DRUG IN DATE RAPE

THREE young men have been found guilty of homicide and are facing
20-year prison terms in one of the first criminal cases in the nation
involving GHB, a colorless, odorless recreational drug that has been
linked to date rapes.

In two separate trials that concluded last week in Detroit, Michigan,
the men were convicted of putting the drug in a softdrink consumed a
year ago by Samantha Reid, a 15year-old high school freshman from the
southern suburbs of Detroit.

Samantha's death brought nationwide attention to the spread of GHB, or
gamma hydroxybutyrate, which can be made in a kitchen using recipes on
the Internet that include ingredients like paint remover, furniture
polish remover or drain clearing agents. Two Michigan Republicans,
Representative Fred Upton and Senator Spencer Abraham, pushed
legislation through Congress this winter putting GHB on the federal
list of the most-controlled substances. It joins heroin and LSD as a
so-called Schedule 1 drug.

President Clinton signed the legislation last month, and it took
effect on Monday. The new law, which does not apply to Samantha's
case, prescribes prison sentences of up to 20 years for GHB
trafficking and life sentences when a death occurs.