cannabisnews.com: Ecstasy Overdose Kills 





Ecstasy Overdose Kills 
Posted by FoM on February 11, 2002 at 23:32:25 PT
By Sara Rimer
Source: New York Times
Ten months after Brandy French, 16, died of an overdose of the drug Ecstasy, law enforcement officials here and Brandy's father, Don French, are beginning to formally apportion blame.Mr. French, 36, who works in a food warehouse near here, is about to file a negligence lawsuit against some of the people with his daughter the night last May when she became fatally ill from the drug at a rock concert. He is not looking for revenge or money, Mr. French says, but accountability.
Mr. French's lawyer, John Gismondi, says he has filed a notification of his intention to sue with the insurance company of the mother whose house Brandy's friends took her to after the concert and who waited several hours, until after Brandy had stopped breathing, to call for medical help. Mr. Gismondi says he will also sue several of Brandy's friends and acquaintances, who were at the house, for failing to get help. They were apparently afraid they would get into trouble.Greg Ludwig, 19, who sold the Ecstasy, at $20 a pill, that killed Brandy, will be formally arraigned on third-degree homicide charges on Friday in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas here. A 1998 Pennsylvania law says delivery of a drug that results in death is considered a third-degree homicide.Mr. Ludwig's lawyer, Patrick Thomassey, has filed a motion to have the charges dismissed, saying his client "had no idea this would ever happen."While reliable figures are hard to come by, Ecstasy-related deaths are relatively rare. There were only 27 nationwide from 1994 to 1999, according to the latest figures from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. In comparison, there were about 100 heroin- related deaths in Allegheny County alone last year, said Joseph T. Dominick, the chief deputy coroner.Even as new medical evidence shows that Ecstasy, a mildly hallucinogenic stimulant, can cause memory loss and brain damage, its use among teenagers continues to rise. In a survey released in December, the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research found that from 1998 to 2001 Ecstasy use among teenagers had about doubled. Here in Pittsburgh, and about 15 miles northwest, in Sewickley, the town where Brandy French grew up, the county coroner, administrators at her high school and the parents of her friends are indicting the larger culture for popularizing Ecstasy as the ultimate low-risk high.Brandy, who was a 10th grader at Ambridge Area High School and dreamed of opening a beauty salon, had not used illegal drugs until the night she swallowed an Ecstasy pill. She had never been in any trouble. While her parents, Don French and Anita Bosh, had never married — Ms. Bosh died of brain cancer in June 2000 — she grew up in a close, extended family.After she begged her father for more than a year to let her go to a rock concert, Mr. French finally gave her permission to attend an all- day concert at an outdoor pavilion in Washington County, south of Pittsburgh. One reason he relented, Mr. French said, was that she would be going with Michelle Maranuk, 17, and Paula Wilson, 18, both of whom he had met."I thought, She's going with older kids, they'll take care of her," he said.Ms. Maranuk said at the inquest that the Ecstasy was her idea. She had used it before, she said. Though Brandy told her she had never tried Ecstasy, Ms. Maranuk said in court, her friend said, `I don't want to be the only one not doing it.' "Ms. Maranuk said she told Brandy only about the drug's positive effects, like the euphoria and heightened sensory awareness, because "I really didn't know about the negative ones." She did warn Brandy to drink a lot of water so she would not become dehydrated, she said.The night before the concert, Ms. Maranuk said, she bought three Ecstasy pills — a double dose — from Mr. Ludwig, a casual acquaintance. At the concert, she gave the pills to Ms. Wilson, who gave one to Brandy. Ms. Maranuk said she recommended that they each take only half a pill "because I didn't think they could handle it."Brandy took the first half of her pill about 4 p.m., Ms. Maranuk said. Soon after taking the second half, about three hours later, Brandy became violently ill, vomiting repeatedly, slurring her words and stumbling around, Ms. Maranuk and others who saw Brandy that night testified at the inquest. She drank enormous quantities of water, which she then threw up.At the inquest, Ms. Maranuk said she had not been disturbed by the vomiting "because I have seen people vomit on Ecstasy, so I didn't really think anything of it."Ms. Wilson was not particularly