Pubdate: Mon, 30 Sep 2002 Source: National Post (Canada) Copyright: 2002 Southam Inc. Contact: http://www.nationalpost.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/286 Author: Sarah Schmidt RECREATIONAL USE OF DATE RAPE DRUG SURGES Police Concerned: Cheap, Dangerous GHB Becoming Popular With Young The number of young Canadians voluntarily using the date rape drug GHB to get high is on the rise, police say. Gamma hydroxybutyrate, known on the street as liquid ecstasy or 'G,' has already replaced Rohypnol as the weapon of choice for sexual predators. GHB is poised to become the favoured recreational drug on the club scene, says Detective Howard Page of the vice squad run by the Toronto Police Service. "When we started seeing crack cocaine in the late '80s, we were told by our American counterparts it was going to be an epidemic. I'm telling you, with GHB and ecstasy, this will become the drug of choice by the youth. It's the huge drug of choice in nightclubs." GHB, a nervous-system depressant, is difficult to distinguish from water because it is odourless and colourless. Its main derivative, GLB, is legal in Canada, so buyers can easily convert it into a date-rape drug, usually slipped into a person's drink, causing dizziness, loss of inhibition, memory impairment and often loss of consciousness. Predators know rape cases involving GHB are difficult to prosecute because there is no trace of the drug after 12 hours. The flip side of GHB is that it can serve as a social lubricant if taken in tiny doses, triggering a euphoric feeling and enhancing sexual urges. Five dollars fills a bottle cap, much cheaper than a bar tab at the end of a night or a pricey line of cocaine for a high that lasts mere minutes. There is also no hangover with GHB. Janet Ward, 23, of Vancouver, has used GHB recreationally twice. "Everyone was doing it and I said, 'What the heck, I'll try it,' " she said. Neither experience was positive. The first time, she passed out and woke up in a stairwell, covered in her own vomit. Six hours had passed. "Nothing happened, to my knowledge." She tried it again at a house party in Kelowna, B.C. She passed out again, and this time awoke to find herself being fondled by another woman while people took pictures. "I'd never put myself in that situation again," said Ms. Ward, who is launching a GHB awareness campaign in Vancouver because some of her friends were sexually assaulted after taking the drug recreationally. Detective-Sergeant Lee Woodman, of the drug enforcement section of the Ontario Provincial Police, says GHB has found its way into communities across the country. "It's not restricted to the cities. It's out in the smaller towns much like ecstasy is, just like heroin is." Police in cities such as Halifax, Moncton, Gatineau and London admit young people are using GHB recreationally. "I think it's quite popular," an RCMP officer in Moncton said. Det.-Sgt. Woodman said many people use GHB to enhance an ecstasy high or to soften the effects of post-cocaine or heroin high. "It lessons the crash. The feeling is just horrendous and it alleviates a lot of that." Getting high on GHB is always hazardous, he insisted. Ten milligrams can cause blackouts, making a person vulnerable to a sexual attack. An overdose can induce a coma or result in death. Sometimes, users are unaware they are taking GHB. "When they say liquid ecstasy, some people think they're taking ecstasy. That's the common danger. It's manufactured in the sink at home, not in a lab," Det.- Sgt. Woodman said. A 32-year-old Vancouver professional who asked not to be named has a different take on GHB. He has been a recreational user for about four years, before it became known as a date rape drug. His friends, well-educated young professionals, were not interested in hard drugs, but were intrigued by GHB. "It looked interesting and something we wanted to try," he said. They liked the sensation. "GHB makes you randy," he said. They do not mix it with alcohol and take care of one another to avoid blackouts or 'G-naps,' he said. "It's something you kind of watch. We're very careful about our timing, our dosage and keep an eye on one another. We police each other." Det. Page of the Toronto Police Service said he sees the other side of the drug. "It's a mean drug. It's used as a weapon. It scares me because of how easily they can put it into someone's drink." - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart