Drug News

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
80000 on benefits in UK due to addiction, obesity – Reuters

More than 21200 alcoholics and drug addicts have been receiving the payments for over 10 years.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Steven Tyler tackles drug addiction, Aerosmith via NBC special – Examiner.com

American Idol judge Steven Tyler will discuss the current season, overcoming a drug addiction and Aerosmith on a NBC special announced Thursday.

DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Jails shouldn’t ignore drug withdrawal symptoms – Tulsa World

“Groundbreaking discoveries about the brain have revolutionized our understanding of drug addiction, enabling us to respond effectively to the problem.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Drug Addiction Beyond The Cities – The Atlantic

On Tuesday, the Obama administration announced plans to fight prescription drug addiction nationally, noting that it was now killing more people than crack cocaine in the 1980s and heroin in the 1970s combined.

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
Charity Pays Thousands of Drug Addicts to Get Sterilized – Opposing Views

Barbara Harris believes that the best thing you can do for drug addicts is to pay for their sterilization. Harris and her American “charitable” organization, Project Prevention, made news late last year by offering UK drug addicts £200 if they would spend it to get sterilized.

DRUG REHAB – USA
No.1 method for cutting recidivism among addicts? Don’t send people to jail –
vtdigger.org

Because using and possessing some drugs is illegal, drug addicts are often thrown in jail before they get treatment for their addiction — even if the only law they broke was using and possessing the drug.

DRUG ADDICTION – UK
Dealer put pressure on addict over debts – Staffordshire Newsletter

A Stafford heroin addict forced to become a pusher to pay his drug debts has been jailed for two years. He was aiming to beat his drug addiction and intended to move away from the area.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – USA
“Blast” alcohol drink blasted by Maine AG – ‎WGME

They’re talking about Blast – an alcoholic drink made by Colt 45, and served in a 23.5 ounce can with a 12-percent alcohol content.

ALCOHOL – USA
CDC to states: Don’t privatize alcohol sales – Seattle Post Intelligencer

As they grapple with a $5.3 billion deficit, Washington’s lawmakers are considering two measures that would partially or totally privatize the state’s liquor operation. Proponents of both say such a move would increase tax revenues, but alcohol consumption increases dramatically in places that privatize liquor sales.

ENERGY DRINKS/ALCOHOL – USA
Effects of Energy Drinks Mixed with Alcohol on Behavioral Control: Risks for College Students Consuming Trendy Cocktails – Online Library

An energy drink appears to alter some of the objective and subjective impairing effects of alcohol, but not others. Energy drinks may contribute to a high-risk scenario for the drinker.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Methamphetamine’s changing face: Drug cooks exploit loopholes – MLive.com

Six years after Michigan declared war on methamphetamine with a slew of new laws, the drug is back, worse than ever.

ALCOHOL ADDICTION – USA
Advocates assail proposed cuts in NH treatment - Boston Globe

“It was killing me and everyone around me,” Welch said of his addiction. Advocates say alcohol is big business in the state.

HEROIN – USA
Mother allegedly hid heroin in teenage son’s pants – Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies discovered six bags of heroin inside the pants of a 14-year-old in Canyon Country after pulling the boy’s mother over in a traffic stop, authorities said Wednesday. The 31-year-old mother from Lake Los Angeles admitted she hid the bags in her son’s pants.

MOLLY – USA
Drug ‘Molly’ may have played role in SUNY Canton student’s suicide – WatertownDailyTimes.com

A Suny Canton student who committed suicide Sunday night is suspected to have taken a drug named “Molly,” which produces effects similar to Ecstasy. Police said they were searching for those who supplied him with the drug.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
FDA and White House Combat Prescription Drug Abuse – Pharmaceutical Technology Magazine

The plan, titled “Epidemic: Responding to America’s Prescription Drug Abuse Crisis,” aims to expand state-based prescription-drug monitoring programs, recommends convenient and environmentally responsible drug-disposal methods, supports education for patients and healthcare providers, and directs law-enforcement resources against “doctor shopping” (i.e., visiting several prescribers to obtain controlled substances).

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS – USA
Lawmakers fault anti-drug abuse plan’s lack of painkiller restrictions – The Hill

A pair of Republican lawmakers is taking the Obama administration to task for not considering tougher restrictions on painkillers in its new strategy to combat prescription drug abuse.

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

She hopes the community will support the endeavor. “Everybody in some way or another has been touched by drug addition,” she said.

DRUG REHAB – USA
Former Mich. drug addict prepares for 10K run – Chicago Tribune

The Guiding Light runners also could take inspiration from Odyssey House in New York City, where recovering drug addicts have built a notable record of achievement by training for and completing the 26.2 miles of the New York City Marathon.

