Teenage girl left brain damaged and paralyzed after smoking synthetic marijuana

Emily Bauer is permanently brain damaged after smoking a “legal,” synthetic form of marijuana. This image shows Emily before smoking.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/teen-brain-damaged-synthetic-pot-article-1.1255698#ixzz2K33yG4rY

A teenage girl suffered a series of strokes that left her brain damaged and paralyzed after smoking “synthetic marijuana” that she bought from a gas station.
Emily Bauer, 17, has also been unable to see since December when she smoked the “fake weed” with friends – prompting her family to launch a campaign to ban the substance.

Emily Bauer barely survived her ordeal after smoking “potpourri.”

Daytona Beach ready to outlaw synthetic pot

Daytona Beach is poised to become the first Volusia County municipality to crack down on synthetic marijuana and stimulants masquerading as potpourri, bath salts, incense and even treats for kids.

At their meeting Wednesday night, city commissioners will take a final vote on a measure that would make it illegal for anyone in Daytona Beach to sell, distribute or display the synthetic drugs that are usually labeled as bath salts or herbal incense.

With state and federal laws not yet making some of the substances in the products illegal, the measure would make it a code violation to have the synthetic drug cocktails in Daytona Beach businesses and to try to sell them in the city.

Supporters of the crackdown hope the future brings new measures that will make it a crime punishable by more than a maximum $500 fine to peddle the products that can mimic the highs of pot, methamphetamine and cocaine.

“It’s a good first step,” said Mayor Glenn Ritchey. “I’d like to see more teeth in it.”

Ritchey said the city and entire state need to stay a step ahead of synthetic drugs, with synthetic heroin already in other countries and probably headed to the United States.

“I think it’s only the beginning with bath salts and we need to be very cognizant in the future how we’ll address this,” Ritchey said. “This is really only the tip of the iceberg. (Drug dealers) will look for loopholes, so we need to look for ways to close all the loopholes.”

Holly Hill and Daytona Beach Shores are slated to take final votes next week on similar measures banning synthetic drugs not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Ormond Beach will take an initial vote Wednesday on a synthetic drug measure, and other local cities including Port Orange, New Smyrna Beach and Edgewater are moving toward votes, too, said Mary Swiderski, executive director of the Volusia Council of Governments.

DeLand also is looking into the issue, Swiderski said. In Flagler County, Palm Coast and Bunnell have already outlawed synthetic drugs.

VCOG has been pushing area cities to ban the synthetic drugs until VCOG and other organizations can lobby the Legislature next year to pass an aggressive, comprehensive law that would wage war on unregulated synthetic drugs in Florida. The state has already declared 42 substances illegal, but drug dealers can tweak their compounds and add substances that haven’t been declared illegal yet, Swiderski said.

Users of the drugs are ingesting things such as nail polish remover, said Swiderski, who’s particularly passionate about the issue because both of her adult children have battled addictions.

“We could end up with a lost generation,” she said.

Daytona Beach’s measure contains language that attempts to be more sweeping to get ahead of illicit drug manufacturers, said City Attorney Marie Hartman.

Daytona Beach’s ordinance focuses on bath salts and herbal incense. If commissioners adopt the ordinance, the city won’t be going after drugs and substances approved by the FDA and available with a valid prescription.

Daytona Beach’s code enforcement officers also won’t be hunting for bath salts that don’t contain synthetic chemical stimulants, according to city records.

City officials will be looking for ingredients and packaging that indicates or suggests that the substances mimic the effects of marijuana or stimulants such as cocaine and amphetamines.

The bath salts can be sold as crystals, powder, liquid, tablets or capsules. Herbal incense can be sold in leaves, powder or granular form.

A person or business cited for a code violation involving one of the substances could face a civil penalty of $250 on an initial violation. If they contest the citation, they could wind up with penalties of up to $500 for each violation.

City Commissioner Edith Shelley, who urged fellow commissioners to consider a synthetic drug ordinance, said she’s particularly appalled by the products being sold in colorful packets with pictures of cartoon characters such as Scooby-Doo.

The products are often sold in convenience stores and tobacco shops, Shelley and other local officials said, giving kids and young adults easy access. And many of the substances aren’t caught in drug tests, Swiderski and others said.

Synthetic drugs have picked up in popularity over the past year, but Ritchey said “it’s not exploding in our area. It’s sort of stabilized.”

Shelley said the danger of the drugs became even more apparent to her when she met a local man who told her his teenage son nearly died after ingesting what the father believes was synthetic cocaine.

“The man walked in and the son was unconscious,” said Shelley, who noted the child was about 13 or 14. “When you meet someone who goes through something like that you realize we need to do everything we can to try to prevent this.”

Rudy Eugene’s Toxicology Report: Experts speculate on what caused ‘face-chewing’ attack

CBS/AP) MIAMI – Experts are still speculating about what may have caused Rudy Eugene’s face-chewing attack on Ronald Poppo in Miami last month. A toxicology report on Wednesday failed to find “bath salts” and other major street drugs in Eugene’s system.

