PARTY-DRUG VICTIM'S MOM CRUSADES VIA WEB SITE

Internet: GHB is a popular but potentially lethal substance that can be
mistaken for water.

San Diego-The stepmother of a man who died after drinking an illegal drug
has launched a Web site warning of the dangers of the trendy and
increasingly fatal concoction.

Caleb Shortridge died this spring after downing GHB, or gamma
hydroxybutyrate, a cheap drug known as "liquid ecstasy" that can be made on
kitchen stove tops and has become popular at dance clubs and all night raves.

Shortridge, 27, a disc jockey and dance promoter, was familiar with GHB. But
his friends later told his parents, Ken and Anya Shortridge, that he mistook
a bottle of the drug for drinking water and swallowed a huge dose May 1.

He passed out within a few minutes. Three hours later his girlfriend noticed
he had turned blue and was not breathing. An ambulance rushed him to a
hospital, where he died.

Tests revealed Shortridge had a nonlethal amount of methamphetamine in his
system and a slightly enlarged heart, but the medical examiner said GHB
caused his respiratory system to shut down, and he suffocated.

His stepmother, a computersoftware designer who markets Web sites, went
looking for answers on the Internet.

"What I found was terrifying," she said. "There were postings telling kids
not to bother calling 911 and just let someone sleep it off if they overdosed."

Even more distressing, she found the GHB - which is clear with a slightly
salty taste - is frequently passed around at dance clubs or rave parties in
plastic water bottles.

"It scares me to death that my 6-year-old could be walking down the street
and see what he thought was a bottle of water and drink it," she said.

That's what happened last week in Fort Worth, Texas, when a mother
mistakenly gave her thirsty 22-month-old son a drink from a bottle
containing GHB while visiting a friend's house. The boy fell into a coma but
recovered.

Shortridge decided to fight to drug in the best way she knew how: on the
Internet.

On her Web page "GHB: Separating the Facts, Fiction, Myths and Reality," she
details the deadly side of GHB and discusses the death of her stepson. It
also includes information about the drug from law enforcement authorities,
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and scientific journals.

GHB was banned for pubic sale in 1990 by the FDA because of severe,
uncontrollable side effects.

It has been used as a anesthetic and a bodybuilding aid. But GHB has also
gained popularity for its alleged euphoric and sexually enhancing effects
without an appreciable hangover, according to a June issue of the Annals of
Emergency Medicine.

GHB has also been used as a date-rape drug.

Checked-by: Melodi Cornett