Cough suppressant found at scene of teens' deaths

[BONERSTORM]

Cough suppressant found at scene of teens' deaths

08:37 AM PDT on Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Associated Press

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - The Whatcom County sheriff's office says a cough suppressant drug - Dextromethorphan or "Dex" - was found at the Bellingham home where two teens were found dead.

The Whatcom County medical examiner's office has not yet determined the cause of death for 19-year-old Corey Carlson and 17-year-old Ryan Morgan who were found dead on Saturday afternoon in the younger boy's home.

The two were found unresponsive by Morgan's parents.

Corey Carlson and Ryan Morgan

The sheriff's department is investigating the possibility that the boys may have overdosed on the drug, which can cause death if abused or used in combination with other drugs or alcohol.

Morgan was a senior at Squalicum High School and Carlson was a former student at the same school.

http://www.king5.com/topstories/stories/NW....21267b06b.html (http://www.king5.com/topstories/stories/NW_042505WABteendeathsSW.21267b06b.html)
(site requires registration)

thanks to RFG for finding this.

[BONERSTORM]

Deputies Reveal Clue In Deaths Of Bellingham Teens

BELLINGHAM, Wash. -- The cough suppressant dextromethorphan was found at the Bellingham home where a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old died over the weekend, Whatcom County sheriff's deputies said.

The substance, known as "dex," is used by some young people as a recreational drug, deputies said.

The victims were identified as Ryan Morgan, 17, who lives in the home and Cory Carlson, 19, a friend who spent the night.

Morgan's parents found the two upon returning from church on Saturday afternoon and could not revive them. Morgan was a junior at Squalicom High School.

Investigators found what they call "significant quantities" of the dextromethorphan at the scene.

It can cause sudden death when consumed in the wrong doses or used in combination with other drugs or alcohol, according to a news release from the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office.

The Whatcom County Medical Examiner's Office has not yet determined the cause of death. Toxicology tests will take several weeks, the M.E. office said.

http://www.kirotv.com/news/4413823/detail.html

This site doesn't require registration and contains video of the investigators speaking about the incident.

[drdªv€]

excellent link rudy, the video is quite surprising :(

[dooftard]

The video man...I'm not sure that was quite smart on their part because now kids are going to be wanting to try it..and considering they named coricidin first..beh. ANd wasn't the last story..uh..d8s story???

[BONERSTORM]

Originally posted by drdªv€@Apr 26 2005, 07:31 PM
excellent link rudy, the video is quite surprising :(
robert found it, i found the second one.

<3 google news

[rfgdxm]

Originally posted by rudine+Apr 26 2005, 08:51 PM--></span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (rudine @ Apr 26 2005, 08:51 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin--drdªv€@Apr 26 2005, 07:31 PM
excellent link rudy, the video is quite surprising :(
robert found it, i found the second one.

<3 google news [/b][/quote]
I didn't even need to bother with a Google News link. A parent whose kid knew these 2 boys e-mailed me first with the links after finding my site searching Google. :( It's damn likely that DXM was involved in these deaths.

[Arm]

Thats really stupid. They said you could order DXM online and then they showed a box of Coricidin.

I feel like screaming this into every reporter that does a report on DXM: CORICIDIN IS NOT PURE DXM. IT CONTAINS ANOTHER INGREDIENT DUMBASSES. ONE THAT INTERACTS WITH DXM IN BAD WAYS AND GREATLY INCREASES THE TOXICITY OF DXM. But of course we all know that. And yeah assholes you order Coricidin online but theres no point in that. It would be nice if Schering Plough could add something to Coricidin that in normal doses is inert but in high doses causes severe nausea and vomiting. That'll keep the little punks from doing the so-called 'skittling.' :P

But then the other pharmaceutical companies would add the ingredient too. :(

14 deaths? Yeah right.

[ranticalion]

It would be nice if Schering Plough could add something to Coricidin that in normal doses is inert but in high doses causes severe nausea and vomiting. That'll keep the little punks from doing the so-called 'skittling.'

Doesn't stop us from chugging syrup, why would it stop the little punks??

[Arm]

No I don't mean Guaifenesin. I meant something like caster oil. Even if it doesnt discourage the abuse of Coricidin, Schering Plough could say they tried.

[rfgdxm]

Originally posted by Arm@Apr 26 2005, 11:14 PM
Thats really stupid. They said you could order DXM online and then they showed a box of Coricidin.

I feel like screaming this into every reporter that does a report on DXM: CORICIDIN IS NOT PURE DXM. IT CONTAINS ANOTHER INGREDIENT DUMBASSES. ONE THAT INTERACTS WITH DXM IN BAD WAYS AND GREATLY INCREASES THE TOXICITY OF DXM. But of course we all know that. And yeah assholes you order Coricidin online but theres no point in that. It would be nice if Schering Plough could add something to Coricidin that in normal doses is inert but in high doses causes severe nausea and vomiting. That'll keep the little punks from doing the so-called 'skittling.' :P

But then the other pharmaceutical companies would add the ingredient too. :(

14 deaths? Yeah right.
You're not thinking like the media does. Yeah, if it is me reporting it on my websites, I'll make damn sure to point out any other drugs the person took because my goal is harm reduction. I'll eagerly point out the person also took CPM to emphasize the point "Coricidin is a particularly dangerous source of DXM." The media isn't interested in pointing out the safest ways to trip on DXM. Their preferred angle is just "drugs kill."

[Monoliath]

The media isn't interested in pointing out the safest ways to trip on DXM. Their preferred angle is just "drugs kill."

Right on. This generation needs educated responses...not annotated press release jargon. The media knows this...which again, makes me wonder what their true role is in this scenario.

Children are not stupid, they're smart. Adults need to realize this and figure out that media reverberations of 'just say no to drugs' and 'drugs kill' coupled with the fact that cigarettes are legal, and they've been proven to give you cancer...makes for a quick departure of trusting embrace from any young person looking up to the adult population for guidance...now that I think about it...if you're looking through the eyes of the media up at the adult population for guidance to begin with...man, we're in scary times.

Plus, is it just me, or does anyone else think that the major pharmaceutical companies responses are almost non-existent? I don't think it's even their place to get involved, this is not their problem if you ask me...