Pictures: Fla. police identify “face-eating” naked man

The Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner said in a news release that the toxicology detected marijuana but it didn’t find any other street drugs, alcohol or prescription drugs. Eugene also tested negative for adulterants commonly mixed with street drugs.

An expert on toxicology testing said marijuana alone wasn’t likely to cause behavior as strange as Eugene’s.

“The problem today is that there is an almost an infinite number of chemical substances out there that can trigger unusual behavior,” said Dr. Bruce Goldberger, Professor and Director of Toxicology at the University of Florida.

There has been much speculation about what drugs, if any, would lead to the bizarre May 26 attack at a Miami causeway that left Poppo, 65, missing about 75 percent of his face. The tests ruled out the suggestion that 35-year-old Eugene may have been under the influence of bath salts, which mimic the effects of cocaine or methamphetamine and have been associated with bizarre crimes in recent months.

An outside forensic toxicology lab, which took a second look at the results, also confirmed the absence of bath salts, synthetic marijuana and LSD.

Goldberger said the medical examiner’s office in Miami is known for doing thorough work and he’s confident they and the independent lab covered as much ground as possible. But it’s nearly impossible for toxicology testing to keep pace with new formulations of synthetic drugs.

“There are many of these synthetic drugs that we currently don’t have the methodology to test on, and that is not the fault of the toxicology lab. The challenge today for the toxicology lab is to stay on top of these new chemicals and develop methodologies for them but it’s very difficult and very expensive.” Goldberger said. “There is no one test or combination of tests that can detect every possible substance out there.”

An addiction expert said she wouldn’t rule out marijuana causing the agitation.

“It could have been the strain of marijuana that increases the dopamine in the brain, such as sativa,” said Dr. Patricia Junquera, assistant professor at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

There are two strains of marijuana called sativa and indica. The sativa increases dopamine and gives you energy while decreasing pain threshold. Indica is a “sleepy high,” she explained.

“People don’t really know what the amount of either is in each little packet of marijuana,” she explained. “And we can’t differentiate between the two in the blood, much less in a dead person.”

She also suggested that if Eugene had a mental disorder, “the marijuana could have increased even further the dopamine levels and aggravated the situation. So that can’t be ruled out.”

Eugene’s friends and family have said he was religious, not violent and that he didn’t drink or do drugs harder than marijuana, so they are baffled as to what caused Eugene’s brutal assault against the homeless victim.

“There’s no answer for it, not really,” said Marckenson Charles, Eugene’s younger brother. “Anybody who knew him knows this wasn’t the person we knew him to be. Whatever triggered him, there is no answer for this.”

Charles said the family does not plan to pursue any legal action against the police for shooting Eugene on the day of the face-chewing attack. Surveillance video from a nearby building shows Eugene stripping Poppo and pummeling him. The police officer who shot Eugene to death reportedly said Eugene growled at the officer when he told him to stop.

“They used the force they felt was necessary even if we don’t agree with that,” Charles said.

He said Eugene has been buried.

Poppo has undergone several surgeries and remains hospitalized. His left eye was removed, but doctors said earlier this month they were trying to find a way to restore vision in his right eye. He will need more surgeries before he can explore the options for reconstructing his face, doctors have said.

Senator Griffo and Assemblyman Braunstein unveil anti-bath salts bill to toughen penalties

State Senator Joseph A. Griffo (R/C/IP -Rome), supported by Assemblyman Edward C. Braunstein (D-Bayside),have unveiled new legislation designed to meet the rising use of the drugs with legislation that will help protect the public. The legislation is also supported by Assemblyman Anthony J. Brindisi (D/WF/IP-Utica), in response to an escalation of bath salts use in his district.

“In 2011, we took a strong role to address the issue of these hallucinogenic drugs being sold in New York, and we passed a good law that Gov. Cuomo signed last July. However, what we are seeing in recent days is a dramatic upsurge in incidents in which the violent, bizarre behavior of individuals who have confronted the police is being linked to their use of these drugs. As such, I am going to be working with my partners in the Senate, Assembly and Governor’s office to pass legislation that will take stronger action, because I believe the response to what we are seeing is to take even stronger measures to protect families and our law enforcement personnel,” Griffo said.

“Between the time we developed last year’s legislation and this summer, we have seen an explosion of synthetic drugs that are causing serious law enforcement, health and mental health problems for communities and families across New York State,” said Braunstein. “Our goal with this new legislation is to respond to the concerns addressed to us by law enforcement and develop a bill that will give them the tools needed to crack down harder in order to end the widespread misuse of these drugs.”

“One of the reasons the use of bath salts has skyrocketed in recent weeks is its easy availability,” said Assemblyman Anthony J. Brindisi (D/WF/IP-Utica.) “I am joining with Senator Griffo and Assemblyman Braunstein as a sponsor on this legislation, because I believe it will make it much more difficult for store owners to sell these products. When people use these drugs, they often become violent and irrational, and this has become a serious public safety issue. It is important that we get the message across to store owners and individuals that if they sell these products, they can face significant criminal penalties.”

