Drug News

MARIJUANA – USA
In Connecticut, Carrying A Small Amount of Marijuana Downgraded from Misdemeanor to Fine – Foxnews.com
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The Connecticut Senate narrowly approved legislation on Saturday that decriminalizes the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Oscar De La Hoya Enters Drug Rehab for Substance Abuse – Larry Brown Sports

Former boxer and current promoter Oscar De La Hoya has reportedly entered drug rehab to address a substance problem.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Whitney Houston — 30 Days of Rehab Ain’t Enough! – TMZ.com

Whitney Houston is voluntarily seeking additional treatment for drug and alcohol … TMZ has learned — after completing a 30-day out-patient rehab program earlier this week.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Jeff Conaway Tragedy: Does Dr. Drew Pinsky’s ‘Celebrity Rehab’ Help or Hurt? – foxnews.com

“As usual, Jeff was most likely taking too many medicines. He probably got pneumonia and sat at home too long and was intoxicated by the prescription drugs and didn’t realize he was so sick, and by the time he got to hospital he was in shock. At one point he looked like he was going to make it, but his kidneys shut down.”

DRUG ADDICTION/DRUG COURT – USA
‘I wanted to get off drugs, I just didn’t know how’ – Annapolis Capital

Sharon and Wes Sudduth spent a decade watching as their daughter Melissa Sudduth abused cocaine and heroin and cycled through the county detention center on misdemeanor drug and theft charges.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol abuse and teens – OneNewsNow

11% of the alcohol consumed in the United States is consumed by underage kids. That’s a staggering statistic.

ALCOHOL – SCOTLAND
AFS fears over alcohol abuse in parents – Alcolim

Campaigners in Scotland have raised concerns over the number of parents engaging in high levels of alcohol abuse, it has been revealed. Alcohol Focus Scotland (AFS) has called for action against the 330,000 children under 16 living with a binge-drinking parent.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Sen. Schumer wants drug website shutdown – YNN

Senator Charles Schumer is asking the government to shutdown a website he calls a digital black market for drugs. Heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine are among the drugs being anonymously sold and bought on the site known as Silk Road. The Senator says the site launched in February and uses restricted access and several layers of secrecy to avoid detection.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Waukomis woman pleads guilty to contributing to death of her daughter – NewsOK.com

Linda Tucker had 10 times the lethal dose of the drug in her system when she died, a state medical examiner reported. Authorities said she had taken the drug with her mother, older brother and her mother’s boyfriend. She lay unresponsive in the back seat of a vehicle for several hours before her mother went for help, but it was too late.

DRUG REHAB – IRELAND
An artistic form of drug rehab – Irish Times

Can art help transform drug users’ lives? A project in Dublin is proving that it can.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Lindsey Lohan’s Dad Fills Yacht Full of Women From Drug Treatment Center to Shoot TV Show – ‎Broward New Times

Michael Lohan, father of actress Lindsey Lohan, is trying to pitch a reality TV show involving a drug treatment center for women based on a luxury yacht. He already shot a pilot of one episode in Fort Lauderdale using a borrowed yacht and a dozen girls from a local center.

HEROIN, COCAINE – USA
14 indicted on heroin, cocaine charges – BurlingtonFreePress.com
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A four-count indictment has accused 14 people of conspiring to move heroin and crack cocaine from New York City to Vermont, and to sell the drugs in and around Burlington.

HEROIN – USA
Uprooting deadly heroin trio in East County – Portland Tribune

Gresham Police Detective Bob Peterson helped investigate two fatal heroin overdoses, including one in Rockwood, that lead to the arrests of three Troutdale men. “The word needs to get out that we’re going to chase these guys down on all of these overdose deaths. If they sell heroin to someone and it results in their death, we’re going to hold them accountable.”

METHAMPHETAMINE – AUSTRALIA
O’Callaghan ‘avoided asking son about drugs’ – The West Australian

Speaking openly about his son’s methamphetamine addiction this morning, Police Commissioner Karl O’Callaghan urged parents to ask difficult questions of their children. “You go through this whole process of asking questions and skirting around the issue because sometimes you just don’t want to know the answer,” he said.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Study Reveals Doctors Can Do More To Address Prescription Drug Abuse – Medical News Today

As prescription drug abuse reaches epidemic proportions, a recent study reports disturbingly low monitoring rates for patients taking powerful prescription drugs. Only 8 percent of patients taking opioid pain medications are screened by their doctor.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – THAILAND
Phuket an addicts haven – Phuket Gazette

Although illegal, over-the-counter sale and purchase of benzodiazepine derivative drug like diezapam (Valium) and alprazolam (Xanax) is common in Thailand, and is even tacitly accepted by many local authorities. However the practice exposes buyers to health risks including addiction or overdose.

