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National Drug
Intelligence Center Wyoming Drug Threat Assessment December 2001 Other Dangerous DrugsThe other dangerous drugs (ODDs) category includes club drugs (stimulants, sedatives, and hallucinogens), psilocybin, inhalants, and diverted pharmaceuticals. Currently, the ODD threat in Wyoming is minimal. Club drugs seized or purchased by law enforcement personnel in Wyoming include LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide), GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate), and MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine). Increases in the availability and use of club drugs such as GHB and MDMA have been noted by the Wyoming DCI; however, the user population remains very limited. Typically, club drugs are used by teens and young adults at all-night dance parties called raves. Nearly 150 tablets of MDMA were seized in 2000, primarily in Albany and Laramie Counties in southeastern Wyoming. The use of psilocybin, inhalants, and some diverted pharmaceuticals is also of concern to law enforcement authorities. Inhalant abuse by Wyoming youth is higher than the national average.
LSDOf the limited threat posed by ODDs to Wyoming, LSD is considered the most significant. According to the Wyoming Attorney General's Office, LSD is more prevalent in the state than MDMA, GHB, or heroin. LSD is transported to Wyoming in private vehicles from Denver, Colorado, and the West Coast. The San Francisco, California, area is the primary source of LSD for the Rocky Mountain region. The price of the drug ranges from $1 to $5 per dosage unit at the retail level. In Wyoming hallucinogen abuse, the most common of which is LSD, is a greater concern than heroin abuse. Statistics from the Wyoming Department of Health, Division of Substance Abuse, indicate that there were 9 admissions to public treatment for hallucinogen abuse in 1997, 15 admissions in 1998, and 6 admissions in 1999. TEDS data indicate the same trend, with 8 admissions for hallucinogen abuse in 1997, 16 admissions in 1998, and 6 admissions in 1999. Seizure and arrest data suggest that LSD is available in sufficient quantity to satisfy user demand in the state. In 1998 DCI reported the largest amount of LSD seized in Wyoming since 1996--3,102 dosage units--in connection with a series of enforcement operations against LSD distributors. These operations at least temporarily diminished the availability of LSD. In 1999 a total of 155 dosage units were seized, and in 2000 law enforcement agencies seized 320 dosage units, primarily as the result of enforcement operations. The Wyoming DCI arrested eight individuals in 1999 for violations involving hallucinogens and six in 2000.
GHBGHB, also known as liquid ecstasy, scoop, grievous bodily harm, and Georgia home boy, is abused for its euphoric, sedative, and anabolic effects; however, its use can induce coma and cause insomnia, anxiety, tremors, and sweating. GHB combined with methamphetamine increases the risk of seizures. Overdoses can occur quickly; some of the effects include drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, loss of consciousness, impaired breathing, and death. GHB is eliminated from the body quickly and may be difficult to detect in emergency rooms and other treatment facilities. The drug increasingly is implicated in poisonings, overdoses, sexual assaults, and fatalities. GHB can be produced from easily obtained ingredients, one of which is GBL (gamma-butyrolactone), a solvent commonly sold as a paint stripper. GBL is a List I chemical used in the manufacture of GHB and, when taken orally, is metabolized into GHB in the body. On January 21, 1999, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning concerning food supplement products containing GBL. The FDA requested that producers recall all products containing the additive. According to a January 2000 report, GBL was implicated in at least six deaths nationwide. GBL is sold commonly in powder or liquid forms at some gyms, fitness centers, and health food stores. The process for manufacturing GHB involves mixing GBL with either sodium or potassium hydroxide. The final GHB product varies depending on whether water or alcohol is used as a solvent in the process. When water is used, the final product is a colorless, viscous, clear solution. When alcohol is used, the final product is a white solid. GHB is not considered a major ODD threat to Wyoming. However, a large GHB laboratory was seized in March 2000 from a storage locker facility in Laramie County. Two 55-gallon drums filled with GHB precursor chemicals--dihydrofuranone, potassium hydroxide, and sodium hydroxide--were found in the storage locker. With the amounts of potassium and sodium hydroxide seized, the laboratory was capable of producing up to 69 kilograms of GHB; with some additional chemicals, the laboratory could have produced 120 kilograms or more than 2.5 million tablets. Four cases containing a total of 24,000 GHB tablets also were seized; each case contained 12 bottles filled with 500 tablets each. The production capacity of this laboratory indicates that GHB was intended for broad distribution outside the state. The investigation of the organization operating this laboratory has generated links to 12 other states and one foreign country. MDMAMDMA is taken orally in tablet or capsule form. The user begins to feel the effects within 1 hour of ingestion. Effects may last up to 6 hours, depending on dosage, purity, and the environment in which it is taken. Some users take multiple doses to extend the effect, sometimes consuming as many as 10 tablets in a single night. The physical and psychological effects of MDMA use vary widely. MDMA use greatly increases blood pressure and heart rate and can result in heart failure or heat stroke. Body temperature can increase to 109 degrees during physical exertion. Obvious physical effects include muscle tension, involuntary teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, rapid eye movement, faintness, chills or sweating, extreme relaxation, and tremors. MDMA is a mood/mind-altering drug affecting brain serotonin levels. Common psychological effects are feelings of emotional closeness coupled with the breakdown of personal communication barriers, a sense of peace with oneself and the world, an enhanced sense of pleasure, greater self-confidence, and an increased sense of energy. Some users may experience panic attacks. Wyoming authorities report that the availability of MDMA is increasing. Although Wyoming does not have a significant rave culture, raves are becoming more frequent in the southeastern corner of the state. Some Wyoming MDMA users travel to rave locations in northern Colorado, such as Fort Collins and Denver, to participate in all-night events. The Rocky Mountain HIDTA and the Wyoming DCI indicate that MDMA availability has increased in the southeastern corner of the state--particularly in Laramie and Albany Counties--due to its proximity to Denver, Colorado. The Wyoming DCI reports that most of those arrested at a large June 2001 rave south of Cheyenne were residents of Colorado. The DCI conducted three investigations involving MDMA distribution in Cheyenne and Laramie between July and October of 2000. A fourth investigation during this period was conducted in the Sheridan area in northern Wyoming. MDMA in Wyoming generally sells for $13 to $28 per tablet but can be as high as $50 per tablet in remote areas of the state.
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