The new bill would classify substituted cathinones (these products, often referred to as “bath salts”, are chemically related to methamphetamines and ecstasy – which are both classified as stimulants) as Schedule I stimulant controlled substances and create a Statewide substituted Cathinone Surrender Program to allow for surrender of these harmful substances to appropriate authorities. Griffo noted that his initial legislation criminalized the sale of “bath salt” products containing Mephedrone and MDPV. Since then, a current practice of making minor alterations to chemicals to subvert statutes that prohibit distinct chemicals made it possible for slightly altered “bath salt” products to continue to be sold in New York State. Braunstein noted that in this new legislation, by adding substituted cathinones to the CSA based on foundational chemical structures, this loophole of chemical alteration would be closed. Not only will this bill provide criminal sanctions, but also makes it a felony to sell such product to a minor or on school grounds

Senator Griffo praised Assemblyman Braunstein, who has sponsored previous bills on bath salts with him, and also Assemblyman Brindisi for his support for laws in response to the dangerous increase in bath salts use.

“There is a can-do spirit in Albany that says when there is a public safety priority to address, we work as partners and we move as fast as we can and we work as hard as we can to get results,” Griffo said. “Assemblyman Braunstein’s efforts will help make New York safer. I appreciate the partnership with Assemblyman Brindisi so that we can move this bill swiftly through both chambers when we return to Albany. Protecting the people knows no party lines.”

“I am proud to work together again with Senator Joseph A. Griffo, to pass this bill, which would strengthen our previous legislation by preventing drug dealers from evading the law by changing the chemical composition of ‘bath salts.’ These dangerous meth-like drugs have caused numerous violent and tragic incidents throughout the country and we must take stronger action against ‘bath salts’ in order to protect the public as well as law enforcement officers,” Assemblyman Braunstein said.

According to UPSTATE Medical University and the Upstate New York Poison Center “bath salts” is a common term used for man-made stimulant (upper) drugs that are similar to “ICE” methamphetamine (or crystal meth). Since they are very similar to other stimulant (upper) drugs like meth (amphetamine), they are very dangerous when used. “Bath salts” can be snorted, smoked, or even put in water and injected using a needle. They come in a variety of different and attractive packaging with enticing names like “Cloud Nine”, “White Lightening.” “Purple Rain”, “Pixie Dust”, and many more. These drugs stimulate the nervous system (brain) and the cardiac system (heart). Severe symptoms may occur including convulsions, seizures, chest pain, excessive sweating, hallucination, anger/violence, suicidal thoughts and action. The use of “bath salts” can cause heart attacks, permanent brain damage and scary hallucinations that can last for days or even weeks. Behavior can result in suicide or the harm to or killing of others. The Upstate New York Poison Center has received 198 cases of reported incidents related to “bath salts” so far in 2012. Central New York has been particularly hard hit, with Oneida County having 36 cases in 2012, as opposed to 8 in 2011; Onondaga County 35 (9 in 2011); Oswego County 17 Cases (10 in 2011); and Madison County having 15 cases (none in 2011).

Griffo said, “These so-called ‘bath salts’ are not the same as aromatic bath salts. They contain a potentially lethal mix of synthetic drugs and serve no purpose other than to get the user high. My legislation sought to ban these dangerous substances so we may help keep our young people safe and give our law enforcement the authority to rid our State of these dangerous drugs. What we are finding since the law took effect is that more action is needed because of the incidents taking place across Central New York.”

Braunstein added: “Dangerous substances are being marketed under many names, but the result is the same – damaging effects to the user and potentially dangerous situations for the police and community. Our new bill will help to stop this epidemic.”

Health Department regulation will make it a violation to buy, sell or possess synthetic drugs like bath salts and fake marijuana

ALBANY — State and local law enforcement would have new power to fight the growing problem of designer drugs and fake pot under a new regulation set to be announced by Gov. Cuomo.
The Health Department regulation, to be unveiled Tuesday, will make it a violation to sell, distribute, or possess synthetic drugs like bath salts and fake pot.
Violators could face up to 15 days in jail, a small fine, or even have their businesses shut down.
“It gives law enforcement a nimble, flexible tool they can take immediate action on,” a Cuomo aide said.
The state will also create a hotline for parents and others to report stores selling the illegal products. And the Health Department will spearhead a web campaign to educate the public about the deadly drugs.
The actions come a month after President Obama signed a law to ban designer drugs and fake pot.
The Cuomo administration order doesn’t hold nearly the same power as the federal law, which carries penalties of up to 20 years in prison — or more if someone dies or is seriously hurt. The federal law also carries fines of up to $5 million for first-time offenders.
Cuomo aides say the state action is similar to going after low-level drug dealers while the feds focus on the kingpins.
“The feds are going to go after the big fish, but it’s not the big fish that are necessarily the problem,” one aide said. “It’s the bodega on the corner. And a U.S. attorney is not going to go after a bodega on the corner.”
The regulation builds on an order Cuomo’s Health Department issued last year banning the sale of the synthetic drugs and allowing for the shutdown of businesses that ignored it.
That order followed an exclusive Daily News investigation revealing the deadly dangers of the designer drug.
But manufacturers responded by simply tweaking the chemical compounds to stay ahead of the authorities.
The new regulation outlaws dozens more chemicals than the previous one and, for the first time, makes it a violation that allows local law enforcement to get involved.
Also, unlike the federal law, someone simply possessing a synthetic drug without the intent to sell it can be charged, a Cuomo aide said.
Synthetic drugs are marketed as imitating the effects of pot, cocaine and LSD. They are often masked as everyday household items like bath salts or potpourri.
But they can cause hallucinations, seizures and suicidal or homicidal thoughts.
Emergency room visits and state Poison Control calls linked to the deadly drugs have been on the rise since 2011, the state Health Department reported.
Sen. Charles Schumer, who sponsored the federal law, called the Cuomo action “another tool at our disposal.”

