Lake County Board candidate Brian Hayden says addiction is in his past after court records show numerous convictions
Court records indicate that Lake County Board District 1 candidate Brian Hayden — a 44-year-old Democrat from Wadsworth who has prioritized addressing the opioid epidemic — was arrested numerous times during a period of his life in which he says he was addicted to drugs.
In an interview with the News-Sun, Hayden said his recovery from addiction and run-ins with the law are a “success story” he hopes can inspire some of the “millions and millions of Americans going through the same thing that I went through.”
In 2007 in Cook County, Hayden was found guilty of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a hypodermic needle or syringe. Records indicate that Hayden pleaded guilty in 2011 to battery, a Class C misdemeanor, Class A misdemeanor charges of theft of labor or services and of violating probation in Cook County.
Hayden also confirmed he was charged with bail jumping in Wisconsin following an arrest and called a 2017 arrest for retail theft in Cook County, to which he was found guilty, a “wake-up call” that he remembers as a turning point. He said he celebrated five years of being clean in March.
“I think my story really highlights the dangers that addiction can cause to people,” Hayden said. “I think a lot of different people can relate to this fact just because the opioid crisis has affected so many different families and caused so much harm. Not just to the person using, but to the families and to the friends.”
Hayden is taking on longtime Republican Lake County Board member Linda Pedersen of Antioch, who has been on the board since 2008, in the November election.
“I am aware of the situation,” Pedersen said Monday. “I am going to run on my record, and I would rather not comment.”
Hayden said his battle with addiction began after he was injured at work and was prescribed opioids to treat his pain.
“Prescription ran out, and I had a habit,” he said. “I had no choice, at least I thought, my only choice at the time — because I was under the spell of addiction — (was) to turn to street narcotics. Once that happened, I was off and running.”
Getting clean, Hayden said, helped to repair relationships with family and friends that were damaged during his cycle of addiction.
“The victorious feeling is not waking up every day having to worry about that feeling that addiction gives you,” he said.
He and Pedersen have each worked with organizations such as Live4Lali to offer training on how to administer naloxone to reverse overdoses. But Hayden said his personal experience is a unique qualifier in decreasing addiction and overdoses.
“You see a lot of people that are taking this topic very seriously and are trying to combat the opioid epidemic,” Hayden said. “But, at the same time, they have no experience, they have never been on the other side of the fence.”