DRUG ABUSE – CANADA
DUI: Driving after drug use a growing concern – Globe and Mail

The report concluded that “driving after drug use is a growing issue that is as prevalent as driving after alcohol use – and that drug-impairment may also be a contributing factor to collisions and fatal road crashes.”

ALCOHOL – UK
Amy Winehouse returns to rehab for alcohol abuse – TheCelebrityCafe.com

Amy Winehouse, who has battled substance abuse and mental health issues ever since she burst onto the scene with 2006′s Back to Black, has checked into the UK’s Priory Clinic to seek treatment for alcoholism.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Parents have role in kids’ drug decisions – Knoxville News Sentinel

The point of this column is to make clear that we, as parents, have something to say, and something to do, about whether our children are ensnared by drug abuse and addiction. By being proactive and taking simple, commonsense measures, we can go a long way towards protecting our kids.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Children Eat Meth, Thinking It was Candy; Mother Arrested – KTBS

LONGVIEW, Texas — A woman has been arrested after her children told police they tried methamphetamine drugs because they thought it was candy. Amanda Gail Walker, 30, of Hallsville was arrested.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Old habits die hard: Rise in number of alcohol and drug addicts over 50 in the US – Daily Mail

They are not your average alcoholics or drug addicts, and in fact if you looked around the room you would never guess that this is what binds them together. But for the group of over 60s, they know that addictions know no age.

HEROIN – USA
Heroin needles found near kid’s toys – Iowa City Press Citizen

Many of the drug-related items were found in the room belonging to Hinshaw’s child. Inside the room, officers found razor blades with drug residue, packaged marijuana and a “large pile of several hundred used syringes” near piles of the daughter’s toys … the worst case of a child being exposed to drugs the officers had ever seen.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse growing problem in Indiana – Chicago Tribune

Prescription drugs are playing an increasing role in the drug-related crimes that are filling up Indiana’s prisons. “I would say 75 to 80 percent of all cases I handle, whether it be meth or cocaine, also had some sort of prescription drug.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Keith McCants: ‘I don’t want anybody to feel sorry for me’ – National Football Post

Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Alabama linebacker Keith McCants’ downward spiral is a sad story of self-inflicted blows, a tale of drug addiction, depression, wasted potential, wasted money and wasted opportunities.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Former Celtics Player Discusses Drug Addiction in New Book – Patch.com

Chris Herren, a basketball legend from Fall River, and a Portsmouth resident, realized his dreams by playing for the Boston Celtics in the NBA, only to lose it all to drug addiction.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
FBI to probe Warren drug cases – Iowa City Press Citizen

FBI agents have agreed to investigate Warren County’s handling of drug-related criminal cases in light of a former prosecutor’s methamphetamine arrest.

HEROIN – USA
Seven-year-old ‘gave away heroin at school’ – Ninemsn

A seven-year-old schoolboy has been caught giving free bags of heroin to his classmates in Pittsburgh in the US. Police are investigating after a teacher caught the student with 18 bags of heroin in his backpack and locker at Quentin Roosevelt Elementary School.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug abuse legislation nixes ‘pill mills’ – The Newark Advocate

John Kasich signed legislation Friday afternoon aimed at confronting the supply side of prescription drug abuse. Abuse of medication, especially prescription pain relievers in the opiate family, has been called an “epidemic.”

ALCOHOL – USA
How Marylanders beat the alcohol lobby – Washington Post

The case for the new alcohol tax — a 3-percentage-point addition to the state’s 6 percent sales tax — was strong. It will save lives, prevent crime and help to avert thousands of cases of alcohol abuse or dependence. It will also raise at least $85 million in revenue a year.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Rob Lowe: ‘I loved going to rehab’ – Digital Spy

Lowe, who entered rehab for drug and sex addiction in 1988 after a sex tape scandal, said that it was an “amazing experience”, because he was ready to start living his life the way he wanted. Charlie Sheen is wrong.

HEROIN – CANADA
Canada’s high court to rule on safe-injection site – Toronto Star

Supporters say it also reduces the spread of HIV and hepatitis, and curbs crime and open drug use. The federal government rejects that evidence, arguing the facility fosters addiction and runs counter to its tough-on-crime agenda.

