Flakka, or gravel as it is also known thanks to its composition of small crystals, is a new drug sweeping across the nation. The epidemic originated in South Florida in 2014 and now has been linked to many deaths, arrests, and overdoses throughout the country. The synthetic drug is first produced in China and sometimes Pakistan, before being shipped to the United States. From here, it is sold on the streets for a very low price as compared to other popular drugs with similar reactions, such as cocaine and bath salts, the latter of which infamously caused chaos a few years ago.

Deadly delusions: The drug flakka is growing in popularity http://t.co/HMbbZ7GS5M @DEANEWS pic.twitter.com/5lBVSaY5wo

— WORLD News Group (@WORLD_mag) June 10, 2015

What exactly is flakka? It is usually made from Alpha-PVP, which is a synthetic type of cathinone, a stimulant that is made from the Khat plant. This plant grows in the Middle East and Somalia, and its leaves are often chewed to achieve a slight high. The chemical cathinone can be so strong that it sometimes delivers harsher effects than crystal meth. Flakka is already very dangerous to take alone, but if a user were to take more than a single dose or to combine it with other drugs, then there could be disastrous results. It was also reported that this drug can be extra harmful because it doesn’t always arrive pure, and so it sometimes is laced with other deadly drugs, which would only intensify the effects on the user.

The use of flakka in the United States is strongest in South Florida, where it is believed to have first emerged. South Florida is sometimes known as a haven for drug users given how easy it is to access substances in this area since so many are imported there. Cases involving this powerful drug have also been reported in many other states, such as Ohio, Texas, and Tennessee. Flakka has reportedly led to 27 deaths in the past eight months alone in Broward County, Florida. There also three or four hospitalizations a day in this county because of the drug.

The name is derived from the Spanish term “la flaca,” which is slang for a beautiful, slender woman. Authorities believe that the drug is shipped by boat to South America and then it is brought to Florida through the Caribbean. Given Florida’s extensive coastline, authorities are having extreme difficulty trying to pinpoint where exactly the drug enters the country. Many law enforcement agencies have joined the search for flakka traffickers, dealers, and users.

Flakka can be taken in many different ways, including snorting, ingesting, smoking, injecting, or vaping it using electronic cigarettes. Experts say that the the slightest difference in the amount taken can lead to drastic results. Flakka can induce a wide variety of symptoms on its users, some of which can cause death or severe damage to the body, such as hyperthemia, which is why people often take off their clothes when they are high on the drug. It can also induce paranoia, making users think that they are being chased, or giving them the illusion that they have super strength. Doctors have also stated that it can cause irreparable brain damage or stroke-like symptoms. Some users have even suffered kidney failure and will likely have to be on dialysis for the rest of their lives.

This drug has been linked to a wide variety of odd arrests and brutal incidents throughout the country. NBC Miami has reported many different arrests related to flakka, such as one mom who made headlines for abandoning her one-year-old daughter after smoking it. Multiple instances of people running around naked claiming they were being chased have been reported, or there was the case of one man who tried to have sex with a tree after taking the drug. One man tried to break into a police department because he thought that the mob was after him, while another man was impaled by a fence when he tried to climb over it to get to the police precinct because he thought he was being chased.

This drug has proven to be incredibly dangerous and has taken the country by storm, as it has led to countless overdoses, a plethora of injuries, many bizarre crimes, and numerous deaths. It is cheap to buy compared to other narcotics, although it is so potent that it can induce an extreme level of insanity in its users shortly after being consumed. Educating the public on just how detrimental an effect this drug can have is the top priority of police and drug prevention agencies alike. Police in Florida have even begun dispensing flakka-detection kits to officers, sending drug-detection dogs to mail offices, and also training officers on how to look for signs of mania.

Toni Keddell

Toni Keddell is a member of the University of Maryland Class of 2017 and a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Toni at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Introducing Flakka: The New Cocaine appeared first on Law Street.

To blog about such a controversial topic like the use and possession of guns in the United States is something I want to tread carefully with. Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion surrounding the debate, but this week I could not help but question the legality of guns when coming across two particular cases.

On Thursday, Don Spirit killed his six grandchildren, aged from three months to 10 years old, and his daughter before turning the gun on himself. Spirit, whose case has been described as a murder-suicide, was someone who had already been involved in the criminal justice system. According to Fox:

In 2001, Spirit pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, after he fatally shot his 8-year-old son in the head in a hunting accident. Spirit, who also was convicted in 1998 for felony possession of marijuana, was sentenced to three years in prison for the shooting.

The details of the investigation are still in the very early stages, so it is hard to understand the motive — if there was one — the facts surrounding Spirit’s mental health, and his relationship with the victims. Aside from knowing these facts, I cannot help but wonder how Spirit even managed to have a gun after being convicted of a shooting in 2001? Gun accessibility legislation for ex-convicts really needs to be reconsidered in light of this case.

What I feel a lot of people fail to recognize is that the most common method of suicide in the United States is through the use of guns. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2011 there were 39,518 deaths by suicide. An overwhelming amount of these deaths (19,990) were the result of firearms.  If we are a country that aims to protect our citizens and the rights of others, surely we should look out for ourselves just as much? If we have such easy accessibility to the weapons of our choice that could end our lives, should we not reconsider the laws surrounding them? Do not get me wrong, I am more than aware that the black market for firearms is an ever-growing underground business, but if we cannot efficiently manage the legal selling and keeping of licensed handguns, we have no hope to stop the illegal sales and handlings.

My point needs to be extended to the safety of those living with others who have access to guns. On the same day as the tragic deaths resulting from Spirit’s heinous act, a fifth grade boy was arrested in Michigan after being found to have stolen his grandfather’s pistol. Not only was the boy found with the gun, but he had also created a list of names in the back of his homework book of people he allegedly planned to harm. As a result of this discovery, the boy has been suspended from school for ten days, and could face possible expulsion. Again, this could be my criminological thinking coming out, but I cannot help but wonder whether this punishment will actually solve the problem of what the boy intended to do? I certainly do not think he should be given jail time, or any formal sentence, but I do think that he needs to be aware of just how serious his actions were. Why? Because if he is not aware of it, what is to stop him doing it all over again, and just being more careful.

I fear that in a culture where are part of normality, when conflict arises in such intense situations, sometimes the only resolution seems to be in the form of violence via the use of weapons. I personally do not think this reflects on the attitudes and actions of those involved in this violence, I think it is the instinct that they have been taught their entire lives, to protect themselves in an extremely lethal way. In order to enact firmer laws that protect our safety, we have to start working on understanding the reason for such laws. As someone who is British, and not used to the debate on the use of guns, one of the main things I have come to realize is that it is a right for US citizens to own a gun, and by restricting this right through legislation, essentially the country contradicts all it stands for. As hard as it is to stand back from what an entire population believes in, more awareness needs to be raised toward the consequences of guns, not just for now, but for the future.

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Hannah Kaye (@HannahSKaye) is originally from London, now living in New York. Recently graduated with an MA in criminal justice from John Jay College. Strong contenders for things she is most passionate about are bagels and cupcakes.

Featured image courtesy of [Auraelius via Flickr]

Hannah Kaye

Hannah Kaye is originally from London, now living in New York. Recently graduated with an MA in criminal justice from John Jay College. Strong contenders for things she is most passionate about are bagels and cupcakes. Contact Hannah at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Two More Disturbing Gun Cases Beg the Question When Will We Change? appeared first on Law Street.