CRIME STOPPERS LEARN ABOUT RAVES

WISCONSIN RAPIDS - Members of Crime Stoppers groups from across the state
got an education Friday on the parties attended and the drugs used by area
young people. Raves, all-night dance parties usually advertised as
alcohol-free, and the drug ecstasy usually associated with the parties,
have lured sexual predators to the scene, said Glen Stanley, an 18-year
veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Stanley was
Friday's keynote speaker at the Wisconsin State Crime Stoppers Annual
Training Conference held in Wisconsin Rapids this weekend.

Ecstasy and the other party drugs give users the feeling that everyone is
their family, and they let their guard down, Stanley said. The combination
of drug effects makes users easy prey for sexual predators.

During Friday's presentation, Stanley handed out a list of area rave
parties scheduled for this month, including one in St. Joseph, Mo.

"I know Missouri is about nine hours away," Stanley said. "I also know your
kids will drive that far to get to one of these events." But the rave
parties also are coming to this area, said Wood County Sheriff's Deputy Bev
Ghiloni.

"We've seen it here, and parents need to be informed," she said. Halloween
is one of the biggest nights of the year for rave parties, Stanley said,
because Halloween costumes fit in well with the culture. Most people who
attend raves are 17 to 25 years old. However, Stanley has seen children as
young as 9 attending the parties.

"They will often be brought by an older brother or sister," Stanley said.
"Parents will think that by making a younger brother come along, their kids
are safe." Ecstasy and similar drugs increase the amount of seratonin in
the brain, giving a euphoric feeling, Stanley said. When users comes off
the drug, they often experience about three days of depression. In one clip
shown Friday, an 18-year-old club drug user had spent several days in a
psychiatric ward. A scan of her brain was equivalent to that of a 60- to
70-year-old woman who had several strokes, the doctor said. Raves and club
drugs are a relatively new phenomenon, so it's too early to tell what the
long-term effects are, Stanley said. However, early studies show that in
eight years of use, less than 3 percent of the brain repairs itself from
the drug's damage.

"I'm afraid that in 10 to 15 years from now, we'll have a society that is
overwhelmingly depressed," Stanley said.

SIDEBAR: About Raves

Since the name "rave" has taken on a bad connotation, the dance parties
which feature loud techno music are not often called raves, said Glen
Stanley, an 18-year veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

The parties usually begin between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. and go until 8 a.m. to
10 a.m. People who attend raves don't usually drink alcohol, because it
doesn't mix well with the atmosphere.

Rave parties are very sensual, but not sexual, Stanley said. The drug makes
users crave touch. The stuffed animals often seen at raves are squeezed and
rubbed in the faces of drug users who enjoy the sensations.

The partygoers often wave glow sticks and lights in front of the eyes of
those on ecstasy. They also will wear surgical masks which have been
smeared with a menthol rub. Breathing in the menthol feels good to someone
on the drug.