DRUG ABUSE – AUSTRALIA
Our Say: Tackling drugs use in schools – The Cairns Post

THE State Government needs to strike a balance when it comes to dealing with drug use in schools. Educating students on the horrific consequences drugs have on the lives of those suffering addiction and their families would be a good start. Students suspended or expelled for being caught with illegal substances should be given a more intensive insight, no matter how confronting it may be, to try to stem what is a major problem in the community.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Dave Gahan says it’s a myth that musicians need drugs to be creative – Examiner.com

Artists don’t have to suffer to create art, said Depeche Mode’s lead vocalist Dave Gahan, as he discussed drug addiction on the red carpet at the 7th annual MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit. Later in the evening, Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler presented Gahan the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award on behalf of the organization.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
State cash will ease federal cuts for Maine Drug Enforcement Agency – Kennebec Journal

The cuts come at a time when urban police departments cite an increase in violent crime associated with drug addiction and rural agencies struggle with prescription drug diversion — also a byproduct of addiction. “There is not another issue in this state that affects communities and law enforcement as much as the drug issue.”

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Ex-drug addict Robert Hayes fights his way out of homelessness with comic strip – Philadelphia Inquirer

Together, the two men created “Li’l Addict,” a comic strip that tells Hayes’ life story as rawly as he has lived it. Hayes writes the narrative, creating fictional versions of the unsavory characters that dominated his alcohol- and drug-dependent years.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Carolina DeLuca: Parents must be vigilant against alcohol use – Livingston Daily

‎Terry decided to challenge herself by downing 15 shots. Of course, she became drunk with all the unpleasantness that it entails. Terry’s friend supported her during the whole night as she lay sick on the bathroom floor. The whole night that Terry was struggling, she was actually dying. Erroneously, the parents reasoned that if they monitored what the girls drank, and if Terry stayed overnight, not driving home, that she would be safe. This is not uncommon

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTION/HEROIN – USA
Pain pill addicts use heroin when money gets tight, drug study says – Middletown Journal

The over prescription of opioid medications — like OxyContin, Vicodin, Percocet and methadone — is not only leading to increased overdose rates on those drugs, but may be leading to an increase in heroin use.

HEROIN – USA
Cops say they’ve busted huge Park Slope heroin ring – BrooklynPapers.com

Federal investigators say that several “brands” of Heroin like this one called “Cream,” were readily available on the streets of Park Slope. The brownstone neighborhood is slowly getting a reputation as a one-stop shopping destination for drug buyers.

COCAINE – USA
Officials push for stiffer penalties for cocaine possession – WLBZ-TV

“In the city of Portland, cocaine is the drug that is creating the most trouble, we have many stories of how the cocaine has ravaged communities, neighborhoods and families. This law is a policy statement that the state of Maine does not condone drug use,” explained Roy McKinney, director of the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Ex-Drug Addict: I’m Forever Grateful to David Wilkerson – Christian Post

“The gang members became drug addicts. The same young men we knew as gang members, we started to know them as drug addicts,” explained Wilkerson, who still directs Teen Challenge Brooklyn.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Meth lab found in Loup City – Grand Island Independent

LOUP CITY — A 48-year-old Loup City man was arrested Tuesday when the components of a methamphetamine lab were found in downtown Loup City. Jeffrey Arnold was arrested on felony charges.

ALCOHOL – USA
Now is time to talk to teens about alcohol – Marietta Times

Youth who begin drinking before age 15 are 5 times more likely to develop alcohol dependency or abuse alcohol later in life. When drinking is delayed until 21, a person’s risk of serious alcohol problems is reduced by 70%.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Territory doctors tackle alcohol abuse debate – ABC Online

We get lots of people who suffer injuries as a result of alcohol related violence but we also see the effects of long term alcohol use and very young people with chronic illness of many forms relating to alcohol from chronic brain injuries, from recurrent infections which are likely worsened by alcohol, chronic liver disease, acute pancreatitis.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Prescription drug drop-off points being set up throughout county – The Flint Journal

The drugs eventually will be incinerated by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. With a rise in opiate abuse in the area and after a string of fatal overdoses, preventing prescription drug abuse is the major motivation for the drug take-back.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Police investigation leads to major bust – StarPhoenix

