What a tragedy, although a common site on streets and parks all over. Clinics, funded by your government give out needles and narcan to help the drug user by having clean needles to shoot their dope and narcan for their using pals to bring them back from the depths of an overdose. Makes a lot of sense, no? NO, where is the incentive to get clean? To bad the cops couldn't track the needle back to the user, clinic etc.

In a strange coincidence the Herald has an article on this very subject in todays paper.

Perhaps it was a needle used by a diabetic to inject insulin....careless disposal is unacceptable but let's not assume that Pine Banks is crawling with drug addicts.

Notice that it happened on the "Malden" side, come on people it happens all over the place!!!

I cannot believe the needle didn't accompany the child to the hospital where they could have used it to determine if the child was potentially exposed to anything. Now what? Does this kid have to go on anti-viral drugs and be tested at regular intervals until it can be determined that he hasn't "caught" anything?

First of all, how old was this "child" and where were the parent(s) of the children involved that they did not see them playing with the needle. I doubt strongly anyone takes their insulin in the park and have seen enough needles on the street near the hotels that originally set up to put up displaced families after fire or other tragedy but have turned into a haven for other miscreants, to know that its not likely it was used for any kind of typical medical treatment.

John Q brings up a good point i had no clue about. They give these users Narcan. That is like saying "Here shoot up all you want and take this when you think your going to die." So sick.

Drug dealing/use has been an issue at Pine Banks and the surrounding neighborhoods for years. The construction of the new fields slowed it down until the work delay with the track. Over the summer the drug trade increased again. Wyoming Cemetary is also a prime spot, if you are looking to get a fix.

Just wondering where these facts came from regarding drug trafficking at Pine Banks Park increasing after field construction slowed down? Or that it has increased over the summer? Hundreds of people use this park every week - the fields' usage is constant, the picnic sites reserved by families all summer long and plenty of walkers and runners passing through during the park's official hours. Not sure this would be the case if drug trafficking was all around.

Omg that's horrible as far as people's comments about narcan heroinaddicts r gonna use regardless and the narcan is given in case of an od noone says when i grow up i want to be an addict its a disease narcan has saved so many of my friends from dieing who ever left that needle was obviously careless and selfish i feel so bad for that little girl!!!!the shaperones should have been paying closer attention!!!

Tara I have to respectfully disagree but drug addiction is not a disease. MS, AIDS, Cancer, Bells Palsy, diabetes, and countless others are diseases. Drug use is a choice that users have to take responsibility for its consequences. The article John Q refers to in today's Herald raises legitimate concern about the use of narcan on those addicted. As someone who has witnessed narcan used more than a few times I feel the administration of narcan should be left to health care professionals in my humble opinion

I cannot believe after all the years that I spent at PIne Banks you could be talking about anything but a pine needle. This world has gone to hell--------Shame on all of us. Molly O

I cannot believe that after all my years at Pine Banks that you could be talking about anything but a PINE NEEDLE. This world has gone to hell-------Shame on all of us.

Tara, drug use is an addiction, not a disease. And neither is alcoholism. I personally have little patience for either. They are choices that people consciously make. We can choose to have one drink or many drinks, pop pills or shoot up or not pop pills or shoot up. We do not choose to get cancer or diabetes etc.

I think all these negative remarks about Malden are from people who live in Medford. Just because we best Medford in thanksgiving football does not give you the right to put down this emerald city. Shame on you Medford. And that needle was found 3.3456 meters on the melrose side of pine banks!

How awful hope the child is ok.

Addiction is a disease. The part of the brain where the addiction/craving is triggered actually overrides the frontal lobe, which is the decision/consequence part. What makes this disease different is that an individual has to choose to use a substance to get that cycle started. Usually, a human's base priorities are 1. Food 2. Shelter 3. Reproduction. Once your brain is addicted, it's 1. Drugs. It's easy to blame someone for starting in the first place, but everywhere I've lived, it was at least socially acceptable to drink, and if someone's got the genes for it, that's enough, and they can quickly succumb to the disease of the brain known as addiction. I can't imagine using heroin, but I know people lead very different lives, and I don't think being an addict means someone is evil or worthless or bad or selfish, and everyone can benefit from taking some time to understand before judging.