WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE, OH (WCMH) – Police say people who overdose in one central Ohio community will now be charged with a criminal offense.

Washington Court House Police Chief Brian Hottinger tells NBC4 that his department has started citing with inducing panic if they need to be revived with naloxone. He said his department started doing it in February.

Hottinger said if officers can’t charge them with anything else, they will charge them with inducing panic as a way to track the overdoses.

Inducing panic is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in county jail and a $1,000 fine.

The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office recently reported a spike in overdoses that resulted in six deaths over a 10 day period.

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