Pinellas officials considering banning bath salts and some incenses

In their latest salvo in the on-going struggle against synthetic marijuana, Pinellas County officials are seeking to ban the sale of bath salts and certain herbal incense products.

The proposed ordinance is an attempt to close the loophole created when Florida banned more than 90 chemicals used in synthetic marijuana. County officials said that by the time those products were off the shelves, drugmakers had already adapted by concocting new, legal cocktails that are as dangerous as their predecessors.

“What we want to do is make sure that we took the opportunity to close those gaps to ensure those things don’t come growing back,” said Tim Burns, the county’s director of Justice and Consumer Services.

In addition to banning synthetic marijuana, bath salts and kratom — a lesser-known substance that comes from a tropical plant — the ordinance would establish a five-person committee responsible for reviewing new products and possibly banning those as well.

Today, the Pinellas County Board of Commissioners will vote on whether to hold a public hearing on the proposed regulations.

Leo Calzadilla, who owns three tobacco shops in Pinellas County and is planning to open a fourth, said he would protest the ordinance. When state law banned a variety of products, he changed what he sold, he said. But the race to pass new ordinances and outfox manufacturers seems pointless to him, as well as bad for business.

“Herbal incense is sold as herbal incense,” he said. “That’s what it’s intended for. … What people do with it is their prerogative.”

Many of the synthetic marijuana products are labeled “not for consumption,” said Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, adding that this was “intellectually dishonest.”

Manufacturers know that teenagers buy their products intending to smoke or ingest them, he said. The drugs can cause extreme euphoria, as well as hallucinations and seizures. And there have been several high-profile instances in which teenagers died or were injured while under the influence of those substances.

Gualtieri said he is distributing letters to store owners, asking them to voluntarily drop the synthetic drugs from their inventories.

Randy Heine, owner of Rockin Cards & Gifts, a tobacco shop in Pinellas Park, said he would not object to banning synthetic marijuana, though this should be done at a state level, he said. But kratom is another matter.

Heine sells kratom leaves for smoking, kratom powder for making tea, and kratomite, a liquid concoction he described as a “relaxer.”

“I’ve been selling it steadily for 30 years without a problem, zero, nada, nothing,” he said. “There’s minimal reports of problems, compared to coffee, aspirin, cigarettes, and nobody has died of this; it’s just hysteria.”

“I’ve got to confess I don’t even know what it is,” Gualtieri said. “It’s not on my radar.”

But Burns maintained that kratom is an emerging product, one that might not be well-known to law enforcement officials now, but is poised to replace the synthetic drugs the county is hoping to banish.

The county’s proposed ordinance cites Thailand’s decision to outlaw kratom, as well as the substance’s inclusion on the Drug Enforcement Administration’s list of drugs and chemicals of concern as reason for banning it in Pinellas.

County officials also have proposed new regulations that would require stores selling glass pipes and bongs to post large warning signs on the front of their buildings.

Teens and Drugs – K2 and Spice are Banned, but What Fix is Next?

 

“Drug du jour K2 is now illegal in Michigan. But that doesn’t mean parents can rest easy. What’s at the heart of teen drug use? And what can families and communities do?”

 

Nearly two years ago, Bill Miskokomon began noticing a dramatic shift in his 16-year-old son’s personality.

“He was not the kid I knew at all,” the Shelby Township dad recalls. “I knew it wasn’t him, and I couldn’t reach him.”

The blank stares, slipping grades and countless fights were too much to brush off as typical teen rebellion. Miskokomon, who asked that his teen son not be named, started to wonder if his son was using drugs. He administered drug tests to his son when it was time for the teen to get a driver’s license, but the results came up clean each time.

“I had a false sense of security,” he says of the negative tests – but he knew his child “still wasn’t acting himself.” As his relationship with his son further dwindled, he continued searching for the reason why.

Desperate for answers, Miskokomon searched the teenager’s bedroom and found small, silvery packages labeled “potpourri.”

A worried Miskokomon researched the substance online and discovered the potpourri he found in his son’s room was actually K2, or “Spice” – a synthetic drug made of herbs, sprayed with chemicals and manufactured to mock the effects of marijuana when smoked, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

The designer drug didn’t show up on drug tests, was addictive, and – shockingly enough – was perfectly legal.

Miskokomon’s son, now 17, had been smoking K2 for about a year and a half when Miskokomon found out. The teen had been buying it at a local gas station and smoke shop.

“It was like living a nightmare,” Miskokomon says of that time. “A lot of times I’d worry if he was coming home, (or) if I was going to find him alive in the morning.”

