New date rape drug on scene

On a Texas summer night in 1996, 17-year-old Hillory Farias drank a glass of soda and died the next day. 

Her death was caused by a drug overdose, according to congressional records. A "date rape" drug,Gamma-hydroxybutryate, or GHB, had been slipped into her drink.

It is situations like these, said Lynne Coenen, assistant director of Cal State Long Beach's Women's Resource Center, that stress the importance of personal safety.

"Don't ever let go of your drink," Coenen said. "Don't let anyone bring you a drink, don't set it down. Hold your drink at all times."

GHB, also called liquid ecstasy, is a "garage drug," said Malinda Waddell, director of Forensic Nurse Specialists in Long Beach.  The recipe for the drug is easily found on the Internet and can be homemade.

"Someone can go to a chemical warehouse and make it in their kitchen," Waddell said.

"I'm terrified," said junior Julie Grossman, a health care administration major. "If you're at a party, you don't watch your drink the whole time, and some jerk can do something terrible to you."

Unlike another form of drug-facilitated rape, Rohypnol, or "roofies," GHB is virtually undetectable, Waddell said.
Roofies can stay in the system as long as 90 hours, she said. GHB takes only four to six hours after ingestion to leave the system. 

"Usually, you're unconscious for four hours," Waddell said.  "That's why very few test positive for GHB.  It is the perfect form of drug-facilitated rape."

The drug can also be disguised in a water bottle or an eyedropper, she said

"It's usually liquid," Waddell said. "It's usually clear and it looks like water. Only one cap-full will make someone unconscious."

Sgt. Bonnie Franklin of the University Police recently gave a lecture to a class about GHB and its effects, said senior Chan Tran.

"It was like an informative wake-up call," he said. "She said it tastes salty, like Gatorade, and it's also killing people.  It causes the heart to beat fast."

GHB and other contributing factors could have caused people like Hillory Farias' overdose, Waddell said.

"It depends on body weight, the victim's health and the potency of the liquid," she said.  People who take the drug willingly use it to get high, Waddell said.

"It gives them a sense of euphoria," she said.  "It heightens their senses and makes them uninhibited for sex."

The effects of GHB vary, Coenen said.  "It can cause dizziness, nausea, vomiting, unconsciousness and coma."

A victim of GHB poisoning can feel "fuzzy and light-headed," Waddell said.  "They start to feel disoriented, like they're not connected to their bodies."

Another sign of drug-induced rape, Coenen said, is if you wake up sore in places that are not normally sore after a night of dancing, such as the genital area.

"If you wake up and you don't remember what happened after your last drink, immediately go to the hospital," Coenen said.