District Attorney Mark Powell has made combatting the opioid epidemic and reducing the number of fatal overdoses a top priority of his administration. He has taken a multifaceted approach to the crisis by:

Taking a hardline approach to drug enforcement.
Working to get lower-level offenders into mandatory treatment through a pre-arrest diversionary program and the Lackawanna County Drug Court
Securing a $900,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to study the root causes of overdose deaths in Lackawanna County and implement life-saving solutions.
Working with the Lackawanna Recovery Coalition, which he co-chairs, to provide community awareness, education, treatment, prevention and harm reduction.

The Narcotics Unit investigates and prosecutes all types of criminal cases involving controlled substances, including drug-trafficking, delivery and possession-related offenses. In addition, the Narcotics Unit also prosecutes cases involving gun crimes and gang-related activities commonly associated with trafficking of controlled substances.

The Unit utilizes a proactive approach by working with a specialized detective unit dedicated to seeking out drug traffickers. By investigating, arresting and prosecuting individuals who traffic drugs, the DA’s Office is working to lower the supply of deadly controlled substances in Lackawanna County. The Unit consists of four full-time detectives and their drug-detecting K9 officer Riggs.

In addition to the Narcotics Unit, the District Attorney’s Office also oversees the operation of the Lackawanna United Drug Enforcement Task Force. This task force is a network of police officers from the Scranton Police Department and municipalities throughout Lackawanna County who are specially trained in narcotics investigations. LUDET officers operate under the authority of the District Attorney’s Office and conduct investigations of street-level drug-trafficking within all municipalities in the county.