Police chief explains decision to release image of two adults who were later revived and charged: public must ‘see what we are dealing with’

An Ohio police department fed up with the country’s opioid epidemic published a shocking image Friday of two adults who overdosed on heroin. The image, which spread across the internet, elicited quick criticism from addiction advocates and community members who questioned the value of violating the individuals’ privacy.

The photos show two adults slumped over with their mouths wide open in the front seats of a car with a four-year-old child in a dinosaur-print shirt staring at the camera lens. It was taken after they nearly hit a stopped school bus while driving on Wednesday afternoon.

Both adults were revived with the overdose reversal drug Narcan and have been charged. The image, meanwhile, was shared across the internet and received more than 1,000 comments since it was posted on Thursday.

“This is reality,” John Lane, the East Liverpool police chief, told the Guardian. “Every day we’re dealing with this. We need help and we don’t have the resources to deal with it.”

A version of one photo, altered to protect the privacy of the individuals. Photograph: City of East Liverpool Police Department

Lane said the East Liverpool city Facebook page posted the photos after hours of discussion with police, the local prosecutor and mayor. They also posted the police affidavit, with the names of the adults and a description of the incident. “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,” the post said.



The 11,000-person city is near Ohio’s border with Pennsylvania and West Virginia, a region hard hit by the latest wash of opioid addiction, which is affecting the white population at a skyrocketing rate.

Lane said the city posted the photo to show the effects of heroin addiction and show how the city does not have enough officers or treatment centers to fight the problem. “We’re drowning down here,” he said. “We need help here completely and totally.”

But addiction experts said shaming two people with a mental illness can inhibit recovery.

Dr Marvin Seppala, the chief medical officer at Hazelden Betty Ford, a not-for-profit addiction treatment center, said images like this could be helpful if brought to an individual on a personal level, such as a family member trying to reach a loved one facing addiction, but this type of shaming in a public setting would not be beneficial.

Seppala said it could even be detrimental because most addicts do not use drugs to feel good, but because they feel bad. “We are just adding to the feeling bad, so continued use is the most likely response to shaming,” he said.

When it comes to how this affects the public’s understanding of the breadth of the opioid epidemic, however, Seppala softened his stance. “In some respects, it brings attention to it that it wouldn’t otherwise get, so it’s a little hard for me to argue against this photo the more I talk about it,” he said.

He noted that Congress had passed a bill to fight the crisis, the Comprehensive Addiction & Recovery Act, but without funding.

“We need that attention – we need to get people’s attention to address this and call their Congress folks and tell them pass this, pass the funding for this,” Seppala said. “We need the money.”

But Dr Marc Romano, assistant medical director at Ocean Breeze Recovery, was concerned the photo would contribute to stigma surrounding mental illness.

“Shaming them is not the answer,” said Romano. “But yes, talk about how this addiction is so powerful they will even risk the lives of children to use this drug – that’s what we’re up against.”

The controversial photo also appeared just as a row erupted over Facebook’s decision to censor the famous image of “napalm girl” during the Vietnam War.

Though the overdose photo could be seen as violating its guidelines prohibiting photos that “shame” private individuals, a Facebook spokesperson said the photos did not violate the company’s community standards.

Commenters online also raised questions about the decision to post a photo of the child, who was placed in protective services. But Lane said the child’s image was essential to get a reaction from people. “That’s where the problems at – [he’s] helpless,” Lane said.

He said this was what needed to be done to show how the problem is affecting the country and how badly cities need law enforcement and treatment resources to combat addiction.

“It never ends; it’s the same thing,” Lane said. “You get frustrated when you’re dealing with the same people, the same issues – they all have kids and they’re not worried about their kids.”