SMPD Officers Use Narcan for Opioid Overdose of Person in Car

On April 25, 2020 at about 6:08 PM, Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) officers were dispatched to Virginia Park (2200 Virginia Ave) in response to a report of an overdose.

When officers arrived on scene, they encountered the reporting person, who informed them that he discovered his girlfriend had overdosed in her home. He immediately began to transport her to a local hospital, but while driving he noticed her condition declining. He pulled over at Virginia Avenue Park and immediately called for help. The reporting person informed officers that his girlfriend had overdosed on Oxycodone.

SMPD Officers noticed the victim was pale, unconscious, and non-responsive so they retrieved their Naloxone (also known as Narcan) kit and administered it to the victim intranasally. The victim responded positively and was subsequently transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Naloxone (Narcan) causes no harm when administered and blocks opioid receptors in the brain, therefore temporary reversing the effects the opioids cause such as respiratory arrest. Narcan has been used over 14 times by SMPD personnel since the inception of the program in January of 2019.