concerned, either."Everyone said, `Keep on throwing up, Brandy, that's what it's supposed to do, you are supposed to do that, and it will kick in better,' " she said at the inquest.Finally, about 8 p.m., Ms. Maranuk, Ms. Wilson and three acquaintances took Brandy to the home of Lewis Hopkins, 16, so she could sleep off the drug there. They told Mr. Hopkins's mother, Rosalind Hopkins, that Brandy was drunk. Mrs. Hopkins, they said, told them to get Brandy into dry clothes and put her in bed in a bedroom upstairs.There are varying accounts about what happened that night, but there is generally agreement that Brandy fell out of bed and stopped breathing for an undetermined period. According to some testimony, Ms. Wilson performed CPR, and Brandy began breathing again. Mrs. Hopkins wiped her face with a wet washcloth.Shortly after midnight, Brandy's friends carried her out of the house to take here to the hospital. She stopped breathing. According to testimony, Mrs. Hopkins and Ms. Wilson began CPR. Moments later, Mrs. Hopkins called paramedics.Mrs. Hopkins said she had not called paramedics sooner because she believed that Brandy was drunk and not in any serious trouble."I did eventually call for help," she said.Brandy was pronounced dead at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh a day after the concert. The coroner ruled that the cause was an overdose of methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or Ecstasy, which had caused irreversible brain damage. Some of the water she drank might have backed into the lungs, contributing to her trouble breathing. "Had she received prompt medical intervention, there was a reasonable medical certainty that she would have survived," the coroner, Dr. Cyril H. Wecht, said.After a public inquest in late August and early September, Dr. Wecht ruled that Brandy's death had been a homicide.Brandy and Ms. Maranuk had been friends since kindergarten.Ms. Maranuk's lawyer, Greg Schwab, said his client "feels extremely remorseful and devastated.""It was her best friend," Ms. Schwab said. "They didn't know this thing could cause death. They thought it was like sleeping off a hangover."Brandy was Don French's only child. He is saving money to buy a headstone for her grave. "It's the last thing I'll be able to buy for her," he said.At Ambridge High, students have planted a tree as a memorial to Brandy. School officials, along with local law enforcement officials, have mounted a campaign against Ecstasy. But not even Brandy's death has sufficiently dimmed the enthusiasm for it, said Carol Miloszewski, a counselor at the school. "Some kids just say, `She didn't do it right; she should have drunk more water,' " Ms. Miloszewski said.Complete Title: Ecstasy Overdose Kills Who Should Be Held to Account?Source: New York Times (NY)Author: Sara RimerPublished: February 12, 2002 Copyright: 2002 The New York Times Company Contact: letters nytimes.com Website: http://www.nytimes.com/ Forum: http://forums.nytimes.com/comment/ Related Articles:Ad Campaign Targets Notions of Love Drughttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11975.shtmlEcstasy Grows As Danger To Teens http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11974.shtml
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Comment #11 posted by CorvallisEric on February 12, 2002 at 20:31:53 PT
Neat website, JK
Excerpt from an interview with an Irish singer that caught my attention:
------------
What sticks in your mind as being typically Dutch?
There are sixteen million people crammed into this small space. Very little emigration. Very little violence considering the number of people. They get along very well together. They have a realistic and honest attitude to problems. We try to pretend that things like abortion and the sex industry don’t exist in Ireland. We are sort of still in denial. If we could, we would like to export all of these things out and pretend they don’t exist.
Holland deals very openly with the social world, particularly teenage stuff. I read recently that Holland has the lowest rate of teenage pregnancies in Europe. This is despite the fact that it has probably the most liberal sex laws. In other words, that’s telling me that teenage girls don’t get pregnant because they are educated. That is typically Dutch.
Luka Bloom in Amsterdam
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Comment #10 posted by JK on February 12, 2002 at 14:54:19 PT:
Netherlands Ex-pats
This link has lots of information about foreigners living in The Netherlands.
http://www.expatica.com/index.asp?pad=32,
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Comment #9 posted by st1r_dude on February 12, 2002 at 11:01:31 PT
hee hee - nice parody, eh ?
