Associated Press
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) - Nine of Albuquerque’s city parks are the focus of a crackdown aimed at protecting children from hypodermic needles tossed aside by drug users.
The crackdown, started after a child found a needle while at a city park, will include a visible police presence and undercover efforts.
Police Chief Gil Gallegos said the problem is “very troubling,” but he said it should not keep families from using city parks.
“I don’t think we should allow drug users to chase the kids from the parks,” he said.
Gallegos said keeping parks safe is part of the job for police, and his department will continue to look for other parks with similar hazards.
“Officers will be directed to conduct periodic patrols of all the parks, and we will identify which ones are the hot spots with this deadly potential,” the chief said.
The Parks and Recreation Department has long been alert to problems with needles, but the efforts were increased this week after a child found a needle at Lavaland Park in northwest Albuquerque while participating in a city free-lunch program.
The mayor learned about the episode and called a meeting that included the police chief and the directors of several city departments. They discussed current procedures and recommended a stepped-up police effort, said Deborah James, the mayor’s spokeswoman.
“We have to give a strong message to drug dealers and drug users that they are not welcome in our parks and we won’t tolerate them,” James said.
Special training will also be provided to Parks and Recreation employees to help them deal with the issue, she said.
Children, she said, should be warned to never touch or approach a needle, but to report it immediately to an adult.
Gallegos said, “The potential for a disease from infected needles is very well known. There is a possibility that people could contract AIDS, hepatitis or some other kind of disease, and we’re very concerned.”