dick Meyer and Bruce Shea during a four hour period to take back the unwanted medication from area citizens. The returned drugs were later destroyed.  

Citizens were also able to dispose of “sharps” – old syringes used primarily for insulin injections. 

The increased publicity 38 Vallejo residents leading up to this event was made possible through the Benicia Police Department’s Youth Action Coalition and the Solano county Board of Supervisors grant funding to reduce the underage use of Alcohol, tobacco and other Drugs Program. 

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If there’s something in this article you think should be corrected, or if something else is amiss, call editor JB Davis at 707-628-0051 or email him at benicia@patch.com.