Bath salts information session planned - Morning Sentinel

November 16 Morning Sentinel Staff

FARMINGTON -- An information session, The Growing Bath Salts Epidemic, will begin at 7:30 a.m. Friday in the Bass Room at Franklin Memorial Hospital. Anyone interested in learning more about this growing epidemic in Maine is welcome.

Speakers and their topics of discussion will include:

* David Hyde, DO, medical director of Franklin Memorial Hospital, will describe the bath salts problem for the community, including hospitals, law enforcement and schools.

* Karen Simone, PharmD, director of Northern New England Poison Control, will explain what bath salts are, how they affect users, and protocols for dealing with patients.

* Kelly Klein, MD, emergency room physician at Eastern Maine Medical Center, will discuss her experiences with bath salts users at EMMC, EMMC's protocol in the emergency room, effects of the drug on a patient, and affects of the epidemic on the hospital staff and community.

* Shane Cote, deputy chief of the Farmington Police Department, will discuss the bath salts experience in western Maine, criminality concerning bath salts, and what to look for to identify users.

There is no fee to attend, however an RSVP is requested by calling 779-2381.

This information session is made possible by Evergreen Behavioral Services, an affiliate of Franklin Community Health Network. EBS offers 24/7 emergency mental health response and community outreach services in Greater Franklin County.

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Lena Lunsford Investigated for Dangerous Drug 'Bath Salts' - WBOY-TV

CLARKSBURG -

Her daughter has been missing almost two months, and last week Lena Lunsford released a statement asking people to pray for her family and daughter Aliayah, 3. She also wrote she is fully cooperating with the investigators working to bring Aliayah home.

But the same can't be said for the authorities handling her six charges of federal welfare fraud. U.S. Pretrial Services Officer Brian Kilgore wrote in a statement that Lunsford is violating her probation and is not fully cooperating with her supervision. West Virginia State Police tracked her and her husband Ralph Lunsford to the parking lot of a store called Hot Stuff Cool Things in Clarksburg Nov. 1. Ralph told Kilgore he had just purchased "Sextary," a version of the synthetic drug "bath salts" for $52. Lena told Kilgore on Oct. 20 she did not know what bath salts were. She also told him she had not been to a "head shop" in "several months."

"It's much like the PCP back in the '70s. It's a medicine that makes someone very euphoric and happy. But there's a fine line for them to go over to being acutely psychotic," said Dr. Chris Goode, head of the Emergency Department at United Hospital Center.

But if a pregnant mother is taking the synthetic drugs, it will have an impact on her unborn child(ren).

"It'll affect breathing issues and then the central nervous system," Goode said. "You can only imagine the effect it'd have on the nervous system and the mother. If the mother is not doing well, then the fetus is not doing well."

State Police are investigating the bath salts incident and is waiting on lab results. Neither she nor Ralph has been charged. 

Kilgore recommended she be placed in home incarceration and substance abuse treatment.

Meanwhile, Dr. Chris Goode calls bath salts an "epidemic" in north central West Virginia.

"We see it a lot. People are known regular users. But one bad dose of bath salts, heroin or K2 could be your last."

Lena Lunsford has a bond revocation hearing at Elkins federal court Nov. 28.

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Area convenience stores searched for bath salts, other illegal substances - Zanesville Times Recorder

ZANESVILLE -- Two convenience stores in Zanesville and one in Norwich were served search warrants by the Muskingum County Sheriff's Office on Friday morning in search of illegal bath salts.

Bath salts, K2 and Spice incense became illegal Oct. 18 after the state Legislature in June banned six common ingredients found in bath salts, making them a Schedule I drug. Gov. John Kasich signed the bill in July. The substances were added to the list of illegal hallucinogenic compounds.

Sheriff Matt Lutz said the State Street Exxon Station at State and Main streets, the B.P. Station in Norwich and a convenience store, called Cheap Tobacco, on Maysville Pike and Eppley Avenue were served with warrants between 10:10 and 10:15 a.m. by the sheriff's office and the Zanesville Police Department's combined drug unit.

"We've been investigating these stores and other businesses in the area to see if anyone was continuing to sell bath salts," Lutz said. "We've made undercover purchases from the three we served the warrants on today."

Lutz said a good amount of bath salts were confiscated from the various stores and would be sent to the labs of the Ohio Bureau of Identification and Investigation.

"There were some items that were marked stating they were not made with the ingredients the original bath salts were, but we want to make sure," Lutz said.

Money also was confiscated, Lutz said, but he would not reveal the amount.

The owner of the store on Main Street, Rakesh Rana, of Westerville, could not be reached for comment. Neither could the owner of the other two stores, Rizwan Lahuti, of Zanesville.

No charges will be filed until lab results are returned and the cases are reviewed by Muskingum County Prosecutor Michael Haddox, Lutz said.

Lutz's office has been tracking which locations sell bath salts for a while, even before they became illegal.

Sheriff's deputies began taking a more covert route to enforce the bill, Lutz said, because bath salts and incense usually were kept out of sight behind the counter or in a back room and sellers wouldn't bring them out in front of police or sheriff's deputies.

Possession of bath salts is a fifth-degree felony, which carries a jail sentence of up to a year, and selling the salts is a fourth-degree felony, which carries an 18-month prison sentence or if the drugs are sold near a juvenile or school, a sentence of up to five years, Haddox said.

For the incense, possession is a minor misdemeanor with a $100 fine.

Originally derived from a plant grown in Africa, bath salts are synthetic, and the most dangerous ingredient, MDPV, produces effects similar to cocaine and LSD.

