By Mike Russo and Mike Caputo
The bill was proposed by Legislator Dave Mejias (D-Farmingdale) at a press conference held prior to the Nov. 17 meeting of the Legislature, and is known as the "Natalie Ciappa Law," named for the Massapequa High School student who died of a heroin overdose last June. If passed, the bill would require law enforcement to notify the schools when an arrest or sale of heroin takes place in their town. Schools are notified regardless of whether the arrested individual is a student or not, as the intention of the law is to inform school districts and parents of the presence of heroin in their towns -not necessarily to name-drop. If a student is arrested, the school district will be informed that someone within their schools was arrested, but will not be given the name.
"Heroin is so insidious, addictive, and cheap," said Mejias, adding that heroin packets are sold for as little as $5 a bag. "We need to give families a heads up that it is a problem in schools."
According to the Nassau County District Attorney's office, heroin-related arrests in Nassau County have increased 50 percent since 2002.
Ciappa's parents, who were shocked back in June when their beautiful young daughter, Natalie - who once had a 113 average in school and was a member of the cheerleading squad - died of a heroin overdose at a party, have worked closely with lawmakers in support of the bill.
During the press conference, the Ciappas stressed how important it is for parents to be aware of the heroin presence in their towns, especially the schools, because the drug is both addictive and difficult to detect.
"We have to know who the enemy is," said Doreen Ciappa, Natalie's mother. "It's really upsetting to know that school districts knew that heroin had surfaced in our schools and they hadn't told us. It would have been nice to know that. I think that it is the school and community's obligation to make sure that parents have the weapons to fight this war."
Police Commissioner Lawrence Mulvey said that shortly after Natalie's death, police made a huge heroin bust, in which a kilogram of heroin and a $250,000 in cash were recovered. The Commissioner noted that many of the arrested suspects happened to be in Natalie's circle.
"It is a huge problem and we are fully involved in rectifying it," said Mulvey. "This is the first step -to wake the school districts up that there is a huge problem out there. We will notify them pursuant to this legislation whenever we arrest someone for possession or sale of heroin, we will notify those appropriate school districts and we will continue to work with them to educate them on the problem."
Mulvey urged residents and school officials to take advantage of a program already offered by local police precincts. Individuals can bring an unknown substance to a precinct for anonymous testing, and will be assigned a code. The person can bring the code back to the precinct within 10 days to receive a test result that would identify the substance. Legislator Joe Scannell (D-Baldwin), who voted for the bill that afternoon in the Public Safety Committee, which he chairs, said that children are our most valuable resources and everything possible should be done to protect them.
"We are just so grateful to [the Ciappas] for turning a tragedy into something beneficial for all people in Nassau County at the most difficult time in their lives," said Scannell. "It's all about communication to the school districts."
Leon Campo, East Meadow superintendent of schools, identified knowledge as the key to fighting the heroin epidemic. Campo said it is crucial for schools to know what is happening in the neighborhood and to do whatever they can to help prevent it.
"If we don't know then it stays a secret, it festers, and then who knows what will happen to those young people," Campo said. "I personally feel it is a step in the right direction, arming us with the knowledge we can be a part of rescue and rehab for young people and that is part of what our mission is and as I said, it is rare that those who are addicted and involved will come forth because they are afraid of punishment and if we are already out there and informed, we may play a positive role in the lives of young people."
A public hearing on the bill is scheduled for Dec. 1 at the next meeting of the Legislature, and a vote will likely be held on Dec. 15. Unlike most county bills, which go into effect 60 days after they are approved, the "Natalie Ciappa Law" will go into effect immediately.
Legislator Norma Gonsalves (R-East Meadow) said she hopes by the next Legislative session that school administrators understand that districts would not be held liable in any way because of the dissemination of information.
"Anything that includes public awareness of the problem we are facing with drugs within our communities is a good thing," Gonsalves said.
She added that there is more to come in regards to raising awareness toward peer pressure and drugs in communities. The question must be answered on whether there are enough resources available to enforce such laws, the legislator said.
"I believe personally that we would probably need more resources to enforce all the problems that we are encountering now," Gonsalves said. "Heroin is on the rise in every district, not just in the underprivileged areas, every community in Nassau County."
Comments about this story? MCaputo@
liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 287.
