Using drugs to facilitate sexual assault on college campuses and in off-campus settings has received increasing attention over the last decade. Important information about drug-facilitated sexual assault and some of the newer trends in this phenomenon appear below. Discussed are some of the signs of having been drugged and options for what to do if you believe you or someone you know may have been drugged, followed by information on drugs commonly used to facilitate sexual assault, the law, risk reduction strategies, and resources.

Indicators That You May Have Been Drugged

Each victim is unique and will experience the effects of having been drugged differently. The following are warning signs that you or someone you know may have been drugged.

Warning Signs - when the drugs are taking effect

• appearance of being heavily intoxicated, often out of proportion to how much the victim has actually had to drink
  
• feelings of intoxication that come on very quickly
  
• nausea, dizziness, disorientation, and decreased inhibition
  
• heaviness or paralysis in the arms and legs
  
• tunnel vision

Warning Signs - when the effects of drugs are wearing/have worn off

• feeling sick, similar to an extreme hangover
  
• loss of memory of what happened just before waking up
  
• amnesia - no memory of anything that happened after taking a drink
  
• signs of possibly having been assaulted - waking up with clothes put on differently, in a strange place, etc.

What To Do If You Think You May Have Been Drugged

As a victim of drugging and/or of a drug-facilitated sexual assault, you have many options regarding the type of assistance you may want. These options fall into three categories - medical help, advocacy/counseling, and judicial assistance from the police and/or university. It is important that you get to a place where you feel safe and can talk to a person about what happened. Consider contacting Campus Safety, PLU Victim Advocate or your Resident Hall Director.

Telling someone does not commit you to filing a formal report or to prosecuting the perpetrator. The use of these drugs and sexual assault, committed with the use of these drugs or not, are both criminal and University offenses. Help is available from the Victim Advocate and from the Sexual Assault Center of Pierce County, the PLU Student Health Center, PLU Conduct Coordinator, Campus Safety and the Pierce County Sheriff's Department.

Important Factors to Remember:

• If you think you have been drugged, and want to be tested for the presence of drugs in your system, try not to urinate upon waking. If you must urinate, try to obtain a urine sample in a clean container.
  
• Since these drugs leave the body quickly, it is important to have a test to screen for the presence of the drug as soon as possible. Traces of these drugs may be present in the body for up to 3 days after ingestion.
  
• If you decide to be tested for the presence of these drugs, you will need to specifically ask to be tested for possible Rohypnol/GHB presence; a general drug screening will not detect Rohypnol or GHB.

The "Date Rape" Drugs

Reports of the use of drugs by individuals seeking to sedate potential victims for the purpose of sexually assaulting these victims have increased on college campuses in recent years. Several of the drugs used to commit sexual assaults have also led to hospitalizations and deaths. Drug-related sexual assault poses unique difficulties for survivors of sexual assault, and for those trying to reduce their risk of assault. During a sexual assault in which the victim has been drugged using Rohypnol, GHB, Ketamine, or GBL, s/he often passes out. S/he may wake up intermittently during the assault, and some victims remember nothing while others retain partial memories. Traceable amounts of these drugs may remain in a victim's urine for up to three days after ingestion.

The following provides important information on the most common drugs used to commit sexual assault, how to reduce the risk of becoming a victim, and what to do if you suspect that you or someone you know has been drugged, whether or not a sexual assault has occurred.

It is important to remember that the oldest and most common drug used to facilitate sexual assault is alcohol.

"Date Rape" Drugs

Rohypnol (pronounced "ro-hip-nol"), Gamma Hydroxybutrate (commonly called GHB), Ketamine, and Gama Butyrolactone (commonly called GBL), are the more common drugs that have been used to commit sexual assaults. Although most of these drugs are illegal in the United States (Ketamine has certain legal uses), cases involving these "date-rape drugs" are becoming more common in both university and off campus settings. Most often, the perpetrator will slip the drug into an unsuspecting person's drink. When the drug begins to take effect, the victim's inhibitions will be lowered, and they may appear intoxicated whether or not they are actually drunk. The victim may experience any and/or all of the following symptoms: nausea, dizziness, paralysis or "heaviness" of limbs, tunnel vision or other visual disturbances and respiratory problems. When mixed with alcohol, narcotics, or other depressants, the effects of these drugs are intensified and may cause temporary amnesia, blackouts, coma, or death.