You guys are really on top of things !!!Figured you're up for a good laugh...I've visited Toronto and Montreal a few times, and have found them both very satisfactory...I've dreamed of visiting Vancouver - our bud Mark Emery is out there, so it seems like a nice alternative to Holland...Perhaps more reasonable weather ??? I'm also trying to find out the trade-offs of living in Canada vs. the US...work, taxes, cost of living, health care...the basics...gotta have those as well as more FREEDOM, eh ?wondering about switzerland or spain or belgium also...supposedly it's not that easy to stay in holland without having to return every six months to renew the visa...still in info gathering mode...any websites addressing these issues ?thx - stONEr dude
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Comment #8 posted by Unknown Pleasures on February 12, 2002 at 10:57:01 PT
Lack of reliable information is a killer
Extacy, like many legal drugs, can be dangerous if mixed with some types of anti-depressants and other medication. Also, there have been cases of people 'O.D.ing on E' because they have had far too much water, as it appears was the case here. E is somewhat taxing on the kidneys, so the amount of water drunk should be proportional to one's physical exertion while on the drug. The possibility of dehydration is only significant if one is physically active while high. The article stated that she had drunk 'enormous' quantites, suggesting that this definately contributed to her death. However, the real cause of her death is revealed here: 
"Had she received prompt medical intervention, there was a reasonable medical certainty that she would have survived," and here:
'Mrs. Hopkins said she had not called paramedics sooner because she believed that Brandy was drunk and not in any serious trouble.'It is the fear of our Nazi Law Machine that kept these kids from notifing anyone about the situation. This death was easily, easily preventable, and it is only because of our deadly laws that her friends did not respond 'correctly'. I'm not a huge fan of E, but I do believe that those who choose to take it, can do so in a relatively safe manner as long as they are informed. How many more legal drug deaths would we have if there was no reliable info on perscription drug reactions and side effects, and no marked percentage of alcohol on liquor bottles?Wow, these drug laws really 'protect' the public, don't they?...and the homicide charge is really sick, the kids were best friends, dammit. You think there would be charges laid if she had OD on alcohol?
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Comment #7 posted by MikeEEEEE on February 12, 2002 at 08:23:45 PT
I had to laugh
http://www.whitehouse.org/initiatives/patriot/Here are some questions from the site, don't forget, the people that wrote these questions represent us.The best way to fight terrorism is to visit Disney World?Toenail clippers are potential instruments of murder?
 
White people are almost never crazy?Vegetarians are traitors to the American way of life?Indefinite detentions of minority groups are a privilege of citizenship?Black people wearing those "big pants" are suspicious?People who wear turbans are, more often than not, mad dog killers?Asians are particularly good at math?What Would Jesus Do? 
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Comment #6 posted by goneposthole on February 12, 2002 at 07:42:20 PT
Canada
I have visited Canada many times. On one occassion, I toured hemp breeder plots. The guide was willing to give me a leaf from one of the plants. She stopped herself from doing so, saying, "You don't want to get caught."I love Canada, the feeling you get is the feeling that used to be here.The U.S is but a shadow of what it used to be. A very sad situation indeed, it's over. Welcome to Nazi America, the finest police state money can buy.whitehouse.org is a parody, but not too far from wrong.
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Comment #5 posted by TroutMask on February 12, 2002 at 07:29:30 PT
Uhhhh....
st1r_dude, I hope you realize that is a parody site and not official government blather which can be found at www.whitehouse.GOV. As for your question about countries to visit or move to: We are looking at Canada.-TM
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Comment #4 posted by st1r_dude on February 12, 2002 at 06:47:02 PT:
Hey FoM - CHECK THIS OUT !!!
oh my goodness, i can't tell if i should laugh or SCREAM !!! read all the entries...what a schpeel.http://www.whitehouse.org/initiatives/patriot/that's it - i'm outta here...anybody got any suggestions for another country for residence ???st1r dude
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Comment #3 posted by greenfox on February 12, 2002 at 06:47:00 PT
Just a thought
"They were apparently afraid they would get into trouble.Ok, let's look at this for a minute here: they were AFRAID that they would get into trouble, and therefore did not call for help. Now, let's pretend for a minute that this was the Netherlands and not the USA. These teens would have been able to call for help, because the consequences would have been nothing more than an OFFER for treatment. not FORCED treatment- but offered. No jail, no deaths, and no IMPURE drugs to die off of. You tell me, people... you tell me...........sly in green, foxy in kind,
-gf
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Comment #2 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on February 12, 2002 at 05:01:41 PT
Another double standard
>>A 1998 Pennsylvania law says delivery of a drug that results in death is considered a third-degree homicide.  Do they hold companies like Merck, Pfizer, or Miller to this law as well?
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Comment #1 posted by freedom fighter on February 12, 2002 at 00:55:52 PT
Prohibition killed another one!
Stupidity and Prohibition killed another one.She died becuz she drank toooo much water. She overdosed on water.Noone died of ecstasy when it was legal back then.I do'nt suggest anyone roll one for fun. It is really for people who needs to get the psychobabbling out of their minds. I did one several weeks ago and boy, it helped me resolve alot of psychobabbling. I do'nt plan on doing 3-5 hits either.Prohibition did it and therefore it is responsible for this death.ff
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