The Kingsport Police Department’s Community Relations and Crime Prevention Unit is pleased to announce a new prescription drug collection point in the lobby of the Justice Center located at 200 Shelby Street in Kingsport. Our medication take-back initiative has been named, “Project: Drug Drop Zone.” The goals of this program are to keep drugs off the street, prevent overdoses and accidental poisonings, and avoid environmental contamination. Items that can be placed in our secure drug drop box include non-narcotics, narcotics, over the counter (OTC), herbals, and veterinary medications. Items that should not be placed in the box include needles or sharps, biohazard materials, and illegal drugs. The Kingsport Police Department’s first attempt at collecting leftover, unwanted, or expired medication was held on September 25, 2010. At that extremely successful event, held offsite at Rhoten Allstate Agency, 179 pounds of medication were collected and destroyed. With this new drug collection point in the lobby of the Justice Center, citizens can drop off their unwanted medication 24 hours a day at their convenience, rather than having to wait for a special event. All medications will be properly disposed of by the Kingsport Police Department. A photograph of the drug collection box as well as an informational flyer are attached to this press release. For additional information or questions concerning Project: Drug Drop Zone, please contact the Kingsport Police Department’s Community Relations and Crime Prevention Unit at (423) 229-9433 or ThomasMPatton@KingsportTN.gov.

Click here to see the Drog Drop Zone Poster information. (PDF file)

Click here to view an Informational PDF on the Drug Drop Zone.

**Below is a Chart of the progress since we have installed this Drug Drop Box.

Date	Weight (lbs.)	Event
September 25, 2010	179	Offsite Collection Event at Rhoten Allstate Agency
January 27, 2012	N/A	Drug Box Installed in Lobby of Justice Center
January through December 2012	1,274	Total 2012 Annual Collections
January 4, 2013	5	Box emptied
January 17, 2013	6	Box emptied
January 25, 2013	18	Box emptied
February 1, 2013	28	Box emptied
February 11, 2013	55	Box emptied
February 22, 2013	28	Box emptied
March 1, 2013	8	Box emptied
March 8, 2013	28	Box emptied
March 14, 2013	28	Box emptied
March 21, 2013	14	Box emptied
April 5, 2013	15	Box emptied
April 12, 2013	5	Box emptied
April 18, 2013	11	Box emptied
April 25, 2013	40	Box emptied
May 3, 2013	48	Box emptied
May 10, 2013	32	Box emptied
May 16, 2013	6	Box emptied
May 23, 2013	21	Box emptied
May 31, 2013	20	Box emptied
June 7, 2013	43	Box emptied
June 14, 2013	33	Box emptied
June 20, 2013	330	Expired Meds Dropped Off by Medical Office
June 20, 2013	11	Box emptied
June 28, 2013	28	Box emptied
Total	2,314	Total (lbs.) Drugs Collected / Destroyed