THE COSTS OF COCAINE

ADDICTION TO THIS POTENT NARCOTIC AFFECTS MANY
MORE THAN JUST THE PERSON INGESTING THE DRUG

Deborah James doesn't need to guess how devastating cocaine addiction
can be. She knows. James is the former spouse of 31-year-old Gordon
Robert Dodds, who was convicted of aggravated assault in September for
the March 2004 stabbing of a long-time friend during an argument.

Although James has never done drugs, cocaine has taken a devastating
toll on her life. She tells her story in hopes that other people -
both those who run the risk of falling prey to the addiction and those
who surround them - will be forewarned.

"More has to be done in this town regarding this issue; there are too
many good people out there falling into its power," she says. "Believe
me, it will take the strongest man or woman down. It not only affects
the person addicted to it, it affects everyone around them."

James said the early years of her relationship with Dodds were good.
He used to drink beer regularly, but not to the point where it
interfered with his work or their lives.

"We hardly ever argued - we had a nice life," she says. "We used to go
camping, do lots of things." Then he started staying out late, she
says, and the lies started.

"I didn't have any idea for a long time. We were running our business
and I'd say, 'Where's all the money going?' He'd make up lies and I'd
say, 'Okay, we'll figure it out.'"

Soon Dodds starting staying out later and later and, finally, not
coming home at all. When he did come home, he was louder, more
demanding. He didn't want the children around him much.

In 2003, James took her four children and left him, in an attempt to
wake him up.

"One thing about cocaine, it makes you not care about anything - not
yourself - you have no worries, no priorities. All you care about is
getting some more. It's a total escape from the world."

She explains that the changes happened slowly so weren't so noticeable
but, looking back, it all made sense.

When James left Dodds, she left all their possessions.

"I was so tired of dealing with it all."

Along with losing everything she owned, she also lost their business
as well as a supplemental job.

"I was financially destroyed. That's why I'm working so hard now," she
says.

Looking back on Dodds' addiction, James says he had been on his own
since he was 14. He was a follower, and suffered from low self-esteem
- - a good target for a drug dealer.

"The dealer would say to him, 'That's okay, you can pay me latera or
say, 'It's a treat, you don't have to pay.' That's how they get you
hooked."

She says she believes cocaine is plentiful in Salmon Arm - and more
people should be on guard.

"I've heard that from a lot of people. You can get cocaine easier than
you can get pot up here," she says. "People don't talk about it and
they need to. People have to stop judging it. A lot of people think I
did it because it was in my life. That's not true. They have to stop
judging and start helping. I did my judgments too until it happened to
me."

James would also like to see people take more time to be
together.

"You find a lot now, nobody has time for their family. You have to
make time or you can't pick up on these things (symptoms)."

She also believes that six weeks of detox treatment is not enough -
addicts need a year. She points out that treatment can be expensive,
something that addicts can't afford. James says she continues to be
Dodds' friend, but she is glad he was punished for what happened
because it has taught her children some valuable lessons about drugs.

"They're really good kids; I'm really proud of them. They've been
through a lot. They come first for me."

James would like to see more people talk openly about having someone
in their family hooked on cocaine.

"They'll find out there are others in the same situation who aren't
doing it themselves. It's helpful knowing you're not alone in the world."