Bath salts also can cause heartbeat irregularity, muscle damage, high blood pressure, kidney failure and metabolic problems such as acidosis.

The American Association of Poison Control Centers reported that in 2010, it received 303 calls regarding bath salts. As of Aug. 31, 2011, that increased to 4,720 calls. Ages of those ingesting the drug ranged from 16 to 60.

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Hospitals on alert for victims of new drug 'bath salts' - Herald Sun

MELBOURNE hospitals are warning their emergency departments to expect admissions of patients affected by a controversial new drug MDPV, known on the street as bath salts.

The synthetic drug, which can be snorted, injected or smoked, is derived from mephedrone. It is reported to have effects similar to ecstasy and cocaine but can cause psychotic-like symptoms.

Experts have warned the bath salts drug and other drugs derived from mephedrone including meow meow and plant food have significant health risks.

The drug can result in psychosis, insomnia and paranoia and has been linked to deaths in Britain. Users experience a powerful sense of euphoria, increased energy, sociability, and sexual stimulation.

Geoff Munro, policy and advocacy director for the Australian Drug Foundation, said there had been limited research into the drug.

The drug has been linked to several violent, psychotic episodes overseas. It is widely available online and though illegal in Australia, the importation of bath salts from overseas websites remains possible.

sVictoria Police acknowledge that synthetic drugs represent a major challenge to law enforcement.

Lez Twentyman said that the increasing popularity of synthetic drugs such as bath salts was a result of drug addiction being treated as an enforcement issue not a community health issue.

Mr Twentyman said that the availability of drugs online has resulted in increasing levels of drug taking among Victorian youth.

He said often ingredients of drugs bought online were unclear.

"People don't really know what they're taking," he said.

A spokeswoman for the Royal Melbourne Hospital said that the number of people admitted for drug related medical issues would almost certainly rise during summer.

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Three midcoast residents charged after bath salts found in vehicle - Bangor Daily News

WATERVILLE, Maine — A trio of midcoast residents are behind bars after bath salts and cash were seized from their vehicle early Saturday, police said Tuesday.

Waterville Deputy Chief Charles Rumsey said Sgt. Dan Ames stopped a vehicle traveling the wrong way on a one-way street downtown and, while he was in the process of speaking with the driver and her two passengers, discovered 3.5 ounces of the illegal drug bath salts and $1,800 cash in the glove compartment.

Arrested were Merideth Finley, 27, of Rockland, Paul Mahonen, 34, of South Thomaston, and Travis Griffin, 26, of Warren, Rumsey said.

All three suspects were charged with trafficking in bath salts, a Class B felony. Mahonen also was charged with violating conditions of release, Rumsey said.

A further investigation of the suspects’ car led to four containers that were locked. Police also seized those, according to Rumsey, and a search warrant was subsequently obtained.

When police opened the containers, they discovered another half-ounce of bath salts and $200 in cash.

Rumsey said that a large amount packaging materials and baggies were discovered in the vehicle as well.

The suspects were taken to the Kennebec County Jail, with bail set at $5,000 for each.

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"Bath salts," synthetic cannabis possession leads to citation - Harrisburg Daily Register

Harrisburg Police cited an Ozark man on charges of unlawful possession of synthetic cannabis and unlawful possession of "bath salts" Thursday morning.

Officer Tom Leverett observed a man later identified as Fred L. Brantley, 58, Ozark, leave a Harrisburg business without apparently having made a purchase, get in the passenger seat of a truck and the driver of the truck drove away on Main Street committing a traffic infraction, according to Chief Bob Smith.

Leverett stopped the vehicle and asked Brantley why he had left without purchasing anything. Brantley said he had bought items commonly known as K2 synthetic cannabis and "bath salts" which is a sort of synthetic cocaine, both of which have recently been outlawed at the federal level and by city ordinance, Smith said.

Smith declined to name the business because as of Friday morning there was not proof the items had been purchased there and intends to investigate the business, he said.

The synthetic drugs can have unpredictable and dangerous effects on people, Smith said.

He said Carbondale Police recently arrested a man who was running naked through University Mall in Carbondale under the influence of one of the drugs and it required seven Harrisburg Police Officers to restrain a man under the influence of one of the drugs at Harrisburg Medical Center.

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Burglar high on bath salts breaks into family's home, puts up Christmas ... - New York Daily News

Burglar high on bath salts breaks into home, puts up Christmas decorations  - New York Daily News NYDN Home?Collections?CopsTerry Trent, 44, has been charged with burglary after breaking into a familys…Burglar high on bath salts breaks into home, puts up Christmas decorations PHILIP CAULFIELDMonday, November 14, 2011

Snorting bath salts put one Ohio crook in the holiday spirit, police say.

Cops in Vandalia, north of Dayton, say Terry Trent, 44, was high on the designer drug when he broke into a family’s home, put up some Christmas decorations and then plopped down on a couch to watch television, local station WHIO reported.

An 11-year-old boy who lives in the house found the strung-out stranger and called his mother, Tamara Henderson, who was at a neighbor's house.

She said, "What do you mean a man is in our house? You don't know if he has a gun or if he has a knife?" the station reported.

Henderson called 911, and Trent was arrested without incident.

Cops say he was armed with a pocket knife.

But Henderson suspects the decorating bandit was just looking for a festive spot to soak in his buzz.

"The candle was lit on the coffee table, the television was on and very loud," she told the station.

"He had said to [my son] ,'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I'll get my things and go.' "

Trent was charged with burglary and held in a county lockup.

Cops say he has a history of drug charges.

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