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(Authorities believe many PCP-related deaths are overlooked in
coroners' reports because they appear to be accidents- drownings,
deaths by tire, falls, etc.-involving people whose judgment and
coordination have been adversely affected by the drug. Thus, for
example, although only one death in Los Angeles County,
California, was officially attributed to PCP, Dr. Leon Marder,
d irector of the Drug Treatment Center at Rancho Los Amigos
Hospital, estimates that the true figure was more like 30.)
Cheap, Simple to Make.
Why the popularity of PCP? For one
thing, it is cheap, especially when compared with other illicit drugs
such as cocaine and heroin, whose prices have risen sharply in the
past year. Typjcally, a dose of PCP can be bought on the street for
$1, a half gram for about $10 to $12.
Another factor in its
favor
is
the ease with which it can be produced. PCP can be made
locally and quickly with simple equipment and readily available
ingredients. Lt. D.D. Williams ofthe Houston, Texas, drug squad
says, "Unlike heroin, which comes from out ofthe country, it is a
domestic phenomenon. It's obviously simple enough that a first- or
second-year chemistry student can make it." Fly-by-night chem–
ical plants-known as "pig outfits"- have sprung up across the
~
ori
country. Their profits are enormous, according to John Van Diver,
~
Western regional director of the Federal Drug Enforcement
~
Administration. He says that sorne laboratories that formerly
~
~
produced illicit LSD and amphetamines have switched to PCP
because the ingred ients are easier to process with a smaller
8
investment.
Then there is the factor ofnovelty- young people
looking for a new drug experience, a different high . PCP has that,
all right, but the price that may be paid in terms ofbaneful effects
on the human mind may not be worth the "trip."
Unpredict–
able Side Effects.
Usual!y produced as a white powder, PCP can
be sniffed, like cocaine, smoked as an additive to marijuana,
PHENCYCLIDINE HYDROCHLORIDE
(angel dust or PCP) cigarettes and rock
crystal. The drug can be snorted as a
powder, injected
as
a fluid, swal/owed
as
a pi// or dusted over mini /eaves and
smoked.
oregano or parsley, chewed on mint leaves or injected. Those who have taken PCP describe its more
benign effects as like that ofvery strong marijuana . One user said
it
is like "a combination oftaking
LSD and sniffing glue." At best, it provides a mellow sensual or dreamy experience. Users feel the
effects within two to
ti
ve minutes after Stnoking a small amount, and the feelings peak in about 15 to
30 minutes. The high continues for four to six hours, but the user does not feel normal for 24 to 48
hours.
Unfortunately, there is no way that one can guarantee a good trip with PCP. "The tragedy
is that most people experience angel dustas sorne unusual fo rm ofmarijuana and associate it with the
benign patterns of marijuana, but it's anything but that- it's a real terror of a drug," says Dr. Robert
L.
Dupont, director ofthe National Institute on Drug Abuse.
In truth , PCP can have bizarre and
totally unpredictable effects on the mind ofthe user. "The extreme unpredictability ofbehavior is one
ofthe most frightening things about angel dust,'' says Steve Lerner, a psychologist at R. Stanley Burns
and Associates, a San Francisco-based group that has been studying the drug for almost four years. 1n
controlled experiments using moderate doses, PCP has produced periods of stupor or even coma
lasting for hours or days. In acute cases, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration, the drug
has caused sorne users to be in a confused state ofmind for up to two weeks, followed by a psychosis
that lasts for severa! weeks. The psychosis closely resembles paranoid schizophrenia. These results
were obtained from PCP manufactured legally under rigid controls and purity standards
and administered under supervision. How it affects the user in the
(Continuedonpage41)
The
PLAIN TRUTH March 1978
17