DANCE DRUG USER 'DIED FOR NOTHING MORE THAN KICKS'

A HEALTHY 25-year-old woman died "for no other reason than for kicks" after
taking a new "dance drug" known as GHB, an inquest was told yesterday.

Andrea Murphy's body was found at her home in Wigan, Lancs, the day after a
night out drinking in October 1997, the inquest heard.

She was only the second person in Britain to die from recreational use of
gammahydroxybutyrate - GHB - an unlicensed drug legally available only on
prescription. The hearing was told of a recent upsurge in the misuse of
GHB, particularly at gyms where it is used as an anabolic steroid.

Miss Murphy, a manager at the Moon Under the Water restaurant in Wigan, was
said to have taken the drug, an intravenous anaesthetic, in a car with
friends.

The inquest heard in a statement from Miss Murphy's friend, Navina
Colquhoun, that the conversation between the friends in the car turned to
the drug GHB, also known as "Liquid E". She then described how she saw Miss
Murphy drink two capfuls followed by a swig from the bottle. Miss Colquhoun
said that Miss Murphy had admitted to her in the past that she had used
drugs including ecstasy.

One of two men in the car was questioned by police and said he had received
the chemical the same evening. He and his friend were under the impression
that Miss Murphy had taken it before and knew what she was doing, Det Con
Stuart Collier told the hearing.

Recording a verdict of death due to non-dependant abuse of drugs, Mr
Coppel, the Wigan coroner, said that Miss Murphy had died "for no reason
other than for kicks" and hoped that her death would warn others of the
dangers of the drug.