K2 received big headlines this summer as communities from Ann Arbor to Detroit to the entire county of Macomb passed ordinances banning the sale of it and other synthetic drugs, such as “bath salts.” Within weeks, the state legislature fast-tracked a bill banning the sale of the drug statewide, and Gov. Rick Snyder officially kiboshed K2’s legal status by signing the bill into law on June 19, 2012.

But while parents and politicians rejoiced, drug treatment experts and law enforcement officials had a more tempered response. They, after all, are on the front lines of teen drug use, and were well aware that K2 was just the latest teen drug trend. Banning one type of drug – while crucial – was just one battle in a war that may never be won.

After all, approximately 50 percent of high school seniors have tried an illicit drug in their lifetimes, and approximately 20 percent of eighth-graders have done the same, according to the national “Monitoring the Future Study” released by the University of Michigan in December 2011.

The prevalence, the problem and the publicity beg the question: Is there any way to stop teens from getting high?

Why teens do drugs

As long as there have been drugs, teens have experimented with them. The risky teenage behavior has to do with brain development, says Dr. Charlene McGunn, executive director ofChippewa Valley Coalition for Youth and Families, an anti-drug organization based in Clinton Township.

“The brain of an adolescent is research-proven to be a work in progress,” she says, noting that MRI studies have shown “the brain is really not fully developed … until into the 20s.”

“The area of the brain that is last to develop” – known as the prefrontal cortex – “is what promotes decision making,” she says. Hence, a premature prefrontal cortex can cause teens to make bad decisions or take risks.

Of course, there are social reasons teens dabble with drugs, too.

“Kids are curious and they will try things,” says Mark Hackel, Macomb County’s executive and former county sheriff. Hackel helped Macomb become one of the first counties in southeast Michigan to ban the sale of K2 in early June.

Hackel says “it’s not one thing” that causes teens to try drugs. Rather, he thinks, “it has a lot to do with society in general.”

Hackel says teens sometimes try drugs and drink alcohol because of the examples they’re seeing on TV, among peers or even in their own homes.

“Parents provide a terrible example to kids sometimes,” Hackel says.

For example, if parents come home from a party and tell a friend on the phone about how drunk they were, or if they come home from work and drink several beers a night, they’re sending their teen the message that “it can’t be that bad,” he says.

“We unfortunately don’t set a very good example for kids in our daily lives,” Hackel says. “(The) reality is we don’t realize the impact we’re having on kids.”

When all of these influences mix with teenage curiosity, kids try drugs for the first time – or “the worst time,” as Hackel puts it, because the teen is then “always chasing that same high.”

McGunn says that a majority of alcoholics and drug users began using during adolescence.

“We don’t know the long-term implications of drug use on the developing brain,” McGunn says. “What we do know is that if we can postpone the use of alcohol until the age of 21, we will not, very likely, have an alcoholic.”

The powerful role parents play

Following the battle to get his son help and inform others about K2’s dangers, Miskokomon has formulated advice for other parents: “Get more involved.”

Parents, he says, are “so busy” with their “day-to-day lives” that sometimes, they believe “as long as my kids aren’t in trouble, they’re fine.”

“I just think as parents, we need to step back and take time with our kids,” Miskokomon says. “Pay attention to what’s going on in their lives.”

And if parents see a change in their teen’s behavior, he says, “Ask why.”

As McGunn has found through the teen focus groups she studies with her coalition, teens want their parents to be involved in their lives, and studies have shown that parental involvement is one of the biggest factors in preventing teen drug use.

“(Teens) don’t want parents to be controlling their every movement,” she says, but “they want parents to be involved. They really want parents to listen.” When parents supervise their teens’ actions and whereabouts, get involved at their schools and listen to their thoughts and feelings – even those they don’t like – teens feel protected and cared for.

“All the common-sense parenting ideas are really the most important things that can occur for kids to keep them from experimenting,” she says.

Teens are susceptible to making bad decisions based on their premature brains, so “parental presence is so very important” to help kids make the right choices, McGunn says.

What parents can do

To talk to teens about drugs, parents must be informed, McGunn stresses.

“In terms of what parents should be aware of, I think it starts with parents educating themselves on current trends,” she says.

The next step is having a conversation about drugs with kids at a young age.

“Basically by starting to ask what the teen knows, (and) what they’re observing,” parents can start the dialogue, she says. She suggests parents also do this by “expressing considerable concern about any drug – alcohol, marijuana, tobacco – really anything at all that might be used.”

And again, parents should also keep in mind the examples they’re setting for teens, Hackel says.

“I think they need to start realizing it’s our responsibility to set the tone,” he says. “We don’t realize that we’re role models and mentors to kids – not just kids in our own homes.”

McGunn suggests parents occasionally throw parties at their home that don’t include alcohol, for example, since alcohol is “the primary drug that teens are going to see their parents use.

“It sends a distinct message that you can celebrate and have a good time without alcohol,” she says.

Peers also play a large role in influencing teenagers. Therefore, McGunn says parents should get to know their teen’s friends.

