60 PILLS DIVIDED BY 6 YOUTHS EQUALS A TRIP TO THE HOSPITAL

Six youths were hospitalized after overdosing on more than 60 sleeping
pills at a roller-skating rink in Orange on Friday night, police said.

The three boys and three girls were kept for observation Friday night and
were to be released Saturday, said Orange police Lt. John Higley.

The youths, ages 12 to 15, bought the over-the-counter medication at a
pharmacy before going to the skating rink in the 100 block of North
Wayfield Street, he said.

An employee of the skating rink thought one of the youths appeared to be
under the influence of drugs and called police, Higley said. When officers
arrived shortly after 10 p.m., they found all six youths suffering
hallucinations, lacking coordination and not responding to verbal stimuli.

The youths, who are from Orange and Tustin, were transported by ambulance
to three area hospitals, Higley said.

Higley said he could not recall a similar incident in his 26 years with the
police department.

"It's unique for a couple of reasons," he said. "The age. These are really
children. It's also the first time I can recall [anyone] using an
over-the-counter sleep medication to such a degree. It shows you that
nonprescription medicine, which anyone can buy over the counter, can
produce harm if taken in excess, or if you don't follow directions."

Linda Lebelle, director of Maryland-based Focus Adolescent Services, said
children in this age group will often turn to a pharmacy or their parents'
medicine cabinets to experiment.

"When they get over-the-counter drugs, they think it must not be
dangerous," she said, adding that over-the-counter drugs can be some of the
most dangerous if not taken as prescribed. "Anything can be toxic."

Little information is available about sleeping-pill abuse. A Canadian
government Web site says sleeping pills and tranquilizers belong to a group
of drugs known as the "sedative-hypnotics" and slow the central nervous
system, which affects thinking, feeling and body movement and function.

Short-term effects of tranquilizers and sleeping pills include relaxation,
drowsiness, reduced tension and feelings of well-being. Overdose can cause
death.

Long-term side effects include memory and judgment problems, weak muscles,
confusion and disorientation.