Watch Now
News and Headlines

Actions

Ohio police share graphic photos of adults who overdosed with 4-year-old in car

<p>A man and a woman overdosed on heroin with a 4-year-old in the back seat and were arrested. The shocking pictures, which were not blurred, were released by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/cityofeastliverpool/posts/879927698809767" target="_blank">an Ohio police department on Thursday</a>. The images are just one example of a scary national trend.</p><p>The Liverpool Police Department acknowledged in a Facebook post that the pictures might offend some people and apologized for the graphic images. But the department also wrote, &quot;It is time that the non drug using public sees what we are now dealing with on a daily basis.&quot;</p><p>Ohio is&nbsp;<a href="http://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/statedeaths.html" target="_blank">among 14 states</a>&nbsp;where heroin overdose rates rose significantly from 2013-2014. That&#39;s the most recent data available.</p><p>National data shows 10,574 people died of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/trends-statistics/overdose-death-rates" target="_blank">heroin overdoses</a>&nbsp;in 2014, but just a decade earlier, there were 1,878 deaths.</p><p><b>SEE MORE: <a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/accidental-deaths-reach-a-record-high-in-the-us/">Accidental Deaths Reach A Record High In The US</a></b></p><p>But as the numbers rise,&nbsp;<a href="" target="_blank">several</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://nashp.org/growing-number-of-states-enacting-laws-to-combat-the-heroin-and-opioid-crisis/" target="_blank">states</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/07/22/statement-president-comprehensive-addiction-and-recovery-act-2016" target="_blank">Congress</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/national_world/2016/03/10/0310-Senate-Passes-Portman-Anti-Heroin-Bill-By-94-1-Vote.html#" target="_blank">have tried</a>&nbsp;to combat the issue with legislation, but there&#39;s no telling how effective that will be.</p><p>As for the man and woman in the photos, they&#39;re each&nbsp;<a href="http://wtov9.com/news/local/couple-facing-charges-after-overdosing-with-4-year-old-in-car-in-east-liverpool" target="_blank">facing criminal charges</a>, including child endangerment.&nbsp;<a href="http://wtov9.com/news/local/couple-facing-charges-after-overdosing-with-4-year-old-in-car-in-east-liverpool" target="_blank">A neighbor is taking care</a>&nbsp;of the 4-year-old after child services stepped in.</p><p><a href="http://www.narconon.org/blog/drug-addiction/how-children-are-affected-by-drug-addicted-parents-2/" target="_blank">Anti-drug&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/01/12/when-mom-and-dad-are-heroin-addicts.html" target="_blank">abuse</a><a href="http://www.narconon.org/blog/drug-addiction/how-children-are-affected-by-drug-addicted-parents-2/" target="_blank">&nbsp;organizations warn</a>&nbsp;that kids in situations like this one are more likely to become users.</p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/court-denies-standing-rock-tribe-s-attempt-to-stop-pipeline/">Department Of Justice Steps In To Stop Construction On Pipeline</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/prisoners-stage-one-of-the-largest-strikes-in-us-history/">The US Could See One Of The Largest Prison Strikes In National History</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/first-man-charged-under-blue-lives-matter-law-in-louisiana/">Police Admit First Use Of The &#039;Blue Lives Matter&#039; Law Was A Mistake</a></li></ul>
Posted
and last updated

East Liverpool, Ohio police hope graphic photos of two who adults who overdosed in a car with a child in the back seat will raise awareness about the drug problem Ohio currently faces. 

The City of East Liverpool posted the photos on its Facebook page on Thursday. The photos show two unconscious adults with a 4-year-old boy in the back seat.

According to the East Liverpool police report, around 3 p.m. Wednesday an officer was driving behind a Ford Explorer when he noticed the vehicle was weaving back and forth erratically. The driver then skidded to a stop next to a school bus and then drifted to the side of the road. 

The officer approached the driver, later identified as 47-year-old James Acord, whose head was bobbing back and forth and whose speech was unintelligible. 

Rhonda Pasek, 50, was unconscious in the next seat, according to police.

When the officer asked Acord what was going on, he said he was trying to take Pasek to the hospital, and then tried to drive off. According to the police report, the officer had to pull the keys out of the car to get him to stop.

Acord then went completely unconscious. Pasek's 4-year-old son was in the back seat. 

The officer called EMS and paramedics administered "several rounds" of Narcan.

"We feel it necessary to show the other side of this horrible drug," the city wrote on its Facebook page. "We feel we need to be a voice for the children caught up in this horrible mess. This child can't speak for himself but we are hopeful his story can convince another user to think twice about injecting this poison while having a child in their custody. We are well aware that some may be offended by these images and for that we are truly sorry, but it is time that the non drug using public sees what we are now dealing with on a daily basis."

Acord and Pasek were both transported to East Liverpool City Hospital for treatment and then booked in the Columbiana County Jail. Acord is charged with OVI, endangering children and stopping in the roadway. Pasek is charged with endangering children, OVI and seatbelt. 

The boy was placed with children's services.

Copyright 2016 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Make a difference today!