Drug Addicted Couple-Elizabeth and Matthew

Quick Overview

Elizabeth and Matthew, a couple from Monrovia, California, are currently homeless and using fentanyl and methamphetamine, attributing their current situation to past trauma, including Matthew's 17-year prison sentence for a carjacking resulting in injury and Elizabeth's history of childhood abuse compounded by a manipulative ex-partner who caused her to lose her career and custody of one child.

Key Points: Elizabeth and Matthew are 40 years old, from Monroia, and currently live in a tent in Highland Park, going to MacArthur Park to buy fentanyl and meth. Matthew served 17 years in prison after stealing a car when he was 18, an event that escalated to robbery with great bodily injury when the owner was hurt; he started using heroin in prison, where it became an 'acceptable' way of life. Elizabeth has four children with three different fathers, and while she maintains contact with some, she has not seen her five-year-old son in three years because his millionaire father, who she claims stalked and manipulated her, was given custody after a corrupt system failed her. Elizabeth attributes her substance use and inability to connect with people to childhood trauma involving her divorced parents and abuse from her stepfather, stating, 'The drugs are a way of escaping that, right?' Matthew believes their childhood experiences shaped their path, noting that a lack of early embrace and being told negative things led to bad self-esteem, while Elizabeth emphasizes embracing her children as individuals to correct the patterns she experienced. Matthew recently started a 'sublocade shot' in jail to help him get off fentanyl, and they are currently surviving by stealing from stores and selling items in MacArthur Park. Despite their situation, Elizabeth values Matthew's sincerity and unending love, calling him her best friend, and she expresses a desire to get back to her 17-year career as a hairdresser.

Context: This transcript captures an interview with Elizabeth and Matthew, a couple experiencing homelessness in the Los Angeles area due to severe substance use disorder involving fentanyl and meth. They detail their complicated pasts: Matthew spent nearly two decades incarcerated for a serious crime committed in his youth, while Elizabeth comes from a middle-class background but traces her struggles back to childhood abuse and subsequent tumultuous relationships, including one that led to the loss of her career and custody battles over her children.