In total, 53 grams of cocaine, five pounds of marijuana, numerous prescription pills, a small amount of ecstasy, a large amount of cash and a weapon were seized, along with three vehicles. “We’re sending a clear message to those who choose to deal drugs. It is unacceptable to the good people that choose to live, work and raise their families in our part of the world. This is just the start.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Doctor labeled ”candy man” – TheDay

Drug addicts called Dr. Scott W. Houghton “the candy man” because he readily wrote out prescriptions for the controlled substances they sought.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – CANADA
Addicts getting desperate – TheChronicleHerald

KENTVILLE — Members of the group fighting drug addiction in the Annapolis Valley are warning of a possible rash of crimes as increased pressure from police, doctors and the provincial prescription monitoring program reduces the supply of pills on the street.

ALCOHOL – USA
Substance-abuse program helps pregnant women deliver healthy babies – Daily Press

Fetal alcohol syndrome can include mental retardation, abnormal facial features and growth, memory, hearing vision, behavioral and central nervous system problems. There is no cure. The lifetime cost for one person with fetal alcohol syndrome in 2002 was an estimated $2 million.

ALCOHOL – USA
Keep Booze in Bars, Not at the Pit – Daily Lobo

Scott Owens, the guy who killed four teens near Santa Fe last summer was acquitted. His attorney never disputed Owens’ 0.16 blood-alcohol level — twice the presumptive legal intoxication limit. He only disputed reasonable certainty that Owens was solely responsible for the crash. The reasonable doubt was created by the teens’ erratic driving before the crash.

METHAMPHETAMINE – NEW ZEALAND
Fake tour group busted in New Zealand with $8 million of meth stashed in their shoes – New York Daily News

A group of Malaysians posing as tourists was busted in New Zealand after authorities found nearly two pounds of methamphetamine stashed in each of their shoes. Officials said the 10 traffickers were posing as an innocent tour group in order to try to …

HEROIN – USA
Portsmouth man sentenced for giving roommate fatal heroin dose – Daily Press

A Portsmouth man who pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter after giving heroin to his friend was sentenced to 4 years.

ECSTASY/COCAINE – USA
Authorities charge 27 people in cocaine, ecstasy ring in Somerset, Middlesex Counties – The Star-Ledger

Baillie, 28, was one of 27 people recently snared in a three-month investigation that unearthed a cocaine and ecstasy ring in Somerset and Middlesex Counties.

ALCOHOL/DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Summit reveals the devastation of one bad decision – NorthJersey.com

“I brought alcohol, weed and pills to the party,” he said. Dean and his friends got drunk and took the drugs he had brought. Dean passed out. When he woke up he found out that his best friend had died from an overdose.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
New Narconon Video Refutes Myth that Drugs Stay in the System Just a Short Time – San Francisco Chronicle

In my case, being able to build a new, positive drug-free life for myself through the Narconon drug rehab program truly saved my life.” Even the National Institute on Drug Abuse agrees that drugs can stay in the system for a year or more. …

DRUG REHAB – USA
From drug addiction to sober superstar: Rangers’ Josh Hamilton is a special MVP – Dallas Morning News

1 overall pick to drug addict to clean, sober superstar had finally reached the point every little boy dreams about: He’s going to the World Series. Better still, he’s the main reason the Texas Rangers are AL champions for the first time in their 38 …

DRUG REHAB – CANADA
Finally free from prison of addiction – The Chronicle Herald.ca

A healthy, vibrant young woman with a wide, ready smile, Sarah has reclaimed her life from the prescription drug addiction that once consumed her. She has come a long way from her days of snorting Dillies — the street name for Dilaudid — nine times a day.

DRUG ADDICTION – AUSTRALIA
World super-middleweight boxing champion Ricky Thornberry jailed for two years –
Courier Mail

Barrister Peter Nolan, for Thornberry, said his client had confirmed he was battling a serious drug addiction which was triggered by the decline of his boxing career. “After his (boxing) career came to an end he went into a downward spiral (and drug addiction.”

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Former drug addict talks about struggle, hopes to help others – WEAU-TV 13

Even at the age of 13, Bill Westerman says he couldn’t escape the lure of illegal drugs. He started smoking marijuana with friends because of peer pressure. Occasional drug use quickly turned into an addiction. He says he eventually moved on to what he calls “harder drugs,” even cocaine. But once he got caught, he went to prison for six years starting in March of 2003. “I lost everything: my wife, my house, my truck, my self-respect, my family,”

DRUG AND ALCOHOL ADDICTION – USA
Seniors deal with ‘silent’ substance abuse – WVLT ‎

“Since I was an alcoholic and a drug addict, and I am 70, a lot of my friends were. And by the way a lot of them are dead, as the result,” he said. “Seniors may have a problem with their prescription drugs, and they may have a problem with alcohol.”

