Greetings,

I am Matthew Allen, Special Agent in Charge of the Los Angeles Field Division and I’d like to welcome you to Operation Engage!

As we all know, there are far too many non-fatal and fatal drug overdoses affecting our communities, and sadly, these numbers are increasing. In response, DEA has moved toward community-level collaborative efforts to help reduce these numbers through education and awareness, using our wide range of resources.

Through Operation Engage, our division will focus on Southern California, targeting the fentanyl drug threat. Other components of Operation Engage include:

• Stakeholder/Community Gatherings: To share the latest information about drug trends, drug threats, and other related pertinent information.
• The DEA’s Citizens Academy: DEA recognizes the importance of forging strong alliances with local communities and maintaining collaborative relationships with community leaders. The DEA’s Citizens Academy offers participants the opportunity to understand the world of federal drug law enforcement and the important role the DEA and the community together, play in combating drug trafficking, drug misuse, and related violence.
• Youth Engagement: Through programs like the DEA Educational Foundation Youth Dance Program and in collaboration with CADCA and the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation, children of all ages will be able to actively participate in age-appropriate activities, designed for them to learn and gain the most knowledge about the dangers of drugs in a fun way.
• Community Outreach Programs: DEA, along with stakeholder involvement, will concentrate efforts in the communities most affected by fentanyl use. In those targeted communities, the Los Angeles Field Division will participate in facilitating prevention strategies to include, but not limited to, drug prevention training and technical assistance for communities, coalition outreach, and prescription drug take back events to name a few.

These are only a few of the many resources and opportunities we have available to share with our communities.

I invite you, and your families, to explore our Operation Engage webpage to learn about the many resources we have available. Learning as a family, early on, is the first step in avoiding drug experimentation, drug misuse, drug addiction, and all related behaviors that are plaguing our communities. 

Always at your service,
SAC Allen

Local DEA officials have identified fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, as the area's top drug threat.

Fentanyl continues to be the most common drug type listed as a cause of death in accidental drug overdose deaths in Los Angeles County (LAC), accounting for 64% of all alcohol and other drug overdose deaths. There are unique risks associated with one-time fentanyl exposure and interventions such as naloxone are available to address fentanyl overdoses, which warrants focus on and need to understand the fentanyl crisis amid broader drug overdose concerns to inform activities to reduce the impact of fentanyl overdoses in our communities.

Accidental fentanyl overdose and poisoning deaths in LAC skyrocketed by 1,652% from 109 in 2016 to 1,910 in 2022. However, this increase rate slowed significantly in 2023, with only a 3% increase to 1,970 deaths. 

This slowdown in the annual increase of fentanyl overdose deaths suggests that fentanyl overdose and poisoning deaths may be nearing a plateau in LAC. From 2016 to 2022, fentanyl overdose ED visits increased 833% from 133 to 1,241, and fentanyl overdose hospitalizations increased 387% from 102 to 497 cases.”

Source: http://lapublichealth.org/sapc/MDU/SpecialReport/Fentanyl-Overdoses-in-Los-Angeles-County.pdf

Violent Crime

In Los Angeles, homicides decreased by 14% from 2023 to 2024. Victims shot declined by approximately 19%. Citywide property crimes, including burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft, and theft from motor vehicle dropped by roughly 7%.

Source: https://mayor.lacity.gov/news/lapd-releases-2024-end-year-crime-statistics-city-los-angeles

Through Operation Engage, the LAFD plans to implement and deliver programming in several hot spots within LA County and Riverside County to create awareness and educate on drug trends, current threats and support local substance abuse prevention efforts. Together, we will emphasize prevention efforts among youth through mentorship, leadership development, and training parents on trauma informed and removing the stigma of mental health. We will focus on high risk, high crime and high drug usage cities within both counties.

(National Family Partnership) Enrique (Kiki) S. Camarena was born on July 26, 1947, in Mexicali, Mexico. He graduated from Calexico High School in Calexico, California in 1966, and in 1968 he joined the U.S. Marine Corps. After serving in the Marine Corps for two years, Kiki was a Calexico fireman, Calexico police officer, and an Imperial County Deputy Sheriff. Kiki joined the Drug Enforcement Administration in June of 1974. His first assignment as a Special Agent with DEA was in a familiar place - Calexico, California.