“One of the ways of determining whether a teen uses is whether they’re associated with other teens who use,” she says.

Fighting the never-ending battle

Sometimes, though, parents cannot stop their teens from trying drugs.

Miskokomon says he talked to his teen about drugs, and spent a lot of time in his son’s life – from Boy Scouts and baseball to attending parent-teacher conferences.

“You can’t stay on your kids 24/7. There’s so much peer pressure out there,” he says.

But Miskokomon’s message to other parents whose kids are doing drugs is “not to give up on their kids.” Today, Miskokomon’s 17-year-old son is back home in Michigan after completing a 30-day drug rehab program in South Dakota.

“He did great,” Miskokomon says, but adds that his son still “has a long road ahead of him.”

While other teens across the nation face similar roads to recovery, new drugs will threaten to wreak havoc on teen lives.

“There’s always going to be the drug of the day,” McGunn admits. “However, that doesn’t mean that parents can’t inoculate their children so they’re less likely to use it.”

The best way to reduce teen drug use is to fight the demand, Hackel says.

“(It’s) K2 today, but what’s it going to be tomorrow? Something different,” he says. “We can’t constantly be chasing after the supply when there’s the demand. How do we get people to say, ‘We don’t want to do drugs?'”

Getting teens to avoid trying drugs is a community effort, McGunn says, and everybody in the community – from law enforcement and churches to schools and coalitions – have a place in doing so.

Yet in the end, “It’s always going to come back to good parenting,” she says, and when you bring all areas of the community together on the issue, “the head of the table is always going to be the parents.”

Bath Salts Problem Grows, Drug Counselors Say They Have Their Hands Full

 

The drug landscape is changing all across the country.  No longer are people just relying on what comes from the Earth.

They’re smoking, inhaling and shooting what chemists make in the lab.  They’re producing marijuana or bath salts.

There was a major bust around the country by the Drug Enforcement Agency.  Investigators found $59 million worth of synthetic marijuana in the Houston area alone.

It comes in small packets that indicate it’s approved by the DEA. Federal investigators say to laugh at that.

Chris Davis has been a drug counselor at Right Step in Houston for more than a decade.

“It’s up there with methamphetamine and cocaine,” Davis said.

He has 10 people he’s currently working with who are hooked on bath salts, a drug that hit the market about two years ago.

It’s a chemical mix that contains amphetamine-like chemicals and Davis says it’s just as addictive as other drugs like cocaine and the symptoms vary.

“Hallucinations and delusional, it can be very scary they can be very paranoid,” Davis said.  “It’s similar to what could happen to using methamphetamines.”

Davis says he’s glad federal agents on cracking down on the synthetic drugs that have landed in smoke shops around the county.

He says the results have made headlines with zombie like users in Florida.  He says it’s not a drug to take lightly and it’s difficult to shake.

“It takes a longer time for them to stabilize.  It’s pretty tough,” Davis said

 

 

 

 

Synthetic marijuana finds a following among the young, old alike

Synthetic, designer drugs were just starting to make waves in Jefferson Parish last fall when Lt. John Ladd, a detective with the Sheriff’s Office narcotics division, visited the hospital rooms of two Metairie teenagers hospitalized after smoking man-made marijuana. One 14-year-old girl went into immediate cardiac arrest after taking a toke and had to be resuscitated at East Jefferson General Hospital in Metairie. The other, a 16-year-old girl, smoked before what turned out to be a frightening trip to the Esplanade mall in Kenner.

 

EnlargeScott Threlkeld, The Times-PicayuneSCOTT THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE St. Tammany Sheriff Jack Strain announces the arrest of 21 people Wednesday, October 26, 2011, for selling synthetic marijuana and bath salts in convenience stores throughout St. Tammany Parish. Officials recovered about 8,500 packets of synthetic marijuana, $115,000 in cash, weapons and eight vehicles.21 people arrested in St. Tammany Parish for selling synthetic marijauna and bath salts gallery (16 photos)

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“They were walking into the mall, and she sees the bushes and trees talking to her and jumping around. She passed out, and they called EMS,” Ladd said.

 

Both girls told Ladd they had been smoking “POW!,” an illegal “botanical potpourri” sold by The Rob Shop, a smoke shop with two locations in Metairie.

Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office investigators on July 19 announced the arrests of the business’s owners, Robert Bentel Jr. and Robert McPhail, along with nine other suspects in a wide-ranging crackdown on synthetic marijuana manufacturing and distribution in the parish. Detectives seized more than $1 million in cash, drugs and other assets.

Wide appeal

Detectives uncovered an alleged trafficking business that spread to several states. But their investigation also revealed that synthetic marijuana appealed to more than just mischievous high schoolers. Agents watched adults — including soccer moms and seniors — make their way into stores that were under surveillance to buy the drug.

Case detective Adrian Thompson said while crack and heroin tend to attract a certain subset of users, synthetic marijuana consumers run the gamut.

“With this drug, it was everyone from 13 to 70,” he said. “The well-dressed, well-to-do types and the not-as-well-dressed. Every rung of the socioeconomic ladder was touched. It was completely across the board.”

