Women Warned To Be On Guard Against Rape Drug Pamphlets Distributed At Clubs As Fears About Rohypnol Grow

The so-called “date-rape” drug Rohypnol is suspected in at least half a dozen Spokane sexual assault cases in recent months.

But those numbers could be considerably higher, rape-crisis officials say.

Rape-crisis counselors are so alarmed that they began distributing hundreds of pamphlets about the drug at bars and nightclubs throughout Spokane and the Valley last week.

Officials say bars are one place where victims get drugged because would-be rapists have easy access to their drinks.

“There are so many people and so many glasses,” said Spokane Police Detective Tery Boardman.

Spokane police can’t prove yet that Rohypnol was used in a rape. However, Boardman said, she suspected the drug was used in a rape case she investigated.

According to Boardman, the woman’s story sounded like those of previous victims.

She had dizziness, nausea and headaches followed by a series of blackouts, Boardman said. When she woke up several hours later, her clothes were torn and she realized her drink just last week at a Spokane nightclub.

About a month ago, Deaconess and Sacred Heart medical centers started screening for the drug in urinalysis tests on rape victims. They haven’t found traces of the drug in any of the victims.

Testing has to be done quickly because the drug stays in the blood no more than 30 hours. Large doses can leave victims unconscious for up to 12 hours.

Deaconess spokeswoman Priscilla Gilkey said more rape victims are telling hospital officials they don’t remember the assault.

“But alcohol is involved in many of these cases so we can’t be sure if the symptoms of Rohypnol are in fact the drug itself,” Gilkey said.

Rohypnol didn’t start appearing in the United States until 1990 so doctors are still learning about it.

On the street it’s called “rope,” “roofies” or the “date-rape drug.” It comes in tablet form and looks like Tylenol.

Marcia Gallucci, coordinator of the rape-crisis line at the Spokane Sexual Assault Center, and Stephanie Van Marter, an advocate for the organization, passed out pamphlets about the drug last week.

The pamphlets advise women how to avoid the drug.

The No. 1 rule: Watch your drink at all times, and don’t let a complete stranger buy you one, no matter how attractive he is.

Rohypnol is 10 times stronger than Valium. It’s tasteless, colorless and odorless, and leaves no residue in liquid.

“It’s kind of a scary thing,” said Cindy Empey, assistant dean of students at Washington State University. Empey, who also chairs WSU’s Sexual Assault Task Force, will meet with students and other administrators to plan how to warn students about Rohypnol.

“There are a lot of rumors out there right now,” Empey said. “Most of them about just what the drug is.”

Two common misconceptions are that the drug is safe and can’t be detected by urinalysis, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The DEA says the fastest growing group of Rohypnol users are high school students who take the drug with alcohol or use it after taking cocaine.

Rohypnol was first made in Europe in the 1970s and has been used by cocaine addicts since the 1980s to offset the depression that follows the high they get.

European doctors say the drug has been effective as a general anesthesia and for treatment of insomnia.

Rohypnol is produced and sold legally by prescription in Europe and Latin America, according to the DEA. It has never been licensed for sale in this country.

On Oct. 13, President Clinton signed a bill that subjects rapists to an additional 20 years in prison if they use a narcotic to incapacitate victims.

Possession of Rohypnol with no proven intent to distribute carries a sentence of up to three years in prison.

Despite warnings from law enforcement and rape counselors, some nightclub owners remain skeptical about Rohypnol’s presence in the Spokane area.

“Since they can’t trace it, how can they know it’s happening?” asked Don Goligoski, owner of Outback Jack’s on Sprague Avenue in downtown Spokane. “If it’s in Spokane, I think it’s very minute.

“This may be something that is going on with older people,” he said. “Most of my crowd is 21, 22, 23; they’re too busy having a good time, they’re not into that.”

But last Sunday, one female customer at Outback Jack’s said she saw two men drop something into her glass of beer at the table where she was sitting.

The woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said she was on the dance floor when she saw it happen.

“I glanced over at our table and thought, ‘Oh my God, they’re going after our purses,”’ she said.

“They leaned up on the table, looked around, and I saw the guy drop something into my drink.”

She said she took her glass to Goligoski and told him what happened. She said he dumped out the drink.

Goligoski said he didn’t recall the woman.

“I mean there was some evidence of something right there,” the woman said. “He just took the glass, dumped it, and gave us new beers.

“I’m really re-evaluating where I go around here,” she said.

Another Spokane woman, who also asked for anonymity, believes something was slipped into her drink three months ago at the Blue Dolphin nightclub in the Valley.

She doesn’t believe she received a large dose of the drug because she never lost consciousness for more than a few seconds.

“I was the designated driver and drinking water all night, so I know it wasn’t because of alcohol,” she said.

At first she thought she was coming down with the flu, but it wasn’t until she heard about Rohypnol that she thought someone may have spiked her drink.

She never reported the incident to Blue Dolphin owners.

“It’s just frightening to think that you’ve got to take all of these steps to protect yourself in going out to have fun,” she said.

The drug’s mind-altering effects make those precautions critical, Boardman said.

“Imagine you’re in a car accident, and one hour later, you’re asked to give details of the event,” Boardman said. “Things happen fast. Two, three days, a week goes by, and you’re still remembering some of the circumstances that led to the accident.

“Now imagine being raped and being under the influence of a drug like Rohypnol,” she said. “You’re not going to have the ability to remember something your mind is going to want to forget in the first place.”

No memory, no traces of the drug, no prosecution in a court of law.

“There isn’t even a case to file,” Boardman said.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Graphic: Date-rape drug

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: AVOIDING ROHYPNOL Never accept a drink from someone you don’t know or trust. Order sealed drinks. Watch the bartender make the drink and avoid servers. Don’t leave a drink unattended. Use the buddy system. Tell friends where you are. Don’t leave without accounting for those who came with you. If you hear someone kidding about “date drugs,” pay attention. It could be a sign you should leave. Tell your date you’re aware of the drug and that even possession of it is a federal crime. If you suspect you’ve been given the drug, report it immediately.