Rohypnol is a hypnotic sedative ten times more powerful than Valium. It previously came in the form of a white, dime-sized pill that quickly dissolves in liquids and has no taste or odor. The drug-maker, Hoffman-LaRoche, has changed the makeup of the drug because it has been used to commit sexual assault. The newer form of Rohypnol now dissolves more slowly and releases a blue dye. It may color light-colored drinks and give a cloudy appearance to darker drinks. It is important to remember that the older, less visible form of Rohypnol may still be in use by some perpetrators. Other names for Rohypnol include Roofies, Roaches, Rope, and the Forget Pill.

Potential Effects:

• disorientation, dizziness, and/or drowsiness beginning within 15 minutes to 1 hour after ingestion;
  
• hot or cold flashes;
  
• difficulty speaking;
  
• partial paralysis or heaviness in the limbs;
  
• partial or complete inability to remember what happened after ingesting the drug;
  
• severe "hang over" effects for up to 48 hours after ingestion, which may include headache, nausea, and dizziness.

GHB is a sedative. It is usually homemade and sold on the black market. Like Rohypnol, GHB has made its way into the Rave and club scenes, as well as to college campuses. It is a colorless, odorless substance that comes in many forms including pill, powder, and most commonly, liquid. GHB sometimes has a salty taste. Other names for GHB include Liquid X, Easy Lay, Liquid Ecstasy, and Saltwater.

Potential Effects:

• behavioral changes similar to those associated with extreme drunkenness beginning 5 to 20 minutes after ingestion;
  
• nausea, vomiting;
  
• dizziness;
  
• memory impairment;
  
• loss of consciousness.

Ketamine is a powerful anesthetic used mainly by veterinarians, although it can be used as a human anesthetic in low doses. The powder form of Ketamine can be snorted, mixed into drinks, or smoked; the liquid form can be injected, mixed into drinks, or applied to smoking materials. Other names for Ketamine include Special K, K, and KitKat.

Potential Effects:

• feelings of dissociation such as feeling separated from your body;
  
• hallucinations;
  
• inability to feel pain;
  
• decreased heart rate and/or heart failure;
• decreased oxygen to the muscles and brain.
  

Drug-Induced Rape Prevention and Punishment Act

In 1996, the "Drug-Induced Rape Prevention and Punishment Act" was enacted. This bill outlaws the use of Rohypnol, GHB, and other "date-rape drugs" and subjects rapists to an additional 20 years in prison if they are convicted of using these drugs to incapacitate their victims. The law also covers possession, manufacture, or distribution of an illegal drug with intent to use it in commission of a violent crime. Simple possession of these drugs with no proven intent to commit assault carries a sentence of up to three years in prison.

Steps to Reduce Your Risk Of Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault

The perpetrator of sexual assault is solely responsible for committing the assault, victims are not at fault. There are steps that we all can take to reduce our risk of drug-facilitated assault.

• Go out with and stay with friends - perpetrators isolate the victim to make committing a sexual assault easier.
  
• Keep your drink with you at all times - setting it down for even a second is enough time for someone to tamper with it.
  
• Get your own drinks - even if you know the person who is offering the drinks.
  
• Avoid punch bowls - or other drinks that are highly accessible to being tampered with.
  
• Avoid taking drinks that have candy or other objects in them - these objects may be used to disguise the appearance or taste of drugs in the drink.
  
• Confront rumors or evidence of drugging - perpetrators use silence and secrecy to commit assaults
  
• Get help for any one who seems like they may have been drugged - even if you don't know them, stay with them.
  
• Drink responsibly - intoxication will lessen your awareness of what is going on around you.

If at any time you believe you have been a victim of Rohypnol, GHB, Ketamine, GBL, or another drug, or you have information of these drugs' usage, please contact the PLU Victim Advocate, PLU Campus Safety or the Sexual Assault Center of Pierce County.