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Schumer stops by Batavia HS to issue challenge to DEA to step anti-synthetic drug enforcement

By Howard B. Owens

Synthetic drug use hasn't hit the epidemic proportions of 2012, but with reports of related hospitalizations and law enforcement issues on the uptick, Sen. Charles Schumer is calling on the DEA to step up its enforcement efforts.

To draw attention to the issue, Schummer held a press conference this morning in the library at Batavia High School, joined by Superintendent Chris Daily, Principal Scott Wilson, GCASA Communications Director Pamela LaGrou, and Sgt. Greg Walker, head of the Local Drug Task Force.

"We gave the DEA the authority (with legislation in 2012) to ban a long list of chemical look-alikes," Schumer said. "If it's almost marijuana, or almost methamphetamine, or almost Ecstasy, or almost cocaine, and they can switch a few molecules, we told the DEA you don't need legislation to make it a Schedule 1 drug. You can ban it. The problem is, the DEA is moving much too slowly."

The DEA is battling against a worldwide network of independent chemists, small labs and distributors who are constantly reformulating their drugs. Schumer thinks the DEA can keep pace.

"The DEA has a panel of scientists, experts, keeping tabs on new drugs," Schumer said. "We would hope they can ban these before they are actually sold on the market."

Schumer came to Batavia High because of reports of four students who were hospitalized as a result of using synthetic drugs.

It's important to education young people about the dangers of these often unknown substances, school officials said.

Walker said that while opiate-based drugs remain the number one drug enforcement issue in the county, there has been a slight increase in synthetic drug usage locally.

"Like the senator said, in 2012, we did have a big influx of the synthetics and since then, it has dropped off," Walker said. "Now that Cloud 9 has come up, it's starting to come back, but we're not seeing that huge surge we saw in 2012."

Schumer said he fears a repeat of 2012 in 2015 if the DEA isn't more aggressive in its enforcement efforts.

"They've banned 20 (substances)," Schumer said. "But there are another 300 on the list. We're asking the DEA to move much more quickly. The drugs are powerful. They have severe side effects and some kids develop permanent mental problems as a result of using them."

david spaulding

"Schumer came to Batavia High because of reports of four students who were hospitalized as a result of using synthetic drugs."........really? does anyone know when this happened?
call them synthetic, anti-synthetic, real, genuine, natural, call them anything you want, they are illegal and if you get caught with them, you have to pay for council.
Now what is Chuck trying to say? Because the DEA hasn't declared a drug, an illegal drug, that an epidemic is about to hit Batavia High?
Give me a break, nothing more than photo ops for Chuck..
If you pay attention to Chuck's press conferences, watch for him to say " it'll be a shot in the arm".

Feb 16, 2015, 2:37pm Permalink
Paul Weiss

Let's see. Schemer is a New York City liberal Democratic senator who wins reelection with 60 to 70 per cent of the vote every time. He comes upstate to a rural Republican county that has a sliver of the voting population on one of the coldest days of the year and someone thinks it's a photo op. What are you guys putting in the water in Batavia? Can you hate him as much as you hate President Obama?

Feb 16, 2015, 3:45pm Permalink
david spaulding

Thanks Howard..... after reading the above link, No where did I read about 4 Batavia Students being hospitalized..... The principal talks about "4 incidents" at his school which could amount to almost anything..... This just reinforces my feelings about Chuck standing up there Showboating while the cameras roll.....No body was hospitalized....
Read the final paragraph in the OP..... like making 300 more drugs illegal will stop someone who intends to use them.... Does he really believe that? DWI is illegal and everyday someone is arrested for it..

Feb 16, 2015, 3:53pm Permalink
Kyle Couchman

David, you said... "The principal talks about "4 incidents" at his school which could amount to almost anything....."

Yet when I read the article, it says...

There have been four incidents at Batavia High School so far this school year involving students, vaporizers and synthetic drugs, Principal Scott Wilson said.

So tell me how the 4 incidents could amount to anything? Principle Wilson was very specific about what the incidents were about. So your comment that they could amount to anything isn't even an opinion, it's just straight out fiction. That kinda tears down the credibility of your comments.

Making these compounds illegal isn't increasing the size of Govt nor the scope. We did have a shop in town that sold these imitation drugs, the public made an outcry and protest leading to the arrest and conviction of the store owners and the closing down of this shop.

Seems to me the Govt did what it was supposed to do.... at the behest of the public, it investigated and removed a illegitimate business that lied to the public and threatened public safety.

Continuing this focus on synthetic versions of drug, is at least one thing we can give Schumer and NYS Govt a thumbs up on...

Feb 17, 2015, 12:29pm Permalink
david spaulding

hey kyle, thank you for keeping your response to my post to under 500 words.
no where does the principal say 4 kids went to the hospital. as far as him being specific, he said 4 incidents of syn. drugs and vaporizers. kyle from your specific reading is it 3 vapors and 1 syn. or is it 3 syn. and 1 vapor or is it 2 each? which paragraph states 4 hospitalizations ?

Feb 17, 2015, 1:48pm Permalink
Frank Bartholomew

When reading Kyles comment # 8, Kyle said," Seems to me the govt. did what it was
supposed to... at the behest of the public, it investigated and removed a illegitimate
business that lied to the public and threatened public safety".
The very same could have been said of a "speak easy" during prohibition.
How ironic is that ? Alcohol remains a threat to public safety to this very day.

Feb 18, 2015, 7:00pm Permalink

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