Barack Obama’s speech on addiction inspires West Virginia drug user to turn himself in

No charges will be filed against the man

President Obama delivers a speech on drug abuse in West Virginia. (Mandel Ngan/Getty)

A West Virginia man turned himself in after watching President Barack Obama’s speech on addiction during his trip to Charleston on October 21.

The 30-year-old man called 911 requesting help from law enforcement. When Deputy J. A. Smith arrived he placed his hands on a wall and told the officer that he was a heavy drug user.

The man said he wanted to live drug free and President Obama’s speech inspired him to make the call. He then showed the officer and his partner Lieutenant J. S. Elkins a cooler full of drugs.

Inside the cooler were digital scales, sixteen suboxone patches, marijuana, nineteen grams of ecstasy and more than 150 pain pills, according to the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office. The items were seized, submitted as evidence and slated for disposal.

The man was then transported by ambulance to a treatment center and admitted into a drug rehabilitation program. The sheriff’s office said that the man’s identity is being withheld.

The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday that no charges will be filed against the man.

"We applaud this person’s self-initiated efforts and wish him well in his recovery."