Carl Hudgens is the Director of Rutherford County Emergency Medical Services and the Rutherford County Coroner. That said, he knows first hand what drugs are doing in our community.

Illegal drugs mixed with mental illness are potentially a combination for increased suicidal thoughts, which is another problem all together. Addiction combined with mental illnesses like depression, schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder are major hurdles to overcome.

Hudgens told WGNS about the number of suicides this past year in Rutherford County...



Education about the danger of drugs is key to solving part of the problem, but the mental illness aspect still needs attention.