Steve Winthrop says several years ago he was a "doped-up, drooling zombie.

The Wilmington resident was taking large doses of Oxycontin to ease discomfort from a spine injury first caused by a car accident and exacerbated by an injury suffered as a paramedic in New York.

Winthrop said he became addicted to the drugs, but with the help of his girlfriend, got off them.

Now, he said, he uses marijuana to deal with his pain and it has helped him become more active, without the side effects.

[continues 631 words]

The scourge of heroin took Jane Shrum's only brother, whom she described as a smart, nice-looking kid who aspired to teach history.

UNCW student Jeffery Irby, 23, died March 27 of a heroin overdose, according to an autopsy report released recently by the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

A roommate found his body in their bathroom in Apartment F, a multiunit dwelling on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

A history major, Mr. Irby was enrolled at UNCW from June 2001 until his death, school officials said.

[continues 944 words]