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Alcohol-prevention program starting up for prom season – Foster’s Daily Democrat

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 93.4 percent of them got it for free the last time they drank. As well, more than 44 percent of the youth who reported drinking in the past month said they got it for free from either a family member or their home.

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
Mum jailed for trying to cure her daughter’s drug addiction appeals – Kent Online

The court heard how the couple tried to stop Tabitha from climbing out of a window at the family home to do a deal with a drug dealer outside. “Drugs are a real evil of our times..Many people tell me any parent would do all they could in such a case.”

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Governor Scott Outlines Prescription Drug Problem In Florida – Gov Monitor

In the months since I was sworn in as Florida’s Governor, I have heard firsthand the heart wrenching stories from family members and friends of those who have lost their livelihoods, and, tragically, their loved ones to prescription drug addiction.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Drug-prevention seminars offered through June 1 – Canton Repository

The Stark County Urban Minority Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Outreach Project will present free drug preventional and educational seminars on Wednesdays, Wednesday, April 13, through June 1.

ALCOHOL AND DRUG ADDICTION – CANADA
Addict tells students the hard facts about drug and alcohol use – Sault Star
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Christie, a 30-year recovering alcoholic and drug addict, is in Sault Ste. Marie this week speaking to senior elementary and secondary school students on the consequences of experimenting with drugs and alcohol. “Elementary school is the right time for this talk. By high school it’s too late, the kids have likely made their choices,”

HEROIN – USA
Heroin deaths nearly triple in Lake County – Chicago Tribune

The death rate from heroin in Lake County has nearly tripled since 2007, and the sheriff believes it’s because heroin is relatively cheap and potent. Sheriff Mark Curran says there has been “an explosion” of heroin overdose deaths.

HEROIN – UK
Heroin overdose antidote should be given to prisoners, ministers told – The Guardian

One in eight prisoners take a heroin overdose within two weeks of leaving jail, Les Iversen said. The government’s official drug advisers are urging ministers to provide all prisoners at risk of overdosing with a “magic medicine” that could save up to 500 lives a year.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Alcohol Awareness Goes Hand in Hand With April – Patch.com

April is Alcohol Awareness Month. The Community Parent Center encourages parents to educate themselves and then talk to their teens about alcohol abuse, drug abuse, and other risky behaviors.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Inside Slant: Alcohol abuse at the ballpark is not acceptable behavior – The Desert Sun

Several witnesses told police the attackers of the Giants fan were drunk. As long as alcohol abuse continues to be treated as acceptable behavior in our ballparks and on our roads, people will continue to suffer the consequences.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
An Issue of Influence: Alcohol, drugs can lead to domestic abuse – Park Rapids Enterprise

The annual cost to the nation of untreated abuse of alcohol and other drugs is $276 billion, yet only $3 billion is spent on prevention, treatment, and research of substance abuse of all types – with only a small amount designated for child welfare cases.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – AUSTRALIA
No booze if ID on ban list – NTNews.com.au

Problem drinkers will be banned from buying alcohol at takeaway bottleshops in the Territory if their name appears on a banned list. All Territorians will have their ID scanned at bottleshop registers in an attempt to curb alcohol abuse.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Personal stories help parents learn to identify drug warning signs – The Daily Courier

Two-hundred parents learned recently at Prescott Mile High Middle School how easy it is for kids to get hooked on drugs, strategies to keep them drug-free and how to identify commonly used drugs and paraphernalia. Moak’s oldest son hid his addiction to marijuana and cocaine from the family for two years.

DRUG REHAB – USA
NAACP report highlights ‘misplaced priorities’ of jails over schools – Washington Post

Not only are the statistics startling in “Misplaced Priorities: Over Incarcerate, Under Educate,” so is the group of people rallying around the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization’s push to adopt alternatives to incarceration.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Number seeking treatment for meth addiction risen steadily since mid-1990s – Southeast Missourian

Sullivan-Jones and Daugherty are two of the thousands who’ve dealt with drug addiction in Missouri. On average, 58000 Missourians are struggling with an addictive disorder every year, according to the Missouri Department of Public Safety.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Littlest victims of Rx abuse: Newborns – STLtoday.com

The mother had abused prescription painkillers like OxyContin for the first 12 weeks of her pregnancy, She got the call in the middle of the night: Her 3-day-old baby was going through opiate withdrawal in a hospital.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
Alcohol Abuse in College – New York Times
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A study by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, “Wasting the Best and the Brightest,” found that on college campuses each year, as a result of alcohol abuse about 100000 women are sexually assaulted, 700,000 students are injured and 2,000 students die from violence and accidents.