In 1977, after three years in Calexico, 37-year-old Kiki was reassigned to the Fresno District Office in Northern California. Four years later, Kiki received transfer orders to Mexico, where he would work out of the Guadalajara Resident Office. For more than four years in Mexico, Kiki remained on the trail of the country's biggest marijuana and cocaine traffickers. In early 1985, he was extremely close to unlocking a multi-billion-dollar drug pipeline. However, before he was able to expose the drug trafficking operations to the public, he was kidnapped on February 7, 1985. On that fateful day, while headed to a luncheon with his wife, Mika, Kiki was surrounded by five armed men who threw him into a car and sped away. That was the last time anyone, but his kidnappers would see him alive.

In honor of Camarena’s memory and his battle against illegal drugs, friends and neighbors began to wear red badges of satin. Parents, sick of the destruction of alcohol and other drugs, had begun forming coalitions. Some of these new coalitions embraced Camarena’s belief that one person can make a difference. These coalitions also adopted the symbol of Camarena’s memory, the red ribbon. During his 11 years with DEA, Kiki received two Sustained Superior Performance Awards, a Special Achievement Award and, posthumously, the Administrator’s Award of Honor, the highest award granted by DEA.

In 1988, NFP sponsored the first National Red Ribbon Celebration. Today, the Red Ribbon serves as a catalyst to mobilize communities to educate youth and encourage participation in drug prevention activities. Since that time, the campaign has reached millions of U.S. children and families. The National Family Partnership (NFP) and its network of individuals and organizations continue to deliver his message of hope to millions of people every year, through the National Red Ribbon Campaign™. Today, NFP hosts the annual Enrique Camarena Award, an award given to an individual who believes and understands the power of the individual voice to reach and influence the larger community for drug prevention.

Katie Nuñez Vasquez is the 2023 Enrique Camarena Award Recipient. Katie is a student activist and community leader in Santa Barbara, California. Katie has led incredible work in the field and drug prevention system. As a young leader, Katie focuses on using her voice in policy change and educating her peers. Katie played a pivotal role in passing the Off-State Alcohol Ordinance, a policy that reduces underage alcohol access for minors, minimizes alcohol advertising to youth, holds liquor stores accountable, and eliminates alcohol mini bottles. Katie made sure to use her voice to speak with the Santa Barbara Officials about the importance of mitigating the normalization of alcohol in Santa Barbra and shared proposals to further prevent underage drinking in the County. Katie takes tangible actions to improve the well-being of her peers and community. Furthermore, Katie has led two (2) national drug-prevention campaigns for three (3) years: National Prevention Week and Red Ribbon Week. For Red
Ribbon Week, she facilitated Plant the Promise and over 30+ youth sign pledges. Both activities encouraged her peers to commit to raising awareness, have a drug-free lifestyle, and help others learn about the importance of staying healthy and drug-free.

NFP had the pleasure of interviewing Katie to learn more about her outstanding commitment to her community.

NFP: What made you get into community work and drug-free prevention?

K: The need for advocacy work in my community is what drew me into advocating. Coming from a Hispanic background, alcohol isn’t foreign to us. I remember one of the first projects I worked on dealt with drug free prevention. I along with peers obtained data necessary to explain the rise in substance usage in Santa Barbara. The survey contained questions about whether one believed Santa Barbara was turning into a drunk zone. Taking a walk-through state street is a clear indicator that it is. Future Leaders of America, a non-profit organization I’m a part of, is working towards pushing an end to off-site alcohol sales after midnight. The positive effects of projects such as these is what motivates me to continue to advocate.

NFP: Do you enjoy working in the community? Do you involve your peers?

K: I have come to find myself dedicating my time to advocate for my community. In the beginning I saw it as an opportunity to improve my college application but as time passed, I have come to grow a passion for it. FLA has truly helped me discover this part of me that I never thought I had. FLA has pushed me out of my comfort zone, encouraged me, and has made me see the impact I can do as a teen in my community. Advocacy work is not a solo project. It requires a team who is just as passionate and willing to do all the small and big things. Becoming a part of the student council it’s my role to push my peers out of their comfort zone to advocate as well.

Congratulations to Ms. Katie Nuñez Vasquez for being the recipient of the 2023 Enrique Camarena Award. It is leaders like yourself that encourage young individuals to live healthy and Drug-Free. Let’s continue to make America Drug-Free!

If you know someone who is an outstanding contributor to the field of drug prevention in your community, you may nominate them by completing the Enrique Camarena award form located inside the School Planning Guide. You can download it at www.redribbon.org/downloads/.