ECSTASY – USA
Corpus Christi police find 10000 Ecstasy tablets – Corpus Christi Caller Times

Officers found a bag containing 4.85 pounds of Ecstasy tablets, which have a street value of more than $100,000.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Meth ‘Cook Houses’ Gone, Demand For Drug Lingers – NPR

Most of the crystal methamphetamine sold in the U.S. today is manufactured south of the border. Riverside County, Calif., has become a transportation hub for the drug.

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Colorado bill further targeting medications associated with meth manufacture – Denver Post

“Unfortunately, users and drug abusers and drug dealers always try to think of a new way to make drugs,” said Ernest Martinez, president of the Colorado Drug Investigators Association. “Even moving them back behind the counter is not conducive to stopping them from doing what they are doing.”

METHAMPHETAMINE – USA
Police say meth lab discovered in Genesee County – Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

Matthew J. Zon, 29, and Tricia M. Tundo, 24, each were charged with unlawful disposal of methamphetamine laboratory material, seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and second-degree criminally using drug paraphernalia.

ALCOHOL AND DRUG ADDICTION – USA
Jodie Sweetin’s Kids Unaware of Her Drug Struggles – People Magazine

It’s been a long road to recovery for Jodie Sweetin, who battled with alcohol and meth addiction on and off for more than a decade.

ALCOHOL ABUSE – NEW ZEALAND
“Breakfast Beer” Slammed by Critics – Fox News

The beer, made by Marlborough brewery Moa, contains 5.5 percent alcohol. National Addiction Centre director Doug Sellman said the marketing of the beer was “a completely irresponsible stunt from a health and addiction perspective, because it is normalizing pathological behavior.”

DRUG ABUSE – USA
Bills would decriminalize pot, increase penalties for cocaine – Bangor Daily News ‎

“The lock-them-up-and-throw-away-the-key approach isn’t working,” said Melnick said in a news release. “Prison is expensive and does not treat the root causes of drug abuse and addiction.”

HEROIN – USA
Heroin overdoses to now be investigated as potential homicides – KMOV.com
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Heroin use is rising in St. Louis suburbs, and it’s becoming the drug of choice. According to officials, heroin-related overdoses and deaths have spiked from last year.

PARTY DRUGS – USA
Overdose leaves Minn. teen dead, 10 hospitalized – The Associated Press
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One teen died and 10 teenagers and young adults were hospitalized Thursday after an apparent mass overdose on a designer hallucinogen at a suburban Minneapolis home.

DRUG ABUSE – USA
Coronado sixth graders get lesson on addiction – San Diego Union Tribune
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Students watch as their peer is busted, brought to jail, appears in court and receives counseling, before arriving at a party and is pressured to drink and take more drugs.

ECSTASY – USA
Customs agent pleads guilty to funneling guns, drug money through airport – Atlanta Journal Constitution ‎

A customs agent from Stockbridge, nabbed in one of the biggest ecstasy seizures in US history, pleaded guilty Thursday to conspiring to launder drug money and attempting to smuggle guns onto an airplane.

ECSTASY – USA
Ecstasy growing in popularity among teens – The Downey Patriot ‎

The Downey Police Department would like to make the public aware of a recent trend indicating that use of the drug ecstasy is on the rise with teenage children.

ALCOHOL – USA
Boy, 10, treated for alcohol abuse – This Is Cheshire
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Children as young as 10 have visited A&E or been admitted to Warrington Hospital with alcohol related problems.

Heroin – New York
Three arrested in Port Jervis heroin bust – recordonline.com

PORT JERVIS — City police Tuesday arrested a Monticello man they say sold heroin to undercover officers.

Alcohol Abuse – Australia
Indigenous leaders fear rise in drug, alcohol abuse – ABC | Indigenous

A Cape York leader in far north Queensland says he is concerned about the impact a High Court decision could have on substance abuse in the community.

Meth Lab – South Carolina
Meth lab discovered in Hartsville neighborhood - CarolinaLive.com

The discovery of a meth lab at a home in a Harstville community sent shock waves of alarm through the neighborhood. Those living nearby were understandably concerned because their homes weren’t the only thing in danger. There’s a school just 500 yards away.

Meth & Marijuana – Iowa
Iowa Drug Report Shows Issues With Meth, Marijuana – Action3News.com

Des Moines, IA (AP) – Iowa drug control officials have issued a new report that finds the state has an escalating synthetic drug abuse problem and there has been an increase in need for treatment for methamphetamine and marijuana users.

Cocaine – Arizona
Border officers seize $12 million in cocaine – azcentral.com

NOGALES – Border officers in the southeastern Arizona city of Nogales made three separate cocaine seizures worth a combined $12.1 million in one day.