ECSTASY – USA
Boy, 7, shares Ecstasy pills at South Texas school – Houston Chronicle

Lt. Martin Morales says it does not appear that any of the boys took the pills. The father is facing charges of possession of a controlled substance and five counts of endangering a child. Police recovered nearly 350 pills, believed to be Ecstasy,

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Cracking Down On Prescription Drug Theft – WKBW-TV

At Tile Pharmacy in Cheektowaga, US Senator Charles Schumer announced his plan to crack down on prescription drug theft that is fueling an unprecedented spike in drug abuse in Buffalo and Western NY. In just the first three months of 2011, the Upstate New York Poison Control Center reports that there have been 121 cases of prescription drug abuse in Erie County alone.

COCAINE – USA
Dennis Quaid Admits to Past Drug Addiction – San Diego Entertainer Magazine

Quaid, star of Soul Surfer, The Big Easy, The Right Stuff, and Any Given Sunday talks about his drug addiction. “I was getting an hour of sleep a night,” he writes, “I’d wake up, snort a line, and swear I wasn’t going to do it again that day. But then 4 o’clock rolled around, and I’d be right back down the same road like a little squirrel on one of those treadmills. The lack of sleep made it so my focus wasn’t really there, which affected my acting.”

DRUG REHAB – USA
Baseball world shocked as Ramirez retires – AFP

LOS ANGELES — The American baseball community expressed surprise and shock that disgraced slugger Manny Ramirez chose to retire rather than take part in the league’s drug rehab programme for a second time. The Tampa Bay player called it a day Friday,

DRUG REHAB – USA
School nurse pushing for Mineral County youth drug rehab – Keyser Mineral Daily News Tribune

By Liz Beavers FORT ASHBY – As a school nurse at three schools in the Frankfort District, Tammy Hansford can see a very clear need for drug and alcohol rehabilitation services for adolescents. Noting that there is a normal waiting period of six weeks. “Once somebody decides they want help, you have to get them help,” she said.

ALCOHOL – USA
Few Alcoholics Realize They Need Help – WebMD
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The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration says that of the nation’s 7.4 million adults aged 21 and 64 who have untreated alcohol abuse, only 1.2% believe they could benefit from treatment. And only 7.8% recognize that they need treatment.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Here’s to me – Sydney Morning Herald
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After four years documenting the nation’s escalating toll of alcohol abuse as a health writer, I knew more than most about the consequences of risky drinking. But it didn’t deter me. I was first on the dance floor, last to leave the party and winner of the inaugural ”Jill Stark drinking award” at last year’s staff Christmas bash.

ALCOHOL – AUSTRALIA
Pregnant women could face ban on buying alcohol – ABC Online
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The Lhere Artepe Aboriginal Corporation owns three shops in Alice Springs and is concerned about the effects of foetal alcohol syndrome in babies. The corporation’s Darryl Pearce says Alice Springs is facing many problems associated with alcohol abuse.

ALCOHOL – USA
Alcohol Abuse – Effect Of Underage Binge Drinking To Brain Development Disclosed – Star Global Tribune‎

This may come as a surprise to some, but recent surveys indicate that episodes of heavy alcohol drinking within the previous two weeks are reported by 12 percent of 8th graders, 22 percent of 10th graders, 28 percent of 12th grade seniors and 44 …

ECSTASY – CANADA
Bad ecstasy puts several in hospital – TheChronicleHerald
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Several young Haligonians have gotten seriously ill after ingesting bad ecstasy and at least one is still in hospital, Halifax drug officers said Thursday. “They were in a serious medical condition,” said Constable David Lane.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Sheriff: Mobile meth labs create ‘toxic’ dangers to highway cleanup crews – Muskegon Chronicle
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The toxic residue is found on paraphernalia used to make “mobile” methamphetamine labs, said Muskegon County Sheriff Dean Roesler. Mobile meth labs are operated out of vehicles and then discarded along highways statewide, Roesler said.