Red Ribbon Week takes place each year from October 23rd through 31st. We invite you to join us by getting involved. Learn more about the contest and the campaign by visiting www.RedRibbon.org.

About the National Family Partnership

The National Family Partnership was established in 1980 and is a national leader in drug prevention, education, and advocacy. Its mission is to educate families, and to help kids grow up safe, healthy and drug free, through the promotion of two national campaigns: Red Ribbon Week® and the Lock Your Meds® campaign for prescription drug abuse awareness. Learn more about Red Ribbon Week at www.RedRibbon.org, Lock Your Meds at www.LockYourMeds.org and NFP at www.nfp.org.

Check out this list of local organizations that provide services to the public regarding addiction, community empowerment, drug education and prevention, drug take back programs, recovery, and overall health and wellness. 

California Alliance

Certified Peer Support Specialist Program

DEA Youth Dance Program 

Latino Prevention Project California Hispanic Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, INC.

Los Angeles County, Department of Public Health 

Pueblo Y Salud 

Safe Med LA Coalition 

San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health 

Social Model Recovery  

Tarzana Treatment Centers: Antelope Valley Marijuana Alcohol and Pharmaceutical
Prevention Coalition (AVMAPP) 

The Mentor Foundation USA 

Ventura County Behavioral Health

Here is a list of our local Operation Engage partners.

Los Angeles County, Department of Public Health

Los Angeles Sparks

Milken Institute

Mentor Foundation USA

Safe Med LA Coalition

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

Tarzana Treatment Centers 

United States Attorney’s Office | Central District of California 

Looking for local prevention resources specifically for young people? Check out this list below:

Day One  

Day One trains middle school, high school, and college students to be positive role models, ambassadors for healthy lifestyles, and informed and engaged members of their communities.

Based on the social influence model, which has been determined by CSAP, NIDA, OJJDP, US Department of Education as an effective prevention approach, youth are educated about
public and community health issues - such as understanding the health impacts of poor diet, alcohol/drug use, and sedentary lifestyles - and how to effect positive, lasting change in their
communities. Our program also covers techniques to resist social pressures, support others in making healthy choices, and determining positive alternatives. 
 

Day One Pasadena Youth Advocate Program
Meets every Wednesday at 4 pm
bit.ly/DayOneYA (case sensitive)
Instagram Account: @day1do

Day One Pomona Youth Advocate Program
Meets every Wednesday at 4 pm
bit.ly/dopomona
Instagram Account: @dopomona

Day One El Monte Youth Advocate Program
Meets every Wednesday at 4 pm
bit.ly/elmonteya
Instagram Account: @dopomona

Campus Drug Prevention (DEA's website for colleges and universities)

Get Smart About Drugs (DEA's website for parents, caregivers, and educators)

Just Think Twice (DEA's website for teens)

Operation Prevention (DEA's website on opioid misuse prevention in schools)

Together for Families (DEA's resource for families who are grieving the death of a loved one due to substance use or coping with the stress that comes from loving a person affected by substance use or misuse)

2024 Drugs of Abuse (Clear, scientific information about drugs delivered in a factual, straightforward way)

I Am a Force for Change (prevention manual for advocates)

Find treatment in your area. Go to FindTreatment.gov to search for general drug treatment facilities in your area. On this site, you can find facilities that offer various payment options (including free and no-cost care), youth treatment facilities, special programs for Veterans, plus more.

Otherwise, enter your zipcode below to find substance abuse treatment facilities in your area.   

The Fundamentals of Fatherhood Program is accepting Fathers, Father figures, and Expecting Fathers for our Nurturing Fathers Curriculum cohorts in English and Spanish. The classes are FREE, and held online via zoom.

Participants must complete enrollment in-person. The group is located at the Ron Arias Health Equity Center at 6335 Myrtle Ave., Long Beach, CA 90805. If you have any questions or to enroll, please contact Mr. Arles A. Benavides via phone at 562-570-3285, via e-mail at Arles.Benavides@longbeach.gov or visit our website www.longbeach.gov/fatherhood and click on the 'Enroll Now' button to submit your contact information. 

When: These classes (cohorts) are year-round.  They start cohorts every month.

Time: 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. PST 

Visit the official website for more information.

Food is a basic need. For many people who turn to substance misuse, one of the main concerns is dealing with stress factors such as lack of food.

L.A. County has the resources to help. Find out where you or your family can get free food near you.