Former member of the Philadelphia Flyers, Todd Fedoruk, is speaking out about his battle with substance abuse in an article on TSN. He admits to having started using drugs at the early age of 16, long before a career in the NHL enabled him even further.
That's the part of his post that is most applicable to Philadelphia because Fedoruk writes that not only did the professional athlete scene around him enable drug use and bad decisions, but also local police often turned a blind eye to potentially harmful behavior.
"I got away with stuff because I was a hockey player," Fedoruk writes.
"Like getting pulled over by the cops. You're drunk, but they're like, 'You're drunk, but get home, take care of yourself.' For me it happened a few times. Driving around and you had a few drinks, and the cop could tell but he was a season ticket holder. So he'd follow you home. I guess it's a good thing but it enables bad things down the road. I'm not saying it happened every night.
"It depends on where you are. In Philly, there's a history of (police) taking care of us."
Fedoruk says he's speaking out now because he doesn't want others to fall victim to drug abuse when there are people out there who are willing to help.
Lieutenant John Stanford of the Philadelphia Police Department responded to TSN about the claims in a note posted at the end of the article which reads, "We typically don't respond to the remarks of others; however, I will just say that the department would not condone any member giving someone 'special treatment' because of their career or personal status. The law is the law and our responsibility is to enforce it and uphold it, and if it is determined that an officer violated that oath, then he/she will be disciplined accordingly."
NHL
Fedoruk's claims aren't exactly shocking but the way everything that takes place in the world today is documented with a cellphone camera or dashcam, I wouldn't be surprised if you hear less and less about this type of "taking care of."