Heroin – New York
Drug Dealers Caught on Google Street View – abcNews/Technology

Google Street View sightings tend to be more peculiar than practical — in the past year alone, the globe encompassing image service has turned up photos of a so-called two-headed man, a “dead” girl and a snake out for a walk with its owner. But the latest additions to the canon of Street View spectacles are so valuable they might be used in a court of law.

Heroin – Australia
Australian woman who hid heroin in stomach held – Thaindian News

Sydney, Nov 6 (IANS) An Australian woman has been arrested here after she was found to have swallowed 41 balloons filled with heroin, a media report said Saturday.

Meth-Related Death – UK
10-day-old girl dies in washing machine – Thaindian News

London, Nov 8 (IANS) A 10-day-old girl died in Britain when her mother put her in a washing machine with a pile of laundry, a media report said Monday.

Caffeinated Alcohol Ban – Michigan
Michigan Bans Caffeinated Alcohol Drinks – CSP

LANSING, Mich. — The state of Michigan has banned caffeinated alcoholic beverages. The Michigan Liquor Control Commission (MLCC) rescinding the approval of all “alcohol energy drinks.” The commission will notify beverage makers via a commission order about the product ban; they will have 30 days to remove these products from the state of Michigan, it said.

Drug Raid – Ohio
Holmesville meth raid ‘went really well and no one got hurt’ - The-Daily-Record.com

MILLERSBURG — Deputies donned camo and checked their weapons and gas masks, then checked them again.

Heroin Seizure – Nevada
Las Vegas heroin seizure worth $1 million – UPI.com

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 7 (UPI) — Police say the $1 million worth of heroin seized at the Las Vegas airport was the largest in the city in recent history.

Cocaine – UK
Benson Offia in court for a 3 million Pounds cocaine haul – Thaindian News

London, Nov 8 (THAINDIAN NEWS) British Officers will take a man accused of possessing one of the highest quantities of cocaine in the country to court today. The street value of the drug that was seized from the man is estimated to be worth £3 million. He is charged with possessing Class A drug with the intent to sell.

Heroin – Colorado
Students found using heroin at AAHS – Coloradoconnection.com

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. — Academy District 20 officials said they found students using heroin and other substances at Air Academy High School, and one student has been arrested.

Cocaine – Florida
‘Candy’ cocaine leads to drug arrest – UPI.com

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Nov. 4 (UPI) — A Puerto Rico man is charged with attempting to smuggle 21 pounds of cocaine into Florida disguised in bags of candy, authorities said.

Probation – USA Celebrity
Lil Wayne Can’t Drink For Three Years Under Probation – MTV NEWS

Lil Wayne isn’t allowed to drink alcohol for three years, according to Arizona probation documents obtained by TMZ.

Meth – Wyoming
Wyo. cops lose box of drugs that says ‘METH’ on it – ctpost.com

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Officials in Wyoming want people to be on the lookout for a black box with white lettering that says “METH,” after a deputy lost a stash used to train police dogs. Teton County sheriff’s Sgt. Lloyd Funk said the deputy accidentally left the box on a bumper after a canine training exercise Oct. 27. It contained nearly an ounce of methamphetamine.

Marijuana – Nebraska
State Patrol: Pot Found Stashed In Spare Tire – KETV.com

LINCOLN, Neb. — The Nebraska State Patrol said a Las Vegas man is in jail after marijuana was found stashed in the spare tire of his pickup truck.

Alcohol Abuse – Ireland
President of UCC issues alcohol warning – IrishExaminer.com

HEALTH problems and Ireland’s image abroad will worsen significantly unless rising alcohol abuse by young people is reversed, the head of one of the country’s biggest colleges has warned.

Meth – Arizona
Man caught with meth pipe in his underpants in Mesa – azcentral.com

A man confessed to hiding a methamphetamine pipe in his underwear after he was arrested on suspicion of possessing a dangerous drug.

Heroin Smuggling – Dominican Republic
Dominican Police Say Singer Had Drugs in Stomach – abcNEWS/Entertainment

Dominican police say singer found at airport with heroin in stomach rushed to hospital

Drug Arrest – Michigan Mother
Kalamazoo woman appearing unconscious with son in her car, arrested on drug charges – Mlive.com

ALMENA TOWNSHIP — A Kalamazoo woman who police say had her 11-year-old son with her in her car was arrested on drug charges in northeastern Van Buren County late Monday, police said.

