TOXIC MARKERS CALLED 'POOR MAN'S DRUG'

The toxic marker that sent 13 Buena Park youths to area hospitals is the
tool of choice for some graffiti artists, but it has a far more dangerous
use as an inhalant.

The Magnum 44 marker contains high levels of xylene, which can cause heart
rhythm problems that can lead to sudden death, said Cynthia Johnson, a
California Poison Control system toxicology case manager.

"This is not something you want to play around with," Johnson said.
Repeated abuse, she said, can slow reaction time, irritate eyes and case
lung and kidney damage, dizziness, memory loss and tremors.

The Magnum 44 marker sells for 2.75 at Office Depot and contains the
following warning: "Danger: Harmful or fatal if swallowed, vapor harmful,
combustible."

Santa Ana police Cpl. Steve Gales said toxic markers are simply the latest
fad among old-school "glue heads."

"It's a poor man 's drug," he said.

Enrique Sanchez, 17, bought both a Magnum 44 marker and a Mean Streak, a
white marker that sells for $3, from Office Depot. He said he uses them
primarily to tag, not to sniff.

"But my friends, they buy them and sniff them and then they get high,"
Sanchez said.