Reno Warns College Students Of Dangers From ‘Rape’ Drugs
Amid an alarming rise in the use of so-called “rape drugs,” Attorney General Janet Reno on Monday helped launch a national effort to warn college students of the dangers of two powerful substances that sexual predators use to knock out their victims before attacking them.
Appearing at the Santa Monica Rape Treatment Center, Reno outlined a campaign to flood college campuses with posters and other written information explaining the dangers of the drugs - Rohypnol and GHB - and to air public service announcements on NBC this fall.
A few years ago, the drugs were practically unknown. Now, about seven women a month report to the Santa Monica center alone that they have been drugged and sexually assaulted, said Gail Abarbanel, the center’s director.
The spread of the rape drugs, Reno said, reverses the trauma most rape victims suffer. Often, they are unable to forget how they suffered at the hands of a rapist. In rape drug cases, they are unable to remember.
“It’s time for everyone in America to wake up to the threat,” Reno said.
Reno’s appearance underscored the breadth of a problem that is frustrating police, hospitals and rape victims. The two drugs - both odorless, nearly tasteless and potentially lethal - have become fixtures at parties and clubs in recent years. But many investigators and laboratories still are struggling to understand, trace and prosecute crimes - particularly sexual assaults - involving their use.
“These drugs make it very easy for rapists to commit their crimes,” Abarbanel said. “The rapist doesn’t have to use physical force. He doesn’t have to use restraints. He doesn’t even have to threaten harm to subdue the victim, and he doesn’t have to worry about a victim’s screams attracting attention.”
Just as the drugs immobilize rape victims, they also tend to paralyze investigations of sex crimes. Often, victims who have been knocked out with rape drugs wake up unsure of what happened. They may dismiss the assault without reporting it.
Rather than hesitate, victims must report the crime and seek medical treatment immediately, Abarbanel said, because the drugs can leave the system within hours. Even then, victims may wind up dealing with doctors or investigators unfamiliar with the drugs.
As part of the campaign launched by Reno, the rape treatment center is distributing posters, fliers, even bookmarks to colleges in 32 states in time for fall semester. That material offers tips on how to avoid being drugged, and how to respond if a sexual assault is suspected.