March 3, 2006
Ocilla-- A 14-year old student attending Irwin County Middle School is taken into custody after selling the highly addictive prescription drug, Xanax to fellow students, causing them to become sick.
Xanax is small but, it packs a powerful punch, and can be fatal, says pharmacist Charlene Singer. "It's going to slow your respiratory rate, so you could go into a coma," says Singer.
The pill is rarely prescribed to children, yet, students attending Irwin County Middle School had full access to the drug, thanks to an eighth grader there.
"He had just stolen the prescription drug from a family member and had these drugs and just gave them to his friends," says school principal, Sol Summerlin.
It wasn't until three students who took the drug became sick that school officials started looking for answers.
"The students were exhibiting light headedness, dizzy like symptoms, and complaining of a possible stomach virus," says Summerlin.
After questioning students about their classmate's strange behavior, Summerlin then called police. "They turned the investigation over to the local drug force," says Summerlin.
They were then able to trace and arrest the student. Summerlin is now taking preventive measures to make students aware of the dangers of abusing prescription drugs.
"We're going to do some more drug education through the central officers in training, have some people come out, that's one thing we're working on," says Summerlin.
While pharmacist Charlene Singer, warns parents to hide potential harmful medication at all times.
"I would put then in a very safe place. Keep them under lock and key," says Singer.Otherwise the outcome could be far worse.
The 14-year-old student has been charged with Distribution of a Controlled Substance and Transaction of a Controlled substance within one-thousand feet of a school.
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