Emergency room doctors at Interim LSU Public Hospital in New Orleans noticed the same diversity in the patients treated there for overdoses of the synthetic substance, according Dr. Victor Tuckler, the ER’s toxicologist. He and detective say users are drawn by the drug’s over-the-counter availability.

The Sheriff’s Office has found synthetic marijuana sold out in the open at service stations and convenience stores as well as on the Internet. No backstreet deals or clandestine hook-ups with a possibly shady dealer.

“A lot of the public believes that it’s somewhat safe because it’s being sold at retail outlets,” said Capt. Keith Simone, another Sheriff’s Office narcotics agent.

Dangerous high

That lure, authorities say, is a lie. Many users ingest synthetic marijuana expecting the same effects as naturally grown grass but find themselves suffering from high blood pressure, nausea, high fevers, seizures and hallucinations, Tuckler said.

“A lot of their behavior and their presentation is very similar to people high on cocaine,” he said

But what has proven more harmful is the psychosis that seems to accompany the drug’s use, Tuckler said. Patients have developed delusions, violent paranoia or extreme suicidal thoughts, symptoms that persist for days, sometimes weeks.

Authorities have no way of knowing the drugs’ long-term effects because the chemical makeups are always changing. Accused local manufacturers buy the active ingredients for synthetic marijuana in powder form from unregulated chemists overseas, mostly in China, Thompson said.

They dissolve the powder into liquid acetone, the chemical used in nail polish remover, then spray it onto harmless, dried plant leaves. Authorities suspect they might include additives like hallucinogens and or nicotine.

Those back room chemists and manufacturers stay one step ahead of law enforcement by easily changing the molecular makeup of the raw chemical whenever new laws are passed banning a particular formula.

And the unknown is what makes these drugs even more dangerous, said Dr. Mark Ryan, director of the Louisiana Poison Center.

“A number of these substances have never been tested on anything,” Ryan said. “You could use of these substances and end up with Parkinson’s syndrome in a week that’s never going to go away. No one knows.”

Thompson said suspicious parents should keep an eye out for the small flashy packages of “potpourri” that bear names like “POW!”, “Nola Diamond”, “Mojo”, “K-2” and “Spice.” Adults of all ages using the drug should beware, Tuckler said. Synthetic marijuana is dangerous not just in the physical, but in the mental sense.

“You have a kid who’s in college who just wants to have a good time,” Tuckler said. “He experiments and the next day, he’s suicidal and paranoid. That paranoia could stay the rest of his life. That’s how devastating it could be.”

DEA raids smoke shops in Las Cruces, Sunland Park, Alamogordo

LAS CRUCES — Federal and local law enforcement officers raided several smoke shops Wednesday in Las Cruces, as well as one business in Sunland Park, as part of a nationwide investigation into the alleged production and distribution of synthetic drugs.

Masked agents from the Drug Enforcement Agency, assisted by LCPD officers, were seen removing several large boxes of evidence from at least three retail locations near the intersection of South Solano Drive and East Idaho Avenue.

Federal agents also raided the Station Recreation smoke shop on 1621 Appaloosa in Sunland Park. DEA officials did not say Wednesday if any raids in southern New Mexico resulted in arrests.

An affidavit filed in support of the search warrants in the U.S. District Court for New Mexico indicates that 14 businesses in Las Cruces, Sunland Park and Alamogordo were targeted for allegedly selling illegal synthetic cannabinoids, commonly known as Spice, and synthetic cathinones, more popularly known as “bath salts.”

Two smoke shops in Silver City, Twisted Illusions and The Smoke Shop, were not raided and neither sells Spice, workers said.

In January, the DEA, joined by other federal and local law enforcement agencies, began investigating the smoke shops, often sending undercover agents to purchase suspected synthetic drugs, according to court documents.

“Each undercover operation has resulted in the seizure of individual-used sized containers containing a plant material that is believed to

have been treated with chemicals or a powdery-like substance,” DEA agent Jeffery S. Castillo wrote in his affidavit.

The raids in southern New Mexico appeared to be part of a coordinated nationwide investigation as the DEA on Wednesday also raided businesses in El Paso, Albuquerque, as well as locations in California, Utah, New York and New Hampshire, according to published reports.

“DEA agents are conducting numerous enforcement operations throughout the region … This is part of a bigger operation,” said Carmen Coutino, a spokeswoman for the DEA office in El Paso.

The search warrant for the businesses in southern New Mexico, signed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Carmen E. Garza, authorized agents to seize written and electronic documents, financial records, suspected synthetic drugs and paraphernalia, as well as security camera recordings.

Witnesses at Somewhere Else Comics Games, one of 10 businesses in Las Cruces targeted by the DEA, said Wednesday that police officers entered the business with guns drawn, announcing they were raiding the establishment.

“They pat-frisked me and my son. It was very scary for us,” said one woman who declined to give her name. She and her 13-year-old son sat inside a vehicle outside the store at 1230 S. Solano Drive.

Authorities also raided Phat Glass, located next door to Somewhere Else Comics and Games, and Smokin Supply, less than a quarter-mile away at 1315 S. Solano Drive.

