Press Releases

Plymouth County District Attorney Cruz Announces 2016 Homicide, Overdose Statistics for County



Download PDF

Contact:  Beth Stone- (508) 584-8120

BROCKTON – State Police Detectives assigned to the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office investigated five homicides and responded to 130 suspected fatal drug overdoses in 2016, according to Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz.

“I am proud of our State Police and these numbers reflect the hard work they put in every day working together with local police and federal authorities to solve these murders, investigate violent crimes, and take guns and drugs off the street,” DA Cruz said. “We will never completely solve the problem of crime, but we can work to control it and maintain a sense of safety and security for Plymouth County communities.”

In 2016, State Police assigned to the District Attorney’s Office responded to a total of five homicides in Plymouth County, which is down from the 14 homicides they responded to in 2015. That number does not include motor vehicle homicides.

State Police assigned to the District Attorney’s Office responded to 130 fatal suspected overdoses in towns and cities in Plymouth County, with 106 of the victims being male and 24 women. In 2015, State Police responded to a total of 142 fatal suspected overdoses in the county for the year.

“The number of suspected fatal overdoses in Plymouth County is down just slightly from last year and that signifies that there is more work to be done to combat the issue of opioids,” DA Cruz said. “I am hopeful that the number of overdoses in our county continues to decline, but until significant progress is made, we will press on with our efforts at battling the opioid epidemic in 2017.”

DA Cruz and Plymouth County Sheriff Joseph McDonald have formed the Plymouth County Drug Abuse Task Force, a group comprised of approximately 30 members meeting regularly to address the opioid issue in Plymouth County. The task force goal is to create a central clearinghouse of best practice information for all sectors involved in the fight against opioids, including in the areas of law enforcement, healthcare, education and community-based services.

There are 62 Assistant District Attorneys who work in the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office. The various attorneys prosecute in the two Superior Courts in Brockton and Plymouth, work as part of the Appellate Unit within the office, and are assigned to district courts in Brockton, Hingham, Plymouth and Wareham.

###

January 4, 2017