Marijuana – California
California Citizens Reject Proposition 19 – Thaindian News

Nov 3, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Proposition 19 has been drawing national and international attention as California attempted to become the first state in nation to legalize marijuana-related activities. However, yesterday all the hopes and dreams of Proposition 19 supporters were crushed when the proposal was rejected by 57 percent against 43 percent in favor of it. However, the supporters believe that this was their first step of legalization of marijuana and in 2012 also they would raise the issue during election.

Drug & Alcohol Abuse – California Sheriff’s Deputy
Drug counts added in OC deputy DUI case – The Modesto Bee modbee.com

SANTA ANA, Calif. — Prosecutors have added doctor-shopping drug counts to the prescription drug driving under the influence case against a now-former Orange County sheriff’s deputy.

Heroin Death – UK
Anthrax linked to heroin user’s death – The Independent

A drug user who was left fighting for life after injecting heroin contaminated with anthrax died today, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) said.

Marijuana – Arizona
Border agents recover $1.3 million in marijuana – azcentral.com

TUCSON – Border Patrol agents working a desert area in southwestern Arizona Sunday recovered 1,700 pounds of marijuana worth an estimated $1.3 million.

Crack Cocaine – California
87 year old crack dealer Ola Mae Agee jailed – Thaindian News

Los Angeles, Nov 1 (THAINDIAN NEWS) It is often said that old habits die-hard and that might be exactly the case in the case of Ola Mae Agee. At the very advanced age of 87 years Ola has been jailed for a-year-and-a-half for dealing in crack cocaine. Ola was arrested after an undercover cop managed to get the octogenarian to sell him a crack.

Teen Pot & Alcohol Abuse – USA Study
Study: Heavy Alcohol and Pot Use May Damage Teen Brains – Join Together

New research found adolescents who abused marijuana and alcohol scored lower on a battery of intellectual aptitude tests than their drug-free peers, HealthDay News reported Oct. 19.

Drug Sentencing Reform – USA
Reforms of crack sentencing take effect – UPI.com

DENVER, Nov. 1 (UPI) — Federal drug sentencing reforms took effect Monday, but Colorado’s U.S. attorney does not expect dramatic changes.

Alcohol & Drug Abuse – USA
Alcohol Is Most Harmful Drug, Followed By Heroin And Crack – Medical News TODAY

Alcohol is the most damaging drug to the drinker and others overall, heroin and crack are the second and third most harmful, Professor David Nutt and colleagues wrote in the medical journal The Lancet today. When all factors related to self harm and harm to others are considered, alcohol comes out top. The authors explain that drugs, including tobacco products and alcohol are major contributors to damage to individuals as well as society as a whole.

Heroin – Australia
168 kg of heroin seized in Australia – Thaindian News

London, Nov 2 (IANS) Australian authorities have seized 168 kg of heroin, the fifth biggest shipment of the contraband ever to be smuggled into the country, hidden inside a consignment of wooden doors from Malaysia to Sydney, a media report said Monday.

Meth – Iowa
Mom convicted in girl’s death faces meth charges – KWQC-TV Davenport, IA / Associated Press

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – A Cedar Rapids mother who’s been sentenced to 10 years in prison in connection with her 2-year-old daughter’s death faces new drug charges.

Inhalants – Virginia
Survey suggests more Fairfax County youths are using inhalants – FairfaxTimes.com

Although the number remains small, there was a slight increase in the number of Fairfax County students who said they used inhalants between 2008 and 2009, according to a report released Tuesday.

Alcohol – USA Celebrity
Charlie Sheen Hospitalized After Intoxicated Disturbance in NYC – gather.com

No stranger to infamous problems with the law or drugs and alcohol, Charlie Sheen is in the spotlight once again.  Sheen was reported by TMZ to be drunk and disorderly at the Plaza Hotel in NYC on Tuesday evening following a dinner at a nearby restaurant. While no arrests were made by the NYPD, Sheen was hospitalized and evaluated according to TMZ.

Alcohol Energy Drinks – Washington
‘Four Loko’ Hospitalizes Students, Concern Raises Over Alcohol Energy Drink – The Huffington Post

ELLENSBURG, Wash. — Sugary, high-alcohol energy drinks that are popular with college students who want to get drunk quickly and cheaply came under renewed scrutiny Monday as investigators announced that nine freshmen had been hospitalized after drinking them at an off-campus party.

Drug Trafficking – USA Flight Attendant
American Airlines employee charged with drug offences – LaosNews.Net

The US Department of Justice’s Drug Enforcement Administration has announced the indictment of an American Airlines employee.

Meth Lab – Washington
Drug Lab Found In Georgetown Dorm – The Huffington Post

WASHINGTON — A dormitory for freshmen at prestigious Georgetown University was evacuated after a suspected meth lab was found in a room.