“They came in, guns drawn, told me to put my hands up and handcuffed me,” said Maurice Portillo, co-owner of Smokin Supply, who was not arrested and subsequently released.

Portillo said the DEA agents “tore” through his shop, turning around security cameras and taking cell phones, business records, as well as glass containers and herbal incense products that are often described as synthetic marijuana because of their chemical composition.

Portillo, a 29-year-old U.S. Army veteran and student at New Mexico State University, said he believed the products he sold were legal, noting that he bought them from a distributor who also provided literature vouching for their legality with DEA drug scheduling provisions.

“I don’t do any illegal business out here. There’s no history of anything illegal here,” said Portillo, who opened his business about six weeks ago. Portillo said the DEA agents did not tell him what they were looking for, and made several references to the operation being “Obama (expletive).”

“I was like, ‘This is just (expletive) politics …,'” Portillo said.

On July 9, President Barack Obama signed the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 2012, which instituted tougher criminal penalties for selling some first-generation synthetic drugs — such as K2 and Spice — as well as some newer ones.

In March 2011, the DEA “emergency scheduled” several chemicals often found in herbal incense products that make them chemically similar to tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.

However, Castillo wrote in his affidavit that “clandestine manufacturers and traffickers” began distributing smokable cannabinoid products in an attempt to circumvent newly enacted federal and state laws.

Castillo said the criminal offenses possibly committed by the investigation’s targets include possession with intent to distribute analogs of a controlled substance, and selling drug paraphernalia.

Portillo, whose store also sells health items, regular tobacco products, cell phones, vaporizers and storage containers, said he never believed he was selling anything illegal and added that he cooperated with authorities. He also said the raid will only temporarily hurt his business.

“We’ll be all right. We’ll be back,” he said.

Brian Fraga can be reached at (575) 541-5462; Follow him on Twitter @bfraga

 

Closer look

The Drug Enforcement Administration, investigating the alleged production and distribution of synthetic drugs, obtained search warrants for the following businesses in southern New Mexico:

— Phat Glass, 1211 East Idaho, Las Cruces

— Phat Glass South, 306 Union, Las Cruces

— Phat Glass Too, 109 North New York, Alamogordo

— Phat Glass 3, 823 North New York, Alamogordo

— Sam’s Gift Shop and Smoking Accessories, 607-C South White Sands Boulevard, Alamogordo

— Neverwhere, 940 North Main, Las Cruces

— Somewhere Else Comic Books and Games, 1230 South Solano, Las Cruces

— Zia Tattoo, 1300 El Paseo, Las Cruces

— Station Recreation, 1621 Appaloosa, Sunland Park

— The Realm Hookah Lounge, 991 West Picacho, Las Cruces

— Smokin Supply, 1315 South Solano, Las Cruces

— Hookah Outlet, 1900 South Espina, Las Cruces

— Subherbia, 1200 East Madrid, Las Cruces

— Subherbia 2, 150 South Solano, Las Cruces
1:27 p.m.

LAS CRUCES — Federal and local law enforcement officers raided at least three Las Cruces smoke shops today as part of a wider investigation into synthetic drugs.

Masked agents from the Drug Enforcement Agency, assisted by LCPD officers, are still on-scene at Phat Glass, 1211 East Idaho Ave., Smokin Supply, 1315 South Solano Drive, and Somewhere Else Comics and Games, 1230 South Solano Drive.

Police entered the comic store/smoke shop this morning with guns drawn and announced that they were raiding the business, said two witnesses who were inside the store.

Witnesses said the agents were “looking through everything” in the store, checking counters, receipts, and pat-frisking everybody inside the business and asking for their identifications.

Federal agents were also seen bringing evidence bags inside the stores.

DEA spokesman Carmen Coutino confirmed that the investigation was related to synthetic drugs. DEA agents in New Mexico and Texas have raided other smoke shops looking to confiscate synthetic marijuana, commonly known as SPICE, according to multiple media reports.

Coutino said more information will be released later today, adding: “DEA agents are conducting numerous enforcement operations throughout the region. This is part of a bigger operation.”

12:16 p.m.

LAS CRUCES — Shops near the corner of Solano Drive and Idaho Avenue may be part of a federal raid by agents looking to confiscate the synthetic drug Spice.

According to Sun-News reporter Brian Fraga, the Las Cruces Police Department is assisting the Drug Enforcement Agency in an investigation Wednesday at Phat Glass, 1211 E. Idaho Ave., Smokin’ Supply, 1315 S. Solano Drive, and Somewhere Else Comics and Games, 1230 S. Solano Drive.

 

Police entered the comic store/smoke shop this morning with guns drawn and announced they were raiding the business, two witnesses on scene said.

DEA agents are raiding locations across New Mexico, according to multiple media sources.

DEA agents raided at least one location in Sunland Park and KOB.com is reporting DEA raided 16 locations in Albuquerque today.

A spokeswoman for the agency told KFOX14 that they are looking to confiscate Spice.

Spice refers to a wide variety of herbal mixtures that produce experiences similar to marijuana and that are marketed as safe, legal alternatives to that drug, according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse.

Synthetic marijuana was banned in New Mexico in April 2011.