Pubdate: Wed, 18 Jul 2001
Source: Virginian-Pilot (VA)
Copyright: 2001, The Virginian-Pilot
Contact:  http://www.pilotonline.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/483
Author: Catherine Kozak

KILL DEVIL HILLS POLICE SUSPECT CLUB DRUG GHB IN TEEN'S DEATH

KILL DEVIL HILLS -- A police investigation is focusing on a recently 
popularized "rave'' drug as contributing to the death of a former Currituck 
County High School wrestling standout.

"The assumption we're working on is that it's a possibility it's GHB,'' 
said Kill Devil Hills Police Detective Gene Johnson, who is investigating 
Chase Taylor's death.

Johnson said the illegal drug, made from chemicals used in floor stripper 
and lye, is often taken by teens and college-age youths to acquire a 
feeling of euphoria and relaxation.

Taylor, 18, became suddenly ill Sunday night after consuming a clear liquid 
believed to have been GHB, Johnson said. The investigator said the 
teen-ager had also been drinking vodka.

By the time emergency medical personnel were called to the scene at about 9 
p.m., Taylor was unconscious and unable to be revived. He was pronounced 
dead at HealthEast Outer Banks Medical Center.

Johnson said the drug, favored at some all-night dance parties called 
raves, is considered harmless by many users. But its side effects -- 
nausea, headaches, dizziness, amnesia, vomiting and respiratory problems -- 
can be deadly when mixed with alcohol and other drugs.

Jesse Taylor, Chase's 20-year-old brother, said he went looking for Chase 
after he borrowed his car and didn't come back. When he arrived at their 
friend's residence on Newport News Street, Jesse Taylor found his brother 
on the ground near his Mustang.

"My brother happened to have gotten into my car, and my friend pulled him 
out because he was vomiting,'' he said. Taylor, a lifeguard for four years, 
said Chase still had a pulse at that point.

Chase Taylor, a Moyock resident, was an ace wrestler at Currituck County 
High School before he graduated in the spring. Employed as a lifeguard for 
Kill Devil Hills Ocean Rescue, he was headed to Old Dominion University in 
the fall.

"He had a lot going for him,'' Jesse Taylor said.

Taylor said he was close to his brother, with whom he shared their summer 
house as well as friendships with the close-knit group of beach lifeguards. 
Chase enjoyed hanging out with his friends, but he wasn't a regular drinker 
or drug user, Taylor said.

"He really wasn't big into the whole partying scene,'' Taylor said. "It's 
just sad. Things happen quickly. He was just 18 years old.''

The state medical examiner's office in Greenville is conducting an autopsy. 
Results of a toxicological analysis will be available in two to eight 
weeks, said Rachel Watkins, medical examiner investigator.

Johnson said GHB -- gamma hydroxybutyric acid -- is rapidly absorbed and 
can be difficult to detect. Easily manufactured with common ingredients, 
the substance is often carried to raves in hotel shampoo bottles, where a 
typical dose would be about a capful. Rarely, the drug is manufactured in 
powdered form. Most of the time it is produced as a clear, odorless liquid 
that tastes slightly salty.

Known on the street as "G,'' "Liquid E,'' "Georgia Home Boy,'' "Water'' and 
numerous other names, the drug is sometimes combined with Ecstasy, an 
illegal mood-enhancing drug sold in pill form that is popular among young 
adults. GHB is also considered a "date rape'' drug by law enforcers for its 
propensity to loosen inhibitions and foster forgetfulness.

Johnson, formerly an investigator with the Dare County sheriff's office, 
said the drug is fairly new on the Outer Banks. About a year ago, he said, 
two or three people became ill on Hatteras Island after drinking a clear 
liquid. They recovered, but it was never learned definitively what made 
them sick.

Easy to hide, GHB is usually not encountered by police until there is an 
overdose, Johnson said.

To the best of his knowledge, Johnson said, Chase Taylor was not given the 
drug unknowingly. The friend at whose house Taylor died, Jeff Cargill, will 
be interviewed soon, Johnson said. Cargill, 18, suffered severe vomiting 
and was taken to Chesapeake General Hospital on Sunday. He was treated and 
released and is recovering at his family's home in Cary.

GHB's effects -- varying from increased energy, happiness, a desire to 
socialize and muscle relaxation to loss of coordination, extreme thirst, 
nausea, difficulty concentrating and loss of gag reflex -- take about 20 
minutes to kick in and last four to eight hours.

Johnson said there have been deaths associated with GHB across the country. 
The Internet, where information about the drug, including recipes, is 
widely available, has helped fuel the misconception that the drug is always 
safe. One site he saw advised not to call for help if a user gets sick 
because it is only temporary.

Two other friends with Taylor, who Johnson said did not witness him 
drinking the clear liquid, did not call for help right away, Johnson said. 
"They thought he was intoxicated,'' he said.

Jesse Taylor did not blame anyone for his brother's premature death, but 
said he hopes such deaths can be prevented.

"All I can say is, you need to keep an eye on your friends,'' he said. 
"Everybody's young. They do stupid things. I've done my share. Not 
everybody gets away with it.''
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens