PARENTS WARNED OF NEW TEEN DRUG GHB

For parents who don't know the latest teen lingo, it's time to get
wise, area drug agents say.

As many as three local young people have died in the past year because
of a drug called GHB, said Huntsville police Sgt. Rex Reynolds.

The death of a 25-year-old man last July after a party in Toney has
been directly tied to GHB. Law enforcement officials believe the
deaths of two other young people, in separate cases of respiratory
arrest, may also be linked to the drug.

GHB is one of two drugs gaining popularity among young people because
of their hallucinogenic effects. The other is called Ecstasy. Both are
used as an alternative to alcohol.

Since September, two people have taken drug overdoses on the
University of Alabama in Huntsville campus. One person almost jumped
out of a window because of it, said Gary Gailliard, police chief at
UAH.

The Partnership for a Drug-Free Community recently received a grant
from the Office of National Drug Control Policy to expand and enhance
its drug-prevention programs. That's how a Law Enforcement Coalition
was established to alert the community about illicit drug use.

Partnership for a Drug-Free Community is a private, nonprofit
organization committed to the prevention of youth alcohol/drug abuse
through awareness, education and action.

The organization is planning community meetings to educate the public
about GHB and Ecstasy, said Executive Director Deborah Soule. Letters
have been mailed to 10 churches and 20 area businesses to see if they
are interested in hosting a meeting. Soule hopes to start setting up
meeting dates within the next week or two.

During a lunch meeting Wednesday at the Hilton Huntsville, some
coalition members gave the partnership's board members a sampling of
what they will share in the community meetings.

GHB is cheap and easy to get - in the right circles - said Huntsville
police Sgt. Jim Winn, head of the department's Organized Crime Unit.
It's most commonly found in nightclubs or at all-night dance parties
called raves.

It's also called Scoop, Somatomax, Goop, Grievous Bodily Harm, Liquid
X and Georgia Home Boy. Its technical name is Gamma-hydroxybutyric.

In recent years it has become popular with teen-agers who attend raves
- - all-night dance parties - or private nightclubs.

The Federal Drug Administration declared GHB illegal in 1990. In the
rave party circles, though, Winn said, it's not hard to find. Usually
it costs about $5 for a capful - enough for a one-to four-hour high.

It's also easy to make from scratch, he said.

GHB can be snorted, smoked or mixed into drinks. It can cause loss of
consciousness, liver failure, vomiting, tremors and potentially fatal
respiratory problems.

"It's a stimulant which causes an effect like cocaine," Reynolds said.
"They use it, dance all night long, drinking a lot of water or juice,
because anything you drink enhances the effect."

An effect, he said, that is life-threatening. The same goes for
Ecstasy, also a stimulant and hallucinogen.

While GHB can be easily made in a kitchen, DEA agent Rocky Hernen said
the good news about Ecstasy is that it's harder to make. The bad news
though, he said, is that there's plenty of it out there, ready to buy.

Ecstasy is a synthetic drug that costs from $10 to $40 per dose,
depending on local supply and demand.

Also called XTC, Adam and MDMA, Ecstasy is a pill, powder or liquid.
It can be swallowed snorted, smoked or injected. It can cause
depression, confusion, sleep problems, severe anxiety, paranoia,
fainting, chills, sweating and blurred vision.

Both drugs, the agents said, are abundant in the rave scene. Some rave
parties are advertised in secret code, and parties are held in rented
facilities in Huntsville, Decatur and Nashville.

"There's not a select target area for these drugs," Gailliard said.
"It